Wednesday, January 30, 2008

Poll Results - Weird Sister Folklore

Well, it seemed that most of you picked the three Weird Sisters as your favorite set of characters among other iconic Shakesperian creations. Even Puck with his trickery, Caliban with his feral nature and Shylock with his miserly stature could not stand up to the power of the three. I know I could have added more characters to the poll, with several other memorable Shakespeare personas, but I was merely testing the feature itself.



The witches are probably the most memorable icons in Shakespeare lore, with "Bubble, bubble, toil and trouble!" popping in most people's minds.

The word "weird" was derived from "wyrd," which meant "fate" or "future." "Weird" has been commonly used ever since the performance of Macbeth to describe something out of place or simply uncanny. The presence of the Weird Sisters was not a new concept during Shakespeare's time, as they have thrived through the world of Old Norse mythology.

These three sisters have left their mark (and magic) on popular culture. There is a folk group known as Three Weird Sisters. They work in the filk genre, which deals primarily with themes of science fiction and fantasy. In the novel Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, there is an all male rock group known as the "Weird Sisters" who perform during the Yule Ball.

It seems that the witches will not stop casting their spells to facinate fans of Shakespeare and folklore for quite some time. Till then, I posted a new poll of which couple is the best in Much Ado About Nothing. Who will prevail? Is it Benedick and Beatrice, with their vicious quips to one another? Or is it Claudio and Hero, in which the tragedy and comedy of the play alter their character development?

- Kristopher

1 comment:

AllisonR said...

That is really interesting where the word "weird" came from. You find a lot of wonderful info!

You've been working hard!!!
Peg