The Essay: Reading the First Folio

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The Essay: Reading the First Folio: Professor Islam Issa on Julius Caesar

Professor Islam Issa on Julius Caesar

Reading the First Folio

BBC Radio 3 - The Essay, Reading the First Folio, Professor Islam Issa on Julius Caesar

Professor Islam Issa chooses a passage spoken by Julius Caesar in Act 2, Scene 2.

Author, curator and broadcaster Islam Issa chooses a speech by Julius Caesar in which the lead character says: 'Cowards die many times before their deaths.'

400 years after the publication of William Shakespeare's First Folio, five writers are each asked to pick a speech from one of the Folio's plays, tell it what they think it means, and what it means to them. This time, the author, curator and broadcaster Professor Islam Issa chooses a speech from Act 2, Scene 2 of Julius Caesar. It's a speech which he says is full of masterful language, can leave us with surprising take-homes about everyday life, and has a fascinating performance history. 

In an essay which takes us from the Roman Empire to Robben Island prison, Islam shows us how much a short speech from early in the play can teach us about humanity and every day life. Drawing on reflections and quotes from Islamic scholar and mystic Jalal al-Din Rūmi and the father of the Japanese chanoyu (the tea ceremony) Sen no Rikyu, Islam reveals how a passage from a play which is over 400 years old might say something about mindfulness in the present moment.

Produced by Camellia Sinclair for BBC Audio in Bristol
Mixed by Suzy Robins

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Essays marking the 400th anniversary of the printing of Shakespeare's First Folio in 1623.

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