Soldan High School - Scrip Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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-.gn f' .- 'vif ----vii -Q A-2 9, Y -,tiQx '- , r . A - , g read his plays. There is hardly a language capable of literary expres- sion into which his works have not been again and again translated. What a boundless attraction and fascination must people find in his dramas! What is his magic secret, what quality has he breathed into his plays, that should make them interesting and enchanting to all people for all time? From the beginning, Shakespeare had that freshness of feeling which marks the true artist of every kind, he had also the sensitive ima- gination and the ear for melody. The world was reflected in his mind as in a mirror, its large outlines and its more delicate shadings lying luminous before him. To us he is inexhaustible. There is no development of character, no trait of human nature, that does not somewhere find expression in his plays. Character-painting was his forte. In Shylock Shakespeare has represented the embodiment of a down-trodden raceg the product of centuries of cruel exclusion from the larger opportunities of life. He is a man misshapen by the hands of those who feed his avariceg and because of the limitations imposed so harshly upon him, he makes a stronger appeal to the human heart. On the other hand, Brutus, the dominating power in Julius Cae- sar, is a scholar, a philosopher, an idealist, one who sits high in all the people's hearts , but who, because he is not practical, is drawn into a position Where it is impossible that he should be entirely true to him- self. It is inevitable that he should meet with ruin, as many another good-intentioned reformer has done since his time, in like circum- stances. Macbeth is a victim to his own ambition. He requires only the strength of will to hscrew his courage to the sticking-point and he would succeed. This is supplied by Lady Macbeth, who is equally am- bitious. She is determined to rule. But when all obstacles have been swept from their path, and they have gained the kingship, are they happy? No, haunting fear is ever present, Even in the dead of night, Lady Macbeth arises and tries to rub the spot of blood from her hand, stained by the murder of the king. Macbeth continually reproaches himself for his deeds. Confidence cannot silence, and even despair cannot stifle the cries of his conscience. Every noise appals him. He listens when nothing stirs. The darkness and stillness of the night strike terror into his heart. This play shows the working out of jus- tice, for Shakespeare never would portray the successful criminal as a happy man. , ' Another phase of human nature is shown in the portrayal of Rosen- crantz and Guildenstern, the political tools of the King of Denmark. 112

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Y-E -3- - We-7, .-, fi - -f -af , Y v ' ,,-sn, -4, -,. - V. W Y - : ,,.. Y Y V ,-YY ,A he compares ancient and modern poets. Here he mentions Shakes- peare. In speaking of Horace he says, as the soul of Euphorbus was thought to live in Pythagorus, so the sweet witted soul of Ovid lives in the melliiluous and honey-tongued Shakespeare , and again he says, If the muses could speak English they would do it in Shakespea1'e's phrase . With such recognition in his own time, is it any wonder that Shakes- peare is considered the greatest of poets? What Greece and Rome pro- duced were great until his time. Lions make leopards tame ! Shakespeare is quoted, too, because he was the greatest of philoso- phers. He knew the relations that men sustain to each otherg he knew that the soul lives in an invisible world and that 'fThere,s no art To find the mind's construction in the face. He knew that judgment should rule courage, and that When valor preys on reason It eats the sword it fights with. Through his great knowledge of the human heart he knew the hopes, fears, passions and ambitions that sway the mind of man and knowing these, he said: , t Love is not love that alters When it alteration Ends. Do you wonder that Shakespeare, the master of the human heart, and mind, the greatest poet, the great philosopher, the man who beau- tified so many of our homely proverbs with his own personal touch, do you wonder he is so widely quoted? --Robert M. Cutter. Shalgespeareis Plays as a Mirror of Nature m, N HERE are some men whose names are written on the page f 4-v of history, as it were, in large type, who, nevertheless, in their own day, were not perceived to be of more than or- dinary size. Columbus died in ignorance that he had discovered a new world, so possessed was he with the idea that he had touched the outlying coasts of Asia. Shakespeare died in ignorance of the fact that he had made himself the foremost man in literature, so far apart in his thought and in the thought of his time, were plays and lit- erature. Yet to-day he occupies a place unparalleled in history. Men of every nation, of every rank, are captivated by him. People of foreign nations are so much interested in him that they learn English merely to 111 1- 11 T i

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nw. ' Ax- W' :' ' 3' ' ' If , . ,,4, V , , -,gi .v Y Q.,-iff 1.,-Q., In every court of every king their types may be found. Hamlet de- scribes them as Usponges that soak up the King's rewards and authori- ties. Then there is Horatio, whose fidelity to Hamlet forms an ideal friendship. Never does he betray the confidence of his friend. True in all trials, he is the only one upon whom Hamlet can rely. . In Hamlet is depicted a great deed laid upon a soul unequal to the performance of it. He is the type of man whose intellectual powers completely overbalance his powers of action. He had dedicated his life to the avenging of his father's murder. V But when the opportunity for doing this is given to him, he can not carry out his purpose. His inner spirit tells him to wait until a more favorable opportunity is given. He is incapable of quick, decisive action, but he does not know how to remedy his defect. Thus, one of the greatest of Shakespeare's 'charac- ters is of vacillating disposition, weighing now this, now that, in his mind until he almost loses sight of his already blunted purpose. Shakespeare, in his historical plays, has brought on the stage vari- ous kings of England, showing why they failed or why they succeeded. King john failed through cowardiceg Henry VI. because of a weak and yielding dispositiong Henry IV. had not failed, but his success was hampered by his craft and suspicion. Henry V. cannot be considered as a truly great character. His chief appeal is to the patriotism and the love of conquest inherent in every heart. When Shakespeare placed this popular hero on the stage, it was one of those lucky strokes that a poet in touch with the people can always be depended on to make. We ought not to leaveout the two Portias, Rosalind, Beatrice, Ophelia and an infinite number of others, each of whom typiiies some trait of human nature. But to describe all is impossible. Their char- acters are as varied as human nature itself. For Shakespeare no more invented men than he invented plots. He adopted those whom he found among his neighbors and associates. No real character is ever conjured up from the imagination. Such a char- acter has to be taken from life. Probably Shakespeare had a living rep- resentative for nearly every character he drew. A word or an incident would often unfold to him the whole soul of a man. Shakespeare showed him as he saw him. He knew how he would think, act, and talk on given occasions, and painted him accord- ingly. The greatest of dramatists, Shakespeare contributed to the drama nothing but himself, his power of holding the mirror up to nature and recording the impressions made therein. Q -Ruth Campbell. 113