"ANYONE WHO TRIES TO MAKE A DISTINCTION BETWEEN EDUCATION AND ENTERTAINMENT DOESN"T KNOW THE FIRST THING ABOUT EITHER." ....said Marshall McLuhan

During this summer's uk Big Brother, a housemate famously claimed to not know who Shakespeare was.

This provoked viewers and forum members to express (a) their belief that it is impossible for anyone to have never heard of Shakespeare, and/or (b) their belief that for someone to not know who Shakespeare was is a sign that the end of the world is nigh etc.

Personally I don't know if the Big Brother housemate was telling the truth or not and I don't really care much. (He was a good housemate and a deserving winner).

But I certainly do believe it is possible for some people not to have heard of Shakespeare. To have never absorbed his name. Never paid him any attention. Or to never be present in a situation where Shakespeare is being discussed etc.

Plus, I also believe it's likely that many of the people who expressed their outrage at the thought of someone not knowing who Shakespeare was, I bet plenty of those people knew little else other than just Shakespeare's name and probably the name of one play that he wrote. But they'll still express outrage at the thought of someone knowing absolutely nothing. Like there's a difference.

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