William Shakespeare. The Bard. Arguably the most influential figure in English literature, but also one of the most controversial and mysterious.
Want to start an argument? Just make a claim about good old Bill in any English department faculty meeting at nearly any high school or college in the United States or Europe. Mamma mia. But we’re not going to get into that kind of drama. No, we’ll just stick to his sonnets and plays.

Sonnets
Here’s a concise and decent overview of the sonnets and why they’re important.
Some of you have asked whether the sonnets are autobiographical. Well, here’s one view.
Oh, and here’s the animated version of Sonnet 30.mov that your instructors created using the XtraNormal website.
Finally, you want sonnets? Oh, we got sonnets – all 154 of them. You betcha.

Shakespeare
Here are some general sources on the Internet that will help you get more familiar with Shakespeare.
Shakespeare @ MIT
Seattle Shakespeare
Shakespeare Study Resources
Serious Sonnet Studies
“Words” the WNYC Radiolab Podcast (we listened to the excerpt that starts at 22:00)
• … watch this space for more!