"Shakespeare's birthday was observed Sunday in the traditional manner: by newspaper reports claiming that schoolchildren are no longer familiar with his work.
Yet, whether or not they are aware of it, English-speakers can barely open their mouths without acknowledging their greatest writer.
If, on seeing one of his texts, these pupils proclaim, 'it's Greek to me,' they are quoting Shakespeare.
If, the night before their exams, they can't sleep a wink, they are quoting Shakespeare.
If their teeth are on edge, if they are in a pickle, if they are sick at heart, then, truth be told, they are quoting Shakespeare.
If they wait with bated breath, act more in sorrow than in anger, play fast and loose or are more sinned against than sinning; if they say 'too much of a good thing,' 'what's done is done,' 'good riddance,' 'one fell swoop' or 'love is blind'; if they stand on ceremony, offer short shrift (or cold comfort) to their flesh and blood (or to strange bedfellows), then the long and the short of it is that they are quoting Shakespeare.
If they wear their heart on their sleeve, if they see something vanish into thin air, if they suspect foul play, if the world is their oyster, then, to be frank, they are quoting Shakespeare."
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