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No Fear Shakespeare
No Fear Shakespeare is a source that lets its readers understand the plays written by William Shakespeare with ease. No Fear Shakespeare puts Shakespeare’s language side by side with a modern-English translation which makes it easy for the readers to understand the literature. It was launched on the Sparknotes website in 2003 which quickly gained popularity among high school students. The website itself is worth approximately $142,700 (as of September, 2014) with more than 60,000 visitors daily and 130,000 page views. It has roughly 1,838,460 users and earns an estimated monthly revenue of $11,729. Due to the websites popularity, No Fear Shakespeare books were also published by Spark Publishing, a division of Barnes and Noble in New York.

Layout
No Fear Shakespeare features a section consisting of the characters along with a brief overview of what role they play and their significance in the play. The original text is printed on the left side while its translation on the right side. The reader can read the original text and refer to its translation at the same time. SparkNotes claims that No Fear Shakespeare books are designed to make its readers gain a deep understanding of the context without compromising the true meaning of the original version.

Criticism
Since the launch of No Fear Shakespeare, a lot of criticism has emerged. Teachers have created online blogs against the use of No Fear Shakespeare in English classrooms which have gained popularity among other teachers. Many teachers have criticized it to make the work of William Shakespeare look like something that is strenuous. They argue that No Fear Shakespeare is clearly designed to seem like “Extreme Shakespeare” for the current generation of youth. It is argued that No Fear Shakespeare makes the students perceive William Shakespeare’s work as just another piece of literature, taking away the real meaning of it. The original version causes the students to take their time to focus on the play and understand its true meaning which the transcripted version fails to do so. Students can key in on single sentences or words far more easily than entire scenes and acts. Students consider the source to be an easier path to study which does not reward them with the true understanding of the literature. The modern English versions are close enough and cover the entire play, making it easy for them to understand the basic meaning of the play without grasping the real meaning of it. No Fear Shakespeare takes away the real purpose of education which is to expose children to ideas and information they would not otherwise encounter or engage on their own. It’s about challenge and struggle. It’s not supposed to be easy, though it should be certainly engaging. The original work of William Shakespeare provides the students with an opportunity to overcome the challenges they face in understanding the true meaning of the literature and build new skills which No Fear Shakespeare botches to do so. Although No Fear Shakespeare and the purpose it serves has been widely criticized, it still remains popular among a majority of students.