Drama discussion prompt

Seneca OR Ghosts

Choose ONE of these topics, and report on a little (non-Wikipedia) research. 

***In order to receive full points for your post:

1) You MUST include your citation (like a URL) to your source; and 2) ALSO a piece of DIRECT QUOTE to report research, with introductory/transitional phrasing in your own language. 

When you take even 3-4 words directly from a research source, you MUST place those between quotation marks.  For instance, you might write something like: According to History.com, Henry VIII’s first wife Catherine of Aragon was “demoted for bearing no son.”  Do you see how words you took directly from another source are placed within quotation marks?  You MUST to do this, or you risk a plagiarism charge.  Since you are being asked to conduct research, it’s perfectly fine that you are reading other sources, but you need to get in the habit of reporting and crediting your sources correctly.

Please note: Any time you use another source, you must use quotation marks around words taken from them and credit your source each and every time you use their ideas or words.  Do NOT borrow a large chunk from someone else and then just drop a citation at the end of your post.  That will not receive any credit.

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A) Seneca and His Influences:

***What kinds of topics or themes was Seneca interested in? What major elements were present in his works? How is his artistic style characterized? How might we argue that Shakespeare’s Hamlet owes a debt to Seneca?

(Hint: Research Seneca’s tragedies rather than just any writing by Seneca.)

B) Ghosts during Shakespeare’s Time:

***Did people who lived during Shakespeare’s time generally believe in ghosts? If so, were they generally considered forces of good or for evil? Are there documented instances of ghostly visitations, or were these mostly folk tales? How much does religious tradition play a part in the role of ghosts? For instance, what is “purgatory“?