Poking Around for Interest in my topic

In response to a blog post (http://www.shakespeareintheruins.com/2012/02/for-forth-he-goes/) I discovered, because commenting was not enabled and because I was really curious what the author would have to say in response to my hypothesis, I sent the following email.

Kevin,

I have just had the pleasure of stumbling upon your blog for SIR and thus discovering your delightful theater company. I was particularly intrigued by your most recent post about performing Romeo and Juliet for the students of Gladstone elementary. What a meaningful experience!

I am currently working on a thesis about Shakespeare and folklore, because I am a student of both. I hypothesize that Shakespeare's incorporation of folklore and retelling of folk tales is precisely why his works are so universal - why, as you put it, "shakespeare is for everyone".

Folklore is often a representation of societal anxieties or tensions and designed to protect a class of individuals (pregnancy folklore, for example, is centered around the anxieties our cultures have about protecting the young). Thus there is something in folklore for everyone. I believe Shakespeare really understood the folklore of his day and by drawing on this, increased not only his popularity but also his timelessness because many of the same folk tales and the same cultural tensions exist today. Folklore is well engrained in even young minds, as you witnessed at Gladstone.

Interestingly enough, individuals often label folklore as "for children" or lesser minds and "untrue" and thereby distance themselves from it. Not all folklore is fantastic or false. Many folk remedies in the past have served as the basis for the development of medication we use commonly today. But folklore tends to makes modern audiences (who adhere to "age of reason" ways of thinking) a little uncomfortable, which I hypothesize may be another reason they distance themselves from The Bard.

I wondered if you wouldn't mind my using your story (while of course crediting the source) to further develop my hypothesis on my shakespeare blog - zabriskiebri382.blogspot.com. I am currently documenting my research process there. I would love to hear your thoughts about my theories if you can spare the time while ensconced in your bed and breakfast castle.

Bri Zabriskie
brionlyshe07@gmail.com

Sent from my iPhone

I'll let you know if I hear anything back.