What is Literature 0001

      This video, posted on Youtube by baileygoodman, goes into detail about literature and some reasons why we should learn it.  The video begins with a clip from Act I Scene III of Shakespeare's "As You Like It", where Celia tries to get Rosalind to runaway with her to find Rosalind's father in the Forest of Arden, and goes on to explain how many kids dread learning literature because of a lack of ability to understand Shakespeare.  Next, it posses two of the biggest questions kids ask in school, "Why do we have to know this stuff?" and "When will we ever use this stuff in real life?"
     To answer these questions, the narrator defines literature.  She says, "Literature is used to describe anything from creative writing to more technical or scientific works, but the term is most commonly used to refer to works of the creative imagination including works of poetry, drama, fiction, and non-fiction."  She then focuses on how literature affects literacy or "Why do we have to know this stuff?" and "When will we ever use this stuff in real life?"  A key point the narrator brings up is how life would be different if literature were not taught and how we would be forced to return to the Stone Age, where we communicate through grunts and moans.
     Once she defines literature, she tries to explain why we study literature.  Through the study of literature, the narrator feels, "We learn about books in literature, we enjoy the comedies and tragedies of poems, stories, and plays, and evolve through our literary journey with books."  In essence, what the narrator is trying to say is that literature is all things written and has impacted the life of humans tremendously to the point that humans can not do without literature.
     In my opinion, I found this video to be very informative as it answers the key questions students truly care about, "Why do we have to know this stuff?" and "When will we ever use this stuff in real life?"  Another reason why I think I have found this video so inspiring is because of the tone of the narrator and the use of modern clips used within the video.  The narrator's tone is a high-pitched feminine voice which gives the audience the sense that the narrator is relatively young.  This age similarity allows an instant relationship to be built between  the narrator and the audience because it is naturally easier for a student to talk to another person their age rather than a more mature person.  Along with this age similarity, the use of modern clips within the video, such as the Geico Commercial, keeps the audiences attention and makes the learning experience more fun and relaxing rather than a strict lecture.  Finally, the use of a relatively common diction allows the audience to be able to understand what the narrator is speaking about in the video.  I feel anyone who is having trouble with literature should see this video because "even when its ugly, literature is beautiful."

"To Be Or Not To Be..." Three Ways

    In Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet, starring Mel Gibson, Hamlet is found in the same place his father was buried.  The underground graveyard is a very dark place where Hamlet shows  his true sadness towards his fathers death and goes on to debate suicide.  The darkness of the underground graveyard makes the scene seem more deep and depressing than it seems.  Along with the darkness, the fact that he makes this soliliquoy in the presence of his fathers grave gives the audience the effect of how deeply Hamlet's fathers death has on Hamlet.
   In Lawrence Olivier 's Hamlet, the scene is shot with Hamlet sitting on the edge of a cliff with a knife to himself.  The fact that this scene is shot on the edge of a cliff with a knife makes the shot more intense.  It intesifies the seriousness of his attempt at death as he can both stab himself or hop off the cliff and fall to his death.  Also, the fact that the scene is black and white causes you to pay more attention to the actor and his props rather than the costumes and other distractions.
   In Kenneth Branaugh's Hamlet, Hamlet is seen in the middle of a big room with Ophelia and Polonious and King Claudis watching his actions.  King Claudis and Polonious watch from the other side of the mirror that Hamlet is facing.  This mirror allows the audience to truly understand the concept that Hamlet is fighting with himself over this decision.  Also, having King Claudis and Polonious watch Hamlet gives the scene more shock as you can see their reaction to Hamlet's action.