Shakespeare’s plays have been with us for 400 years. Is it time for an update?

The Oregon Shakespeare Festival has commissioned all the Bard’s plays to be translated into contemporary English. How will this work? And what’s the reaction?

Oregon Shakespeare Festival director Lue Douthit talks to linguist Daniel Midgley on this episode of Talk the Talk.


Listen to this episode

225: Shakespeare in Translation (featuring Lue Douthit)

Download this episode

You can listen to all the episodes of Talk the Talk by pasting this URL into your podlistener.

http://danielmidgley.com/talkthetalk/talk_classic.xml

Promo

Promo with Kylie Sturgess, 2015-11-10, Shakespeare 1

Show notes

What a Mass Exodus at a Linguistics Journal Means for Scholarly Publishing
http://chronicle.com/article/What-a-Mass-Exodus-at-a/234066

Clarifying a few facts for Elsevier and their response to Lingua
https://www.martineve.com/2015/11/05/clarifying-a-few-facts-for-elsevier-and-their-response-to-lingua/

Language Log: Lingua is dead. Long live Glossa!
http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=22162

MIT: Open Access FAQ
https://libraries.mit.edu/scholarly/mit-open-access/general-information-about-open-access/open-access-faq/

Wikipedia: Washington Redskins name controversy
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Redskins_name_controversy

Redskins Cite Protected Products With Controversial Language in Trademark Appeal
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2585622-redskins-cite-protected-products-with-controversial-language-in-trademark-appeal

Obama again urges Redskins name change
http://www.usatoday.com/story/theoval/2015/11/06/obama-washington-redskins-adidas-tribal-nations-conference/75281088/

Obama suggests Adidas help Redskins change name
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/nov/5/obama-suggests-adidas-help-redskins-change-name/

California bans use of “Redskins” name
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/10/11/california-bans-use-of-redskins-name/

Spokane Indians Change Jerseys to Salish Language
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/12/spokane-indians-change-jerseys-salish-language-162046

Spokane Indians’ New Uniforms Have Team Name in Native Spokane Salish Language
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/spokane-indians-new-uniforms-have-team-name-native-spokane-salish-language-180950168/?no-ist

Spokane Indians baseball uniforms sport Salish word
http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2014/mar/16/spokane-indians-baseball-players-uniforms-sport/

Wikipedia: Salish-Spokane-Kalispel language
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salish-Spokane-Kalispel_language

William Shakespeare’s Plays to Be “Translated” into Modern English http://playbill.com/news/article/william-shakespeares-plays-to-be-translated-into-modern-english-364393

Oregon Shakespeare Festival: About Us
https://www.osfashland.org/en/experience-osf/education/about-us.aspx

A Facelift for Shakespeare
http://www.wsj.com/articles/a-facelift-for-shakespeare-1443194924

Oregon Shakespeare Festival Launches Shakespeare Translation Project
http://www.americantheatre.org/2015/09/30/oregon-shakespeare-festival-launches-shakespeare-translation-project/

What Can Be Done About the Incomprehensibility of Shakespeare?
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/put-differently/92750/shakespeare-as-you-like-it-language

O Romeo, Romeo, What The Heck Are You Saying?
http://www.npr.org/2015/10/17/449270557/o-romeo-romeo-what-the-heck-are-you-saying

Does ‘translating’ Shakespeare into modern English diminish its greatness?
https://theconversation.com/does-translating-shakespeare-into-modern-english-diminish-its-greatness-48297

David Marcus from the Federalist: Are We Too Dumb For Shakespeare?
http://thefederalist.com/2015/11/02/are-we-too-dumb-for-shakespeare/

Fresh Shakespeare from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival
http://www.orartswatch.org/fresh-shakespeare-from-the-oregon-shakespeare-festival/

Urban Dictionary: flauging
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=flauge

Five Reasons Why People Code-Switch
http://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/04/13/177126294/five-reasons-why-people-code-switch

“Many a mickle makes a muckle” or something.
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/mickle


Image credit: http://myinspiredlife.hubgarden.com/images/modern-shakespeare1.jpg


Transcript

We’re working our way back through the archives. If you think we should prioritise a transcript of this episode, let us know!