[CatoRenasci]

Indeed, most people today have trouble reading Shakespeare in English, as many of the words are obsolete, obscure, or have shifted meanings. A good glossary is usually provided in the better editions. Even 40 years ago, when I was a youth, knowledge of 16th-17th century English was much more widespread because people still read the 1611 Authorized Version of the Bible (known as King James, as it was he who commissioned the translation) -- which had a place in English-speaking countries similar to the Luther Bibel in Protestant Germany.

[Michael81Dus]

I´ve never read Skakespeare in English, we had to read Orwell in higher classes. Later, two years ago, I read some novels from good ole Billy in German (King Lear, MacBeth and the famous Hamlet).

Apropos Luther Bible: do you know that it´s his fault that most Germans start praying not with "Our Father" but with "Father our" (Vater unser). It´s an mistake made by the translation from Latin. In Latin, it´s "Pater noster", meaning "our father". Strange, or better: idotic that most perishes still pray the wrong version. :)