Insecurity In Shakespeare By Jake Wizner

Writing is more than narrating a memorial event, expressing one’s emotion, and communicating one’s thoughts. Instead, it can serve as an antidote for insecurity and misery. In Jake Wizner’s Spanking Shakespeare, Wizner underscores how Shakespeare is plagued by insecurity in his high school career due to his low self-esteem. His confidence is further undermined by his younger brother whom is very charismatic and popular in their high school. Thankfully, Shakespeare gradually discovers his talent as a writer. Through writing, not only does he find solace and his identity, but he also thrives during adversities. Through the atmosphere, conflicts, and symbolism, Wizner demonstrates how writing enables Shakespeare to find the power to overcome his

Wizner demonstrates how Shakespeare struggles to find a date and has a crush on Celeste. The conflict is that he lacks the confidence and courage to pursue her. Ultimately, he resorts to using his poetry to overcome his insecurity and anxiety and pressure by expressing his feelings and thoughts freely. When he illustrates his thoughts through the poem, he is able to build his confidence when he imagines Celeste “taking [his] hand and leading [him] into her bedroom” (Wizner 92). Through writing, Shakespeare is able to overcome the fear of rejection, and to be truthful to himself. His insecurity abates when he gains his confidence to express his thoughts and desires freely. Another conflict is his constant struggle with his identity and his family background. He is ashamed of his parents’ nonchalant attitude. However he is able to find solace when he writes the college essay by expressing his concerns and apprehensions, which allows him to come to terms with his background. Accordingly, his relief is evident when he demonstrates his humour by cracking a joke and entertaining his parents: “It’s a joke. It’s supposed to be funny” (Wizner 67). His humour indicates that he has come to terms with the reality. He is able to overcome his fear of judgement from others when he expresses his emotions and finds his peace. By resolving the conflicts, Shakespeare is

Shakespeare struggles to find his talents and identity as he lives under the shadow of his brother. However, the Red Herring school magazine, a very famous magazine company known for its daily technology news service, symbolizes accomplishment and recognition. When he is appointed to be an author in the magazine, he feels a sense of pride when he says, “maybe it was time to embrace that gift and see what I could get out of it” (Wizner 252). By getting chosen by the famous company, (Suggestion: By appointed to be an editor in the magazine), he is able to recognize his true gift of writing, and continue to take advantage of his talent. He is able to to gain the confidence he needs through his contributions to the magazine. which allows him to feel included. The second symbol that Wizner uses is the complimentary letters from his classmates, which symbolizes honor and respect. When the school year is over, everyone writes letters to him about his great writing skill and how talented he is. In the beginning, everyone would just ignore and laugh at him. However, One person (any name given?) even compliments in the letter by saying that “[Shakespeare] is a great writer [and] sometimes [he] wish [he] could be more like [Shakespeare]” (Wizner 273). His lack of recognition, insecurity, is overcome when people start noticing and