Author Aiden Traynor (MA) from Dun Laoghaire has recently added ‘Shakepeare’s Greatest Hits’ to his works. The father of four grown up children has previously taught a course entitled ‘Enjoying English’ for the VEC, and has written a novel entitled ‘Hell Bent’.
Passionate about English literature, Aiden states the aim of the book is to provide the reader with easy access to the very best extracts from Shakespeare’s works and of course, it might provide some insight for secondary school students also.
“It runs to 262 pages,” he said “And is available on Kindle. The extracts are taken from all of his 38 dramas, plus the sonnets and his other poems. Apart from the extracts, there is a brief profile of each play.
“There are two additional sections listing popular quotes from his writings (196), and a list of works by other authors who used Shakespeare’s words as titles (28).
“The work should be of particular interest to second and third level students of English, and to admirers of the Stratford-upon-Avon Bard in general, as a quick reference aid.”
Aiden noted the style is accessible and “relatively lighthearted”.
Some excerpts from Shakespeare’s Greatest Works:
“The Taming of the Shrew is a farce. To the modern viewer its values can be quite distasteful, bearing in mind how women are treated today as opposed to what was considered normal in Shakespeare’s world etc.”
“The Merchant of Venice: the good-time socialite, Bassanio, is in a jam. He needs money to woo and marry a rich wife. Antonio, a wealthy, aging bachelor, agrees to finance the project, but needs to borrow the money, which he does from a money-lending Jew, Shylock. But Shylock imposes dangerous conditions upon the loan not being paid on time.”
“Othello: arguably, Iago is Shakespeare’s most perfect villain. He is the third of the three characters central to the drama, the others being Othello and Desdemona, whose happy marriage he plots successfully to destroy. His vengeance appears pointless. He is the essence of evil actions simply for their own sake…”.
So for anyone who has an interest in Shakespeare’s works, or indeed secondary school students, check out Shakespeare’s Greatest Hits by Aiden Traynor on Amazon/Kindle – cost £5.82 €6.59 (£5.82).
- Shane Filan leads ‘Relay for Life’ in the Aviva Stadium
- Women in Dublin urged to register for free heart health webinar
- Have your Say on the Draft Climate Action Plan
- Kilmacud power past Raheny as Boden line up Jude’s Derby
- dlr Musician-in-Residence 2023 Simon Morgan in Concert
