Haven't any of you read Shakespeare?

[fpb]

I have to laugh at the criticisms expressed against John McCain for saying "You do not have to be afraid of a President Obama". Can't you understand the suggestion? Have none of you read Othello? "Beware, my lord, of jealousy -" which nobody had thus far so much as mentioned. Or Julius Caesar? "For so are they all - all honourable men." John McCain is smarter than you think; and he is fighting meaner than you can imagine.

Comments

[mentalguy.livejournal.com]

Shakespeare didn't invent the rhetorical trick being employed; if one is observant, it should be possible to recognize it with or without familiarity with Shakespeare.

However, it is true that having read Shakespeare helps to recognize what's going on because it is so clearly demonstrated there. Some of the value of having read the classics is simply being able to recognize that "Hey, wait, he's doing that same thing that {Character} did in {Work of Literature}!"