The Marginalian
The Marginalian

Animated Anatomy of Shakespearean Slurs

Heartless hinds, fishmongers, and lots of thumb-biting.

By Maria Popova

Nearly two years ago, The Snark Handbook: Insult Edition gave us high-brow verbal sparring lessons with some of literary history’s finest comebacks, taunts, and effronteries. Now, from educator April Gudenrath and the team at TED-Ed comes this primer on Shakespearean insults, which served to unify the audience and to develop relationships between characters in a very short and sharp way.

Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?

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Published May 15, 2012
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https://www.themarginalian.org/2012/05/15/ted-ed-shakespearean-insults/
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