I have been questioning my initial paper from the start. At first it was about how the play of Macbeth has been interpreted in Brazil. I initially thought this would be a cool idea, but when I got to think about I noticed that my heart simply wasn't in it. I felt it somehow wasn't relevant enough for the current times.
Going with our theme of collaborating socially to construct our papers, over the weekend I changed my topic to be about how the Macbeth play has been marketed in the past and present (last decade mostly). I like this topic because it feels fresh for the times we live in and since we live in a society so bombarded with media, marketing and advertising, I figured there'd be a lot of sources and information to draw from. My ultimate goal is to formulate a paper that suggests new ways in which this particular play can be marketed today to attract a larger audience. The younger crowd would be the most to benefit from these marketing efforts, because they're the ones who are perhaps the least interested in Shakespeare generally.
I hope my paper may be a stepping stone to Shakespeare production companies, theaters, etc. to better market their plays. We all know the importance of a first impression. In this day and age, the first impression, if not done right, may linger negatively for a considerably long time in people's collective consciousness, which indirectly influences thousands and perhaps even millions, of peoples' impressions.
I have researched mainly online, sending tweets to around 50 Shakespeare "people" and also emailing a few professors of mine in the Communications department. These professors are professional advertisers, as well as BYU teachers now. Tomorrow I'm also going to meet with Robert Means, the subject librarian.
My questions to you guys is this:
- What are some other methods of research you think I could use for my paper?
- How can I combine this contextual analysis with the text of Macbeth itself?
Wish me luck.
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