The Shakespearean Language 

“Let it fall rather…… Let it fall rather…” Shit, I forgot the lines. Why is everyone looking at me? What do I do? Should I improvise, or should I stay with the script? I looked into Mr. Hannon’s eyes and begged for lines. He expected me to recall, so he waited for five seconds. I had everyone’s attention. A thousand eyes were looking and waiting for me to act, but I was standing on the stage alone, afraid and speechless.  

Let’s go back to the beginning. It’s senior year of Shakespearean literature. I had two days to prepare. I was responsible for acting two characters at once. It was my ultimate concern. I had my script: big fonts, bold letters, Shakespearean words, folded twice and held in my hands. Finally, I opened the script. I was flabbergasted: the words were unknown; the sentences were meaningless; the language was foreign. All these issues meant nothing. I knew what was coming. 

I woke up to the blaring sound of my alarm. I opened the window as the shimmering lights and shivering cold hit my body. Soon, I realized, today was the day I would perform on stage. I got ready and headed to school. On my way, I recited every line until I had perfected them. Soon enough, I was in school.  

I was early; there were two other students in the classroom. I felt an unusual cold in the air as it occupied my body. I was going second; I would be acting as King Lear and his advisor Kent. I was responsible for both characters. I chose an ordinary medieval crown to show the switch of characters. The first group was already on stage and ready to act.  

The show was on. The first group had a blast. With medieval accents and props, they had perfected their performance. Soon, it will be my turn. I was alone and nervous with my stumbling accent and broken language. Despite my mental and emotional insecurities, I stood on the stage. 

Mr. Hannon announced, “Syed would be doing this alone; everyone will be extra supportive towards him.” The classroom echoed as everyone said, “Five, four, three, two, one.” 

Now, I was King Lear and Kent and Lear and Kent. I switch between both characters with my shattering fake accents, equipping and unequipping the crown, and switching sides. As I moved throughout the stage, the dreadful sound of the platform made me nervous. Switching between characters made me confused. I finished my lines for Lear and quickly switched to Kent. My memory blacked out, and I did not know what would come next. “Let it fall rather…… Let it fall rather…” I was Kent, yet I was reciting my Lear lines. I was begging for help; I looked into Mr. Hannon’s eyes, yet he waited, letting me stay on the stage alone and powerless in front of everyone’s eyes. I knew I would never recover from this. 

After a few moments, he helped as he said, “By Apollo.” Instantly, I recalled the entire script, and I was back on track. My performance ended with numerous applauses. I was the second performer and hence the expectations were not high; however, the few moments of silence left me with a deep scar in my memory. 

Maybe it was never about the moment of silence. Maybe Mr. Hannon was never responsible for helping me remember the line. Maybe the Shakespearean language is generally challenging to master. Maybe I am not yet proficient in the English Language. Maybe I have never fully discovered all pieces of the English language. Maybe the English Language is unknown to me. But what I can tell is that “Every Language has three components: read, write, and speech. If you are not proficient in one, you are not proficient in all.” Some expectations are unachievable, and it was one of them.