Tag: Shakespeare

ISSUE #43 | DEC 2023, Religion

Shakespeare and the Psalmist: How Hamlet Echoes Psalm 8

“What a piece of work is man, How noble in reason…/ and/ yet to me, what is this quintessence of dust.” Hamlet’s mournful declaration in Act II, scene 2 opens the audience up to his deeply despondent view of human nature.  The prince of Denmark, fresh off his mother’s wedding to his uncle, looks at the world through graphite-colored glasses. Throughout the play, he is … Continue reading Shakespeare and the Psalmist: How Hamlet Echoes Psalm 8

Hillsdale ForumLeave a comment
ISSUE #27 | DEC 2019, Poetry

 Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads: Keeping Poetry Honest

“Fair is foul and foul is fair,” sing the witches in Macbeth as they toss toads and newts and thumbs into the pot to make “double, double, toil and trouble.” Despite the appearance of sorcery, they do not supernaturally bewitch Macbeth. All they do is speak. Macbeth destroys himself of his own free will. It’s a subtle boast from Shakespeare: by giving the witches the … Continue reading  Imaginary Gardens with Real Toads: Keeping Poetry Honest

Hillsdale Forum
culture, ISSUE #26 | OCT 2019

Comic Heroes of the Demos

Captain America, Luke Skywalker, and Harry Potter are ideal “heroes” for what Nietzsche would call a “democratic” soul. These caricatures of childhood imagination encourage a reversion to puerile notions of unearned self-importance among their devotees. The protagonists of these stories come from common backgrounds but are, within the first quarter of the film, serendipitously granted magical powers and a world-changing mission. To their audience, these … Continue reading Comic Heroes of the Demos

Hillsdale Forum