After uttering this simple word, the common teacher is met with a mass of groans, moans, devastated looks, and the occasional chair tossed in his or her direction.

在說出這個簡單的字之後，老師會碰到一片哀嚎、呻吟及絕望的表情，偶爾還會被丟椅子。

But Shakespearean works are not boring, confusing, long and painful plays written more than 400 years ago.

但莎士比亞的作品並不是無聊、難懂，在 400 多年前所寫下的又臭又長的劇本。

They're adventures relating to the extremities of human nature: love, hate, jealousy, zealous ambition, fear, mistrust, deception, and murder.

他們是一篇篇冒險故事，訴說著人性的極端：愛、恨、嫉妒、野心勃勃、恐懼、懷疑、欺騙及謀殺

We owe much of our own language to his invention.

我們用的語言很多要歸功於他的創造

He invented over 2,000 words for use in his plays, which still remain in the Oxford English Dictionary.

他創造了超過二千個字在他的戲劇中使用，而今仍然保留在牛津英語詞典裡。

Words like "countless" and "assassination" as well as phrases like "one fell swoop," "foul play ," and even "to be in a pickle" all originated from William's brilliant brain.

單字像「無數的」及「暗殺」，還有片語像「一舉」、「詐欺」，甚至是「陷入絕境」都是從威廉充滿才氣的腦袋而來。

And there are many echoes of Shakespeare's romantic language too.

並且還有很多仿效莎士比亞的浪漫語言。

If you read Romeo and Juliet, you'll come across sentences like, "She doth teach the torches to burn bright," and, "So shows a snowy dove trooping with crows."

如果你讀羅密歐與茱麗葉，你會碰到詞句像是「火炬遠不及她的明亮」及「像鴉群中一頭白鴿翩翩」。

Both are quite clever metaphors, suggesting that Juliet is both exceptionally beautiful and far more so than anyone else.

兩句都是相當高明的隱喻，暗示茱麗葉分外美麗、姿貌絕倫。

"For thou art as glorious to this night, being o'er my head, as is a winged messenger of heaven," is a simile suggesting angelic qualities of the lady in question.

「妳在這黑夜裡如此地明亮，在我上方 (使我仰望)，如同天堂那有翼的使者」暗喻在這位好逑淑女身上的天使般特質。

This is not too different from today's comments like, "Hey, beautiful!" and, "You're the hottest girl in the room."

這跟今天的品頭論足也差不多，像是「嘿，美女！」及「妳是這裡最辣的！」

Shakespeare also uses slightly more complex metaphors to describe the intentions of a mischievous man.

莎士比亞也用了稍微複雜一點的隱喻來描述公子哥兒的輕薄意圖。

For instance, "This holy shrine, the gentle sin is this: My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand to smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss," essentially means, "I wish to kiss you."

例如「要是我這俗手上的塵污，褻瀆了你的神聖的廟宇，這兩片嘴唇，含羞的信徒，願意用一吻乞求你宥恕」其實就是在說「我想要親你」。

Such male intentions were not limited to simple pecks on the cheek either.

像這樣的男性意圖並不只限於在臉頰上的輕輕一啄而已。

An intentional ambiguity was often used as a cheeky means to proposition marriage or a more intimate relationship.

故意的含糊也常被當作厚顏無恥的手段來求婚或更親密的關係。

Therefore, instead of viewing Shakespearean works as out-dated, boring, and unhelpful, start reading today and discover the best ways to get the one you love to love you back.

所以與其視莎士比亞的作品為過時、無聊又無用，不如今天就展卷閱讀，並在其中找到最好的方法，讓你所愛的人也愛上你。