Do you guys read Shakespeare for the poetry or for the story?
I have a physical copy, but it’s in the original language rather than a modern translation. I can understand a lot of it, but there are still plenty of lines where I stop and think, “What does this mean?”
Now I’m not sure which version I should read. Should I stick with the original and enjoy Shakespeare’s poetry, even if I don’t fully understand everything? Or should I read a modernized version online so I can follow the story more easily, even if I miss out on the original language and style?

Is there a line from a specific play or sonnet that you actually find yourself using in your daily life?

Also, tell me which play it's from and who says it.

Sorry if this question has been asked already. I tried searching through this subreddit to see if anyone asked a similar question but couldn’t seem to find any. Would love some recommendations of scholarly books about R&J! I’m open to just about anything—mainly want to read out of interest as I want to revisit the play. Thanks!

So I went to Shakespeare in the Park over the weekend and saw 12th night. I've been thinking about the popularly quoted lines

Dost thou think, because thou art
virtuous, there shall be no more cakes and ale?

What would cakes of Shakespeare's time be like? Would the flour be refined? Entirely wheat or also barley? Sweetened with honey? Fruit? It may seem trivial but could also affect how indulgent and luxurious I view the contrast with "virtue".

So I binge read the eight history plays beginning with Richard II through Richard III. Good stuff! Then I read King Lear, which sort of blew me away. I was actually choked up at the end, even though i knew what was coming. And now I've started King John, and I'm struggling at the very beginning. The Bastard, the King, and Eleanor are talking about who is whose father and mother, and pronoun references are abundant and confusing. Can someone tell me the parentage of the Bastard and his brother Robert? Did they have the same dad or the same mom? One of them had the senior Falconbridge as a dad, or maybe they both did. Was Richard Lionheart father to one of them? Eleanor has just invited the Bastard to come to France with her, then they all leave but the Bastard, who stays on stage and loses me again with a long monologue. I'm reading an annotated New Cambridge Shakespeare edited by L. A. Beaurline. Plenty of footnotes but no scene by scene summary. Can someone clarify who is descended from whom? Thanks!​