William Shakespeare Plays and Works

 

                       

Some of Shakespeare’s plays were considered a low-class entertainment beneath the dignity of the aristocracy. Some people say that William Shakespeare did not write his plays. Critics believe the plays contain too much accurate detail about distant places and affairs to have been written by someone like Shakespeare. Three of his works are considered to be literary works with hidden codes and messages. All of Shakespeare’s plays have been examined and evaluated by numerous critics. Analysts have tried to explain their appeal, which they say cannot be derived from any one set. Shakespeare, if people can believe, has been criticized for not consistently holding to any particular philosophy or religion.

In Shakespeare’s plays the strength lies in the absorbing stories that they tell. Shakespeare’s characters have been noted to be neither good nor evil, and that it is their flaw. The plays are known for their unparalleled use of language. Shakespeare had a full use of vocabulary. For example, “O, beware, my lord of jealousy; It is the green-ey'd monster which doth mock. The meat it feeds on." --From Othello.”  People have said that Shakespeare did not even hesitate to transform a character when it was needed to suit his dramatic purposes. Members of the house of Stratford rejected Shakespeare’s success even though they did not know him personally. Shakespeare’s plays were divided into three different categories: Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies or “problem plays”. Many of his plays were a mixture of comic, historical, and tragic elements. Some examples of these plays are “As you like it” which is comedy, “Henry V” which is history, and  “Macbeth” which is tragedy.

Eight of Shakespeare’s history plays re-create the English period beginning with Henry IV’s deposition of Richard II in 1399 through what people would think was a conflict between the houses of Lancaster and York, and ending with the victory of Henry VII over Richard III in 1485. In the time of Shakespeare, the history plays would also be known as the chronicle plays. These were considered to be the highly popular form of drama of that period. The earliest known tragedy play that was attributed to Shakespeare is the “Titus Andronicus”. Shakespeare’s tragedies were among the most moving studies of human nature in all of literature but not “Romeo And Juliet.”  “Romeo and Juliet” was and is considered a love story even though it involved tragic elements such as the suicide of the lovers.

 The development of Shakespeare’s characters was most influenced by the actors who portrayed them. Some claim all his plays display an intimate knowledge of human nature. Critics have found that all of Shakespeare plots were practically borrowed from real life situations. His works included topics such as love, death, marriage, suicide and incest. For example “ The Twelfth Night” is a comedy. “Hamlet” is an example of death and incest. An example of marriage is “ Taming of the Shrew”. “Romeo and Juliet” is and example of suicide. When it came to writing his plays he was an intelligent man. Critics say that he was a good poem and play writer and his sonnets that were well known to be his most important non-dramatic poetry. Shakespeare is the only major writer known in the world’s history whose authorship has been so world renown. Shakespeare was a modern man. Whoever accused him of wanting to learn, only gave him more encouragement. Some people have said that the order of his plays is really uncertain. A reasonable guess of their order can be decided by the dates that they were published. The voice in some of his plays is vivid, and forceful. Here are some examples of Quotes were Shakespeare uses vivid and forceful language.  "But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the Sun." from Romeo and Juliet.

There have always been a great variety of critical approaches to most of Shakespeare’s works since he died. Shakespeare was criticized a great deal for his unusual mixing of comedy and tragedy. Most of the time he was accused of failing to observe the unities of the time and place established by the rules of classical drama. Today critics have really changed how they scrutinize his works and other writer’s works. Shakespearean commentators have divided Shakespeare’s dramatic works into four different periods. (1) The experimental period which ended in 1593, which included plays. (2) The period, in which Shakespeare became definitely established, ending in 1601. This included the romantic comedies. (3) The period, which covered ten years of the 17^th century. This included the tragedy plays. (4) The period, which was from the 1610 to the death of the playwright. None of Shakespeare’s physical manuscripts appear to have survived time.

According to William Hazlitt “ Shakespeare was the most universal genius that ever lived.” Hazlitt also said that “Shakespeare has invented for people like them language, manners, and sentiments for their own.” The themes and plots of Shakespeare’s plays are timeless. They are as true today as they were in Shakespeare’s time. Shakespeare characters are and always will be natural and true. Shakespeare’s real characters are still trying to be decided if they really exist or not because they don’t or couldn’t act, speak, or even feel anything unless he made them that way.  His characteristics have traits and flaws like Modern Man. As well as then, people’s lives contain love, death, comedy, and tragedy. This is one reason that people have rightfully placed him second to none in the records of posterity.