Where can i translate Shakespeare's insults into what the mean in modern English?

Answer 1

Canker-blossom - Grub that destroys the blossom of love.

Clotpole- A stupid person

Cutpurse- Pickpocket, theif, robber.

Jack-a-nape- a mischevous child.

Malkin- An untidy woman; wench, slut.

Malt-worm- a drunk person.

Churlish- Rude and impolite.

I hope this is okay and what you meant? Sorry its not many.

Answer 2

Either:

a) insults actually drawn from the works of Shakespeare like Lysander calling Hermia "you minimus, you bead of hindering knot-grass made, you acorn" because she is small, or Falstaff calling Prince Hal a "bull's pizzle" and a "vile standing tuck" while Hal calls him a "monstrous hill of flesh", or the absolutely overwhelming outpouring of scorn heaped on Oswald by Kent in King Lear, bringing itself to a climax in Kent calling him "the son and heir of a mongrel bitch."

b) insults made while attempting to imitate the style of Shakespeare. Usually these are formed out of two adjectives and a noun, and are sometimes put together without thought for the sense.

Answer 3

A Shakespearean insult is an insult taken from Shakespeare's plays. Some of them are as simple as Tybalt's "Thou art a villain" in Romeo and Juliet, whereas others are flowery and archaic. The best examples are from 1 Henry IV Act 2 Scene 4 where Fastaff and the Prince exchange insults and in King Lear Act 2 Scene 2 where Kent unleashes a perfect torrent of insults at Oswald, commencing with this speech:

"[I know thee for] a knave, a rascal, and eater of broken meats; a base, proud, beggarly, three-suited, hundred pound, filthy, worsted-stocking knave; a lily-livered, action-taking knave; a whoreson, glass-gazing, super-serviceable, finical rogue; one-trunk-inheriting slave; one that would be a bawd, in way of good service, and art nothing but the composition of a knave, beggar, coward, pandar, and the son and heir of a mongrel bitch: one whom I will beat into clamourous whining if thou deniest the least syllable of thy addition!"

Whew!

Answer 4

You don't!! They are far too good in English. But if you must put them into another language, you translate them as best you can.

The all-time best Shakespearean insult is Kent responding to Oswald's question "What do you know me for?"

A knave; a rascal; an eater of broken meats; a base, proud,

shallow, beggarly, three-suited, hundred-pound, filthy,

worsted-stocking knave; a lily-liver'd, action-taking, whoreson,

glass-gazing, superserviceable, finical rogue;

one-trunk-inheriting slave; one that wouldst be a bawd in way of

good service, and art nothing but the composition of a knave,

beggar, coward, pander, and the son and heir of a mongrel bitch!

which Victor Hugo translated into French as:

Pour un drôle! un maroufle, un mangeur de reliefs, un infâme, un insolent, un sot, un gueux à trois livrées, un cuistre à cent écus, un drôle en sales bas de laine, un lâche au foie de lis, un vil chicanier, un fils de putain, un lorgneur de miroir, un flagorneur, un faquin, un maraud héritant de toutes les défroques! un gredin qui voudrait être maquereau à force de bons offices, et qui n'est qu'un composé du fourbe, du mendiant, du couard, et de l'entremetteur! le fils et héritier d'une lice bâtarde!

Goffredo Raponi translated the same into Italian as:

Per un grosso furfante, una canaglia,

uno sgranocchiatore di rifiuti,

un malnato smargiasso, un tre-vestiti,

cento libbre di carne mal calzate,

fegato di coniglio, quereloso,

un figlio di puttana frustaspecchi,

leccapiedi, servile narcisista,

sordido erede d'un sacco di stracci,

pronto a fare il ruffiano come capita,

nient'altro che un impasto di marrano,

accattone, vigliacco, portaborse,

figlio ed erede di cagna bastarda!

Answer 5

One insult in Shakespeare's time was to bite your thumb at them, this was supposed to be ruder than all our hand gestures.

Answer 6

There is a Shakespeare section on Sparknotes that basically translates the whole play into modern-day English. Its easy to read and its how I survived my Brit Lit class.