OSHER 939 - Shakespeare and Human Nature: Philosophers Mirrored by Shakespearean Characters

Hamlet states to a group of actors: "...the purpose of playing is to hold as t'were the mirror up to nature: to show virtue her feature, scorn her own image..." Shakespeare expresses his beliefs about human nature in all his writings. Everybody, including philosophers from the times of Ancient Greece to today, struggles with defining human nature or a guiding philosophy to live by. This course examines Shakespeare's philosophy set against six different philosophies of Aristotle, Confucianism, Immanuel Kant, Karl Marx, Thomas Aquinas, and Friedrich Nietzsche and what they posit as elemental human nature. Using Shakespeare's ideas from his work, we will comparatively analyze his writings with the philosopher's writings. We will read aloud Shakespeare's and the philosopher's words in our sessions. Class discussion will predominate our investigation.