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Shakespeare and Modern Popular Culture. Douglas Lanier. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
I remember a T-shirt from the 1990s that read, "To drink, or not to drink: what was the question?" This shirt, worn by high school and college students on spring break, illustrates just one way that popular culture has appropriated Shakespeare. Throughout his book, Douglas Lanier explores similar appropriations of the bard and argues that the relationship between Shakespeare and popular culture uniquely reflects the tension between high and low art. More specifically, he posits that popular culture complexly manipulates Shakespeare, as it often works to deface the decorum that surrounds the author while simultaneously upholding him as a cultural icon of untimely wisdom.
Drawing from a series of rich case studies, including the use of Shakespeare in pornography, fan-fiction, public...