Littleton College - Chatterbox Yearbook (Littleton, NC)

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240 THE CHATTERBOX. tion to them, and so Shakespeare calls our attention to these forces in diverse ways through his Works. All the passions of the human soul are brought out in Shakespeare and We are made to think of these passions in human life. Then, too, there is a mental development in concentration of thought, for a certain degree of concentration is absolutely necessary to grasp the idea, or to interpret the literature of Shakespeare as it should be to get the highest, deepest and broadest meaning. There is mental growth involved in memorizing some of the finest passages as, for illustration, the oration from 'trlulius Cacsarn by Mark Antony at Cmsar's funeral, beginning- Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears, I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him, The evils that men do lives after them, The good is oft interred with their bones, So let it be with Caesar. - and it is unnecessary to finish the quotation, for the Whole of Mark Antony's speech is familiar to all students of Shakespeare. Another quotation that is Worth memorizing for the thought contained as Well as for the mental develop- ment is- Sweet are the uses of adversity, Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous, Wears yet a precious jewel in his head: And this our life, exempt from public haunt, Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, Sermons in stones, and good in everything. or to give one other: Good name in man or woman, dear my lord Is the immediate jewel of their soul: Who steals my purse steals trash, 'tis something, nothing, 'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands, But he who iilches from me my good name Robs me of that which not enriches him, And makes me poor indeed.

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Tnn Cu.x'rTEi:BoX. 239 The Value of the Study of Shakespeare. REBECCA NVINBORNE EVANS. Shakespeare stands out in English literature as the chief producer of a perfect literature, being Without a peer in all the realm of hundreds of English Writers. If all the litera- ture that England has produced, both good and bad, with the exception of Shakespeare's Writings, Were to be destroyed, England Would yet be rich in literature. If Chaucer, Mil- ton, Shelley, Byron, Keats, YVordsWorth, Tennyson-if all Were to be taken from the great catalogue of English Writers, and Shakespeare remained, England could boast of a litera- ture almost, if not entirely,,without equal in quality. Shake- speare stands in England as Homer to the Greeks, Virgil to the Romans, Voltaire to the Erench, and Dante to the Ital- ians. His Works have stood the test of time through all the changing years,-stood in spite of the changes of customs, manners, dress and the great change of human ideas which is often so detrimental to literary productions,-and yet is just as perfect literature to-day as during the sixteenth cen- tury. One great factor in the 'greatness of Shakespeare as a writer is that he had the whole world for the source of his Writings, and he portrays human life and character as it is instead of ideally. His field in literature is almost Without limit, to him the World was a great stage and humanity the actors-'cand all the men and Women merely playersf' With such a literature as comes to mind or is embraced in the study of Shakespeare, one can readily see that such a study should and must result in great mental development and intellectual growth. Any close observation of the forces of Nature must promote mental growth and often We are made to observe these forces by some one's calling our atten-

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THE CHATTERBOX. 241 It is very evident that all the processes of education are dependent upon memory, for as our memories are developed and strengthened the mental horizon grovvs broader and the thinking faculties are put in action. If one were to take a course in Shakespeare simply for the character study, the time would be Well spent. There is the character of Brutus who is so patriotic that he thought it was his duty to stab Caesar. He gives his own character in: H I would not, Cassius, yet I love him well, But wherefore do you hold me here so long? What is it that ye would impart to me? If it be aught toward the general good, Set honor in one eye, and death in the other, And I will look on both indiiferentlyg For, let the gods so speed me as I love The name of honor more than I fear death. Shakespeare portrays Brutus as unselish and without envy. One might think that Brutus Was working from purely selfish motives, yet he had higher ideals, it was for the good of the state, he conscientiously believed. Then the lovable, the lovely character of Cordelia. There may be found in her all the virtues that vvomanhood may call hers, thoroughly un- selfish, genuinely true, as is proved by her fidelity to her father although he has turned her out from the protection of his home. Shakespeare has shown his master mind by putting in contrast to this beautiful character the base, mean, degraded characters of Goneril and Regan. NVl1en we study the character of Lady Macbeth, With the strength of will that kept the courage of Macbeth up to the point of action, We Wonder how the man who created Midsummer Night's Dreamf' With all its spirits and fairies, could have created a Macbeth. No one can ind two characters any more alike in Shakespeare than in real life. While We are studying Shakespeare the characters are so true to human nature We