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บทเรียนย่อย 7

Maggoty dogs and crabs walking backwards teach us about the phrase though this be madness, yet there is method in't from William Shakespeare's Hamlet - and we bring you lots more useful expressions for talking about strange behaviour!

 

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There's method in my madness - meaning and use

To do

Do people think you're mad - when you know that you're being sensible?! To help you explain your actions we'll look at the meaning and use of there's method in my madness. Watch this extract of the animation to remind you what the narrator said, and then do the quiz to check you understood.

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แสดงเนื้อหาบทบันทึกเสียงซ่อนเนื้อหาบทบันทึกเสียง

Narrator
The modern version of the phrase Though this be madness, yet there is method in't is simply: there's method in his madness – or her madness, or my madness – and it means: there's a sensible reason for something that seems crazy. Take snooker champion Ronnie O'Sullivan, talking about how his father introduced him to snooker. He said:

Clip 1
My dad's method in his madness was to try every sport and then observe what I liked. I played football, tennis, golf, cricket – but I loved my snooker.

Now have a go at this quiz. Look at the transcript if you need extra help.

Crazy? sensible? or both?

3 Questions

Answer these questions about the phrase 'there's method in my madness'

ยินดีด้วยคุณทำแบบฝึกหัดเสร็จแล้ว
Excellent!เยี่ยม!แย่หน่อย!คุณทำคะแนนได้:
x / y

How did you do?
2-3 correct - you can now do crazy things and tell people that you are being sensible!
0-1 correct - oh dear! Have a look at the vocabulary box and try again.

Language note

  • We can also say: 'There's method to my madness'. This is more common in American English. 'There's method in my madness' is more common in British English.

Next

Friends acting a bit crazy? Go to the next page for some useful phrases to say when you think they're a bit mad!

 

Session Vocabulary

  • For more great Shakespeare content visit our partner,The OU

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    Though this be madness, yet there is method in't

    Meaning
    The modern version of the phrase is: there's method in his madness – or her madness, or my madness – and it means: there's a sensible reason for something that seems crazy.

    Example sentence
    My mum's desk is covered in papers. There's method in her madness, though. She knows where everything is!

    Notes
    We can also say there's method to his madness.

    Mad means crazy, silly or stupid in British English. 

    In American English, mad means angry or upset.

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    Extra vocabulary

    rehearsal
    a practice of a play for later public performance

    tragedy
    a terrible situation, often involving suffering or death

    revenge
    harm that you do to someone because they have harmed you

    Informal ways to say that someone's idea or behaviour is really strange or outrageous:

    • You're out of your mind!
    • You're absolutely bonkers!
    • You're off your rocker!
    • You're nuts!
    • You're losing it!
    • You're losing the plot!
    • You're losing your marbles!

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    About Shakespeare Speaks

    Shakespeare Speaks is a co-production between:

    BBC Learning English

    The Open University

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