Explaining Character in Shakespeare

Classroom Activities

Activity One: Graphic Novels

Part A: Comparison of the Two Graphic Novels

To help students better understand character motivation for the play Romeo and Juliet, we will first read the graphic novel interpretation of the play by Martin Powell. This particular graphic novel shares the basic story line of the play but incorporates only small portions of the Shakespearean language as a part of the dialogue of the characters. This will help introduce the students to word choices made by the author. For the second activity, we will read the graphic interpretation of Romeo and Juliet by Ian McNeilly and compare the two versions of the text. Using the “Think, Pair, Share” strategy, students will work with a partner to identify the similarities and differences between the texts. Ultimately, I want students to recognize that McNeilly incorporates more dialogue for each character, hence provides a better understanding of the character and their choices. For example, Mercutio and Tybalt have more dialogue and their prominence is highlighted in the McNeilly version while in the Martin version they play minor roles and the emphasis is exclusively on Romeo and Juliet. On the other hand, I want students to see that Martin does a good job of incorporating the language of Shakespeare as a part of the dialogue while McNeilly does not.

Part B: Character Action Diagrams

After reading the two graphic novel interpretations, students will map out the plot focusing on the choices the characters make. Students will follow the choices made by these four characters in particular: Romeo, Juliet, Mercutio, and Tybalt from Romeo and Juliet. In regards to Macbeth, students will closely follow the decisions made by Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Following the idea of a “timeline” as used in a history or a Social Studies class, students will create an event “timeline” or a plot diagram based on the choices each character makes as a way to summarize the plot of the play. This will also be a springboard for the discussion of character motivation and whether the choice the character made was the best option; we will also examine different outcomes: if the character had made a different choice, how would the plot be different?

Activity Two: “Insta-Shakespeare”

Since my students are avid users of social media, they will create an Instagram account for the characters of Romeo and Juliet. Instagram is a form of social media that is mainly visual; the user of the app posts images that reflect who they are as an individual. There are two ways images can be put on display. The user can take an actual photograph in the moment, as in using a camera, and share to their followers; or you can upload an image found online and post it on your profile to share online. Along with posting the photo, there is an area where the user can create a caption for the photo explaining what the photo represents. Instagram is a unique app in that it allows for others to see the photos you post as followers. These followers can also make comments on a photo/image.

Working in collaborative groups of four, each member of the group will embody one character: Romeo, Juliet, Mercutio, or Tybalt. Pretending to be this character, students will have to find five to ten images that tie back to the character’s family, emotions, and choices, and place the images on the poster board provided. They will need to explain why they chose this photo to represent their character. The other three students in their group (each representing another character) have to create a comment for each of the images as if talking to the character their group mate represents.

Activity Three: Socratic Seminar on Character Choices and Essay

As a culminating activity for both plays, students will participate in a Socratic seminar in the format of a fishbowl. In employing the fishbowl method, students will work with a partner to develop their argument and points they want to address on the four questions presented: (1) Does true love really exist? (2) What qualities create a good friend? (3) Can we blame others for the choices we make? (4) Is there such a thing as a bad influence?

Each partner will have to answer two of the four questions presented; as a part of their argument, they have to quote the graphic novels we read as well as the lines from the various scenes provided in their argument. For the question “Does true love really exist” we will focus on the dialogue shared between Romeo and Juliet in Act II and Act IV. For the question “what qualities create a good friend?” we will examine the fight scene between Mercutio, Tybalt and Romeo in Act III. For the last two questions, we will examine portions of Macbeth and lines from speeches by the witches, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth to find evidence that supports their arguments for these two proposed inquiries. The role of the non-speaking partner during the debate is to take notes outside of the circle in order for their team to develop a counterargument.

As a final assessment, students will use the notes they took during the debate as well as what they discovered as evidence for their answers to each proposed question to write an essay summarizing their responses to each question. Students can work with their partners to peer edit their responses (using a guide and copy of the rubric provided by myself) but each student is responsible for their own essay.