Learn Shakespeare’s masterpiece, Richard II -- and delve into a famous story of the nature of authority as it affects man, the medieval culture, and the Magna Carta’s birth with beautiful poetry and non-stop action.
How to get the most out of Shakespeare and Richard II with Kevin O’Brien:
- Watch each Recorded class session.
- Complete all quizzes and assignments. Parents can grade any essay questions, or they may purchase Instructor Access for Kevin O'Brien to grade the essay questions.
- The reading for each week can be found in that week's module.
- Repeat for each until course is completed.
- Once the course is completed to the parent's satisfaction, there is a Certificate of Completion at the end to be filled in for your records. Homeschool Connections does not provide record keeping.
Total Classes: 6
Duration: 55 minutes
Prerequisite: None
Suggested Grade Level: 9th to 12th grade.
Suggested Credit: 1/2 Semester English. For a full semester add another course.
Instructor: Kevin O’Brien
Instructor Email: kevin@classeswithkevin.
Course Description: Richard II is Shakespeare’s story of the nature of authority. Set in the 14th Century, Richard’s weakness as a ruler leads to civil unrest in England. The play examines the questions, “What do we do when we have bad people ruling over us?” as well as, “How is God’s authority expressed on earth?” With beautiful poetry and non-stop action, Shakespeare paints the portrait of a sensitive and tormented man who struggles to live up to his vocation.
Course Outline:
-
Class 1: Introduction
-
Class 2: Act One
-
Class 3: Act Two
-
Class 4: Act Three
-
Class 5: Act Four
-
Class 6: Act Five and Conclusion
Course Materials: Richard II, any notated edition. No Fear Shakespeare is a good online resource for the text and a helpful side-by-side modern paraphrase.
Homework: A close reading of each Act will probably take about an hour per week. Also, plan on occasional quizzes and a final essay.
- Teacher: Kevin OBrien