Mayor Daley has declared that, in honor of the 445th anniversary of the birth of the Bard of Avon, that this Thursday (April 23rd) will be “Talk Like Shakespeare Day” in Chicago:
http://www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/1534327,CST-NWS-shakes20.article
As the late British journalist Bernard Levin ( http://grammar.about.com/od/advicefromthepros/a/Levinwrite.htm ) once wrote, this is not so terribly difficult as it may sound:
“If you cannot understand my argument, and declare “It’s Greek to me,” you are quoting Shakespeare; if you claim to be more sinned against than sinning, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you recall your salad days, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you act more in sorrow than in anger, if your wish is father to the thought, if your lost property has vanished into thin air, you are quoting Shakespeare; if you have ever refused to budge an inch or suffered from green-eyed jealousy, if you have played fast and loose, if you have been tongue-tied, a tower of strength, hoodwinked or in a pickle, if you have knitted your brows, made a virtue of necessity, insisted on fair play, slept not one wink, stood on ceremony, danced attendance (on your lord and master), laughed yourself into stitches, had short shrift, cold comfort or too much of a good thing, if you have seen better days or lived in a fool’s paradise–why, be that as it may, the more fool you, for it is a foregone conclusion that you are (as good luck would have it) quoting Shakespeare; if you think it is early days and clear out bag and baggage, if you think it is high time and that that is the long and short of it, if you believe that the game is up and that truth will out even if it involves your own flesh and blood, if you lie low till the crack of doom because you suspect foul play, if you have your teeth set on edge (at one fell swoop) without rhyme or reason, then–to give the devil his due–if the truth were known (for surely you have a tongue in your head) you are quoting Shakespeare; even if you bid me good riddance and send me packing, if you wish I was dead as a doornail, if you think I am an eyesore, a laughing stock, the devil incarnate, a stony-hearted villain, bloody-minded or a blinking idiot, then–by Jove! O Lord! Tut, tut! for goodness’ sake! what the dickens! But me no buts–it is all one to me, for you are quoting Shakespeare.”
Some of the over 17,000 words attributed to him (or at least have first appearances in the English language attributed to him) include:
accommodation
aerial
amazement
apostrophe
assassination
auspicious
baseless
bloody
bump
castigate
changeful
clangor
control (noun)
countless
courtship
critic
critical
dexterously
dishearten
dislocate
dwindle
eventful
exposure
fitful
frugal
generous
gloomy
gnarled
hurry
impartial
inauspicious
indistinguishable
invulnerable
lapse
laughable
lonely
majestic
misplaced
monumental
multitudinous
obscene
palmy
perusal
pious
premeditated
radiance
reliance
road
sanctimonious
seamy
sportive
submerge
suspicious
For an excellent list of Word & Phrases coined by Shakespeare, look here:
http://www.pathguy.com/shakeswo.htm
And, of course, check out the official website:
http://talklikeshakespeare.org/
Sharpen thy wits, my band of brothers. Allow words to dance trippingly on your tongue, and seize the day. Have fun! 🙂
