“The workshop showed the impact of Shakespeare to real-life people.”

“It showed me a different view and interpretation of Shakespeare since I haven’t been through those experiences in my life, I wouldn’t have made those connections.”

“From watching the videos I learned that Shakespeare isn’t all about the fancy words and sonnets, but the stories encapsulate real social and human issues that people all around the world face so I must look at the plays trying to connect personally to what is going on in the story. Made me want to observe Shakespeare with a psychological lens since he tackles a lot of human and societal issues.”

“The video reminded me that as an individual I should express my thoughts rather than going with what everyone says. I misjudged the prisoners. Everyone has family and things that they care about. Instead of criticizing people for their differences and mistakes, people shouldn’t be defined by their mistakes. In terms of Shakespeare, I was able to see how timeless Shakespeare’s plays are.”

“I think the videos were very interesting not just through watching them from an Othello perspective, but just in general it was nice to see how humans, over time, have changed and developed better. Very educational in my case, especially with giving a sense of introspection on your life.”

“I thought the videos were really cool and the guy who was in solitary was really interesting. I like the fact that the inmates are wanting to learn and better themselves.”

“It shows that Shakespeare can be connected to things that happen in anyone’s lives, and are essentially timeless. It makes Shakespeare feel more impactful.”

“The videos give a different perspective on prisoners and the effects Shakespeare can have on them. It also lets everyone know how relatable Shakespeare is and how many of the themes in Shakespeare’s writings are immortal due to how people as a whole think.”

“The video we watched helps open our eyes to the plight of individuals who at one point or another have made a mistake. This helps us because we can see how they view Shakespeare and how we view his work, and it shows that Shakespeare isn’t just for high schoolers or for other people.”

“Being a high school student and having this knowledge helped me and how I see Shakespeare. Me and the people from prison have totally different understandings and interpretations of the stories seeing their understanding influenced how I viewed the stories because I haven’t had as many experiences and they relate in a different way.”

“I thought that seeing these videos helped to show me that all walks of life can relate to things in different ways, which helps me see the importance of this literature.”

“The videos were helpful because they gave me a new way to relate to Shakespeare in a way that I wasn’t able to before.”

“Allows us to see that Shakespeare transcends all labels and boundaries. Shakespeare also relates and allows people to see the extreme themes shown in Shakespeare and their effects.”

“Having access to these videos helped me bring an introspective view on how the lives of these prisoners bring about a sense of vulnerability between older generations and now.”

“My perspective towards the incarcerated was very different and I found it really cool how they connected to Shakespeare.”

“Very useful. People tend to bottle up emotions and are fully content on letting said emotions affect their lives until death/ And you can’t change if you still feel the same way on the inside.”

“The videos give insight to the people in the class as well as the importance of Shakespeare as a medium.”

“The videos show how Shakespeare affects other people with different lives than high school kids. Gives us something to think about.”

“The videos show the potency of Shakespeare’s messages when they come in conflict with people that can really relate and take in the story. A lot of us don’t get that since we’ve got 5 other classes and social stuff to take care of but these people have time.”

“It really made me take a step back from the stereotypes surrounding prisons, in that the men who commit crimes aren’t inherently dangerous but are humans who make mistakes and are capable of feeling remorse and guilt for the harm they’ve caused.”

“Having a discussion about the prisoners like we did, made it more insightful. I didn’t know this was something that was done but I love everything about it. I think this will become every popular very fast and give prisoners a chance to have another chance at life fairly.”

“The videos humanized the prisoners. And it demonstrated the growth they have accomplished while they were in prison. I really liked when the guy realized the “hood” perspective of women and realized it wasn’t right. I related to that.”

“The video sparked a good conversation and allowed us to think about the real-life application of Shakespeare.”

“I actually feel like Shakespeare is interesting now, knowing how the old concepts are still in today’s society.”

“I think it was a super valuable lesson, all parts of it. The stories were interesting, it was a bit outside our comfort zone which is great. I really enjoyed it. It was fascinating and eye-opening. It helped relate Shakespeare to real life.”

“I think it’s cool that they understand and have a different understanding than someone who hasn’t had anything hard to go through in life. It’s an interesting perspective and people would be interested to know about it.”

“I very much enjoyed watching the video of the prisoners as I found it very useful and insightful to see their perspective on Shakespeare and how it shaped them as people. I was very impressed with the program itself as well as how receptive a lot of the inmates are to the meanings in Shakespeare’s writing as well as how much it defied common stereotypes for me and other people. I wish that programs like these were more common as well as for people to see past stereotypes of people they have never met.”

“When we were introduced to Steve before he arrived, I thought, how, why would you teach Shakespeare in prisons? Teaching Othello/Shakespeare in prisons has shown me that the inmates were able to connect with life from a different perspective and see it in a way to better their life. Watching the video also made me realize you can use Shakespeare to see “life” in a different light.”