Tag Archives: Shakespeare

“But then begins a journey in my head”: Shakespeare’s Haunting Poetry of Sleeplessness

Posted on February 8, 2022 by Brenton Dickieson

Following a day of rest after weeks of weary toil, I did not hasten to my bed last evening. I had succeeded in finding repose over the weekend–a discovery that had been dear these last few weeks. Nighttime sleeplessness of … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, Reflections | Tagged Henry IV, insomnia, Macbeth, Patrick Stewart, Poetry, Shakespeare, Shakespeare Sonnet 27, Shakespeare Sonnet 28 | 2 Comments

Thoughts from Different Angles on Joel Coen’s Macbeth with Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand, and Is This Why I Can’t Sleep?

Posted on January 27, 2022 by Brenton Dickieson

I have no pretense of being a Shakespeare scholar, by any means. As I was educated primarily in Canadian public schools, my path of learning going into university had been embarrassingly narrow (so much so that I cannot spell the … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Denzel Washington, Dune, Frances McDormand, Ian McKellen, insomnia, Joel Coen, Judi Dench, Kathryn Hunter, Macbeth, Shakespeare, The Coen Brothers, The Merchant of Venice, The Taming of the Shrew | 22 Comments

A Head Full of Homer, A Trench Full of Blood (Remembrance Day Reblog from Tom at Alas Not Me)

Posted on November 11, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

Last year I followed a link from Tom Hillman (@alas_not_me) on Twitter to one of his 2017 reflections on war and reading. At the Alas, Not Me blog, Tom consistently writes thoughtful reading reflections and books studies, often connected to … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Homer, Reading, Shakespeare, war, WWI, WWII | 6 Comments

The 2021 Mythopoeic Awards Winners

Posted on October 18, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

At the virtual Mythcon 51 earlier in the fall, there was a good bit of buzz about the Mythopoeic Awards. As readers will know, I pay attention to the awards–so much so that this year they have stimulated a limited … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links | Tagged Bodleian Library, C.S. Lewis, Ebony Elizabeth Thomas, fantasy literature, Frank Herbert, Frederick Buechner, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, Jane Austen, John Garth, John Rateliff, Kathryn Hume, L.M. Montgomery, Lev Grossman, Madeleine L'Engle, Marilynne Robinson, Mythopoeic Award, Science Fiction, Shakespeare, Ursula K. Le Guin, Verlyn Flieger | 9 Comments

“A Very Mean Rank”: William Shakespeare, Brian Grazer, and Biographies that are Too Good to be True

Posted on March 2, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

As background to my year of reading Shakespeare (one play a month), I am reading Peter Ackroyd’s biography of Shakespeare. As in all of Akroyd’s historical writing, it is accessible, thoughtful, and remarkably quick-moving for a long book. He writes … Continue reading →