Anger over 'dumbing down' of Shakespeare in schools
Last updated at 22:00 06 June 2006
They are using texts and GCSE revision guides which reduce the great works of literature to a series of simplistic cartoons and jokes.
Critics yesterday condemned the 'puerile' attempts to make Shakespeare more accessible and claimed it made a mockery of attempts to drive up standards in the country's schools.
They believe that the move to simplify everything to the lowest possible denominator explains growing numbers of howlers in students' exam papers.
Examiners recently complained that teenagers are approaching Shakespeare's plays as if they are TV soap operas, peppering their essays with conversational cliches and references to popular culture.
Coordination Group Publications, which describes itself as one of the country's most popular educational publishers, produces a series of complete plays of Shakespeare and revision guides.
Last year, more than 126,000 copies were sold direct to schools and on the high street.
But critics have rounded on the content of the books which are primarily aimed at pupils studying for GCSEs and also Key Stage Three national curriculum tests aged 14.
The first page of the complete play of Romeo and Juliet states that 'reading Shakespeare can be a real headache'.
It goes on to say that there is 'the odd bit of ever-so-nearly entertaining humour in the notes and pictures to help you breeze through the toughest of scenes'.
A cartoon strip summarises the story of the star-crossed lovers for students who may struggle with the whole play.
Shakespeare poetically describes the build up to the kiss between Romeo and Juliet in Act One, Scene Five. Romeo then kisses Juliet and declares: 'Thus from my lips, by thine, my sin is purg'd.'
The climatic scene is reduce to the following in the CGP book:
Juliet: What are you thinking about?
Romeo: Oh, just moons and spoon in June.
Juliet: Wow. Give us a snog then.
Similarly, in Act Three, Scene Five, when Juliet wakes up with Romeo, she famously says: 'Wilt thou be gone? It is not yet near day. It was the nightingale, and not the lark That pierc'd the fearful hollow of thine ear. Nightly she sings on yond pomegranate tree. Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.'
This is translated into: 'Well that was nice. You'd best be off now.'
'Plain English' notes
The play is then produced in full with 'plain English' notes alongside.
In Act Two, Scene Four, when Juliet's nurse comments on the departure of Mercutio and Benvolio, she actually says: 'I pray you, sir, what saucy merchant was this, that was so full of his ropery?'
The translation becomes: 'Bye. Romeo, who was that smart alec with the dodgy jokes?'
The play Macbeth receives a similar fate and is promoted with a series of 'tragic comics'.
In the text guide accompanying the play, Macbeth struggles with his conscience as he plots the murder of King Duncan with his wife in Act One, Scene Seven.
Macbeth declares: 'I'm not going to do it' and only changes his mind after Lady Macbeth calls him a 'cowardly custard'.
When he sees the dagger in Act Two, Scene One, he says: 'Ooh! Would you look at that.' He goes on to stab the King, shouting: 'Eat dagger old man!'
Shakespeare actually wrote: 'Is this a dagger, which I see before me, The handle toward my hand?' After slaying Duncan, he asks Lady Macbeth: 'I have done the deed. Didst thou not hear a noise?'
Professor Alan Smithers, director of the Centre for Education and Employment Research at Buckingham University, yesterday attacked the texts as 'depressing'.
He said: 'If examiners detect the signs of teachers or their students having used these texts, I hope they will mark them down.
'The point of studying Shakespeare is to engage with his thought and poetry and to enhance the students' lives.
'This seems to be circumventing that engagement. It's frightening really that it's thought necessary to use this sort of thing at GCSE level.'
Nick Seaton, of the Campaign of the Real Education, added: 'I think most parents and sensible teachers will be horrified.
'This is absolutely an attempt to reduce Shakespeare to the dumbest level and can only damage pupils' future prospects. It's a puerile attempt to dumb down.'
Simon Cook, spokesman for CGP, yesterday denied 'dumbing down', claiming they were simply trying to capture children's interest.
He said: 'We believe that when people are encouraging students to look at Shakespeare at school it's very important to make it accessible. We are stopping people being afraid of it.'
The company, which was founded in 1996 as a schools-only revision publisher, has an annual turnover of over £15million. It initially only sold to schools but has since expanded to the high street as well.
It also produces revision guides for Key Stage One, Two and Three, across a range of GCSE subjects and some A-levels.
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