Julian Fellowes’s film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet has drawn criticism for altering the lines of Shakespeare’s most famous love story. Read the article to find out why critics and scholars feel that Fellowes’s adaptation is misleading.
Explorers Ben Saunders and Tarka L’Herpiniere recently made history when they completed the 1,795 mile journey from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back. With links to their blog, maps, activities, and more, this site provides an in-depth look at one of the most amazing stories of polar exploration in history.
Langston Hughes made his voice heard by writing poetry about the African American experience. One of those poems has become the core of a multimedia jazz performance, helping young people hear Hughes’s voice in a new way. Read about the performance, watch a video clip, and see pictures from a rehearsal.
Americans known as abolitionists played a crucial part in the fight to end slavery in the United States. This site offers a wealth of information about abolitionists and their cause as well as art and personal narratives from former slaves.
In his new book Jefferson and Hamilton: The Rivalry That Forged a Nation, author John Ferling tells about two men who helped build our country. Check out this article that details some of the similarities among Jefferson, Hamilton, and modern-day politicians.
Eva Schloss, Anne Frank’s stepsister, recounts her time at Auschwitz and the importance of learning from history.
There are people who believe that Shakespeare didn’t actually write the works attributed to him. They question how a humble man from Stratford could possibly have written about royalty, distant countries, and political intrigues. Read this article to find out more about the Shakespeare conspiracy.
During World War II, Corrie ten Boom and her family hid hundreds of Jews from the Nazis. After they were betrayed by a fellow Dutch citizen, the entire family was imprisoned. Corrie survived and later told her story in the book The Hiding Place. Read this article to find out more about this courageous woman.
Solomon Northup was a free man living in New York. In 1841, he was lured south and kidnapped and spent more than a decade enslaved. He recorded his experiences in the book 12 Years a Slave, which has been made into an Academy-award winning film. Read this article to find out more about Northup’s struggle for freedom.
Archaeological evidence now supports the idea that the city of Troy was not only larger and more important than previously realized, but that it also may have been able to withstand a ten year siege, just as Homer reported in the Iliad. Was the war really about the kidnapping of Helen? Or might it have been about the city’s overwhelming power? Read to find out.
