Fintan O'Toole: We've been reading Shakespeare all wrong

Saturday Morning

The works of William Shakespeare have been taught in classrooms all over the globe for countless years, but have we been reading them the right way? Irish journalist, author and former theatre critic Fintan O'Toole reckons we've been getting it all wrong. In his book Shakespeare is Hard, but so is Life, O'Toole suggests we are too concerned with the idea of the 'tragic flaw', a concept dating back to Aristotle to describe the innate quality that leads a protagonist towards their own downfall. Instead of searching for meaning in the character's actions, O'Toole says we should look at Shakespeare's works in the social context of the time.