One professor criticizes the fresh Boston College writer’s technique for having a’ political goal ‘ ,
Boston College hired a new teacher in theatre arts this year to tell a course that will “interpret the concept of personality” in Shakespeare’s” Macbeth”.
In discussions with The College Fix, one researcher criticized the new writer’s “political aim,” while another claimed it “makes feeling.”
This drop quarter, Dawn Simmons will teach the school to “take a new appearance at Macbeth” and “provide students with the opportunity to work together to view the concept of identity,” according to Boston College News.
The class dives into how factors such as” social location”, “lived experience”, and more can impact interpretations and recounts of classic texts, specifically Shakespeare.
” This interpretation—based on the experiences, visual impulses, and ideas of the group contributors—will result in a new text inspired by ‘ MacBeth,’ which Simmons may direct”, according to the university.
In addition, Simmons is described as a” leader in the fight against racism and upholding diversity in the theater society.”
But, not everyone agrees with the new writer’s method. Anthony Esolen, a distinguished writing teacher at Thales College, criticized Simmons ‘ group as “political” in an internet to The College Fix.
I do n’t understand why we bother with the pretense of learning, Esolen told The Fix,” If all we do is read our own “live experience” or the images we have of ourselves in literature.”
” The lord, of course, is in the particulars, but I can say right off that I teach nothing, absolutely nothing, with any particular social aim in mind”, he said.
Esolen even stated to The Fix:
If I travel abroad, I apparently do so to abandon my own way of life and opened myself up to something entirely new. Like a foreign area is Shakespeare.
There is no end to the value of any literary or artistic work unless you think it can convey what is truly and unchangingly good, true, or beautiful. Often, it is all a matter of usage, turning Shakespeare into a device, which the professor here very confesses she is doing, or boasts that she is doing. It is all quite dreary.
MORE: A Cal Berkeley theater class will examine” Indigeneity and Whiteness.”
On the other hand, English Professor Julia Lupton, who teaches at the University of California, commended Simmons ‘ approach.
In an email to The College Fix, Lupton claimed that Shakespeare himself was interpreting events and tales from the past within the context of his own time.
” ‘ Macbeth,’ for example …depicts events from many centuries earlier but with an eye to celebrating the accession of King James I of England, who was also King James VI of Scotland”, the professor said.
According to Lupton, “it makes sense that we also renew these works in light of our own goals and difficulties.”
Professor Simmons stated to The Fix that she has no time to comment on her new class.
Prior to joining The Front Porch Arts Collective, Simmons also worked as a producer and playwright.
According to its website, The Front Porch Arts Collective is” a black theater company committed to advancing racial equity in Boston through theater.”
The theater department’s chair, Luke Jorgensen, stated in an email to The College Fix that the university is “very excited to have Dawn Meredith Simmons as]its ] Monan Artist in Residence.”
She combines her extensive directing and arts administration experience with her unique perspective as a successful theater maker. Her class in Devising will challenge our students to create a contemporary take on Shakespeare’s Macbeth”, he stated.
According to the Boston College website, the Monan Professorship in Theatre Arts annually brings nationally and regionally recognized artists to the institution.
MORE: Arizona State U. scholars condemn’ white ownership’ of Shakespeare
IMAGE: The Huntington/Youtube
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