Digging Shakespeare

I’d chosen English lit with the intent
Of studying the writings of the Bard;
But I was told he wasn’t relevant,
And it was not to be—I took it hard.
Intriguing tales he told of kings and queens
Were so alive, so perfectly expressed.
Appropriation though vents many spleens—
These tales must be by royalty addressed.
His race and gender didn’t promise much
For offering perspective into life.
But in his favor, if you call it such,
Was how for years he would ignore his wife.
If but his sexuality presumed
Could be confirmed, in class he’d be exhumed.

r

—Joseph Mirra