Essay on William Shakespeare

500 words essay on william shakespeare.

William Shakespeare was certainly a very famous writer. The man is credited with an unbelievable thirty-eight plays, two narrative poems, several other poems and a whopping one hundred fifty-four sonnets. So let us take a peek inside the life of this genius with this essay on William Shakespeare.

essay on william shakespeare

                                                                                                                               Essay On William Shakespeare

Early Life of William Shakespeare

Shakespeare is the world’s pre-eminent dramatist and according to many experts is the greatest writer in the English language. Furthermore, he is also called England’s National Poet and also has the nickname of the Bard of Avon. Such a worthy reputation is due to his top-notch unmatchable writing skills.

William Shakespeare was born to a successful businessman in Stratford-upon-Avon on 23rd April in the year 1564. Shakespeare’s mother was the daughter of a landlord and came from a well-to-do family. About the age of seven, William Shakespeare began attending the Stratford Grammar School.

The teachers at Stratford were strict in nature and the school timings were long. One can say that William Shakespeare’s use of nature in his writings was due to the influence of the fields and woods surrounding the Stratford Grammar School on him.

Warwickshire was an interesting place to live, especially for those who were writers. Furthermore, the river Avon ran down through the town and because of this Shakespeare later got the title ‘Bard of Avon’. At the age of eighteen, William Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, a woman who in age was eight years older than him.

Illustrious Career of William Shakespeare

After his education, William Shakespeare became engaged in theatrical life in London. Furthermore, it was from here that his career likely took off. Moreover, by the year 1592, the popularity of William Shakespeare had grown to be very much.

Shakespeare became a member of one of the famous theatre companies in the city. Moreover, this company was ‘the Lord Chamberlain’s Men’. Also, the theatre companies during that era were commercial organizations that were dependent upon the audience who came to watch the plays.

From the year 1594, Shakespeare became the leading member of the acting group and remained that for almost the entire rest of his career. By the year 1594, the production of at least six plays had taken place by William Shakespeare.

Evidence shows that Shakespeare became a member of a well-known travelling theatre group. After joining this theatre, Shakespeare did plays in the presence of many dignitaries in various places.

Shakespeare, throughout his life, came up with some outstanding pieces of English literature , involving memorable timeless characters with human qualities. Furthermore, the human qualities and struggles of Shakespeare’s characters are such that one can relate with them even today. Shakespeare retired from his acting profession in 1613 and became completely devoted to writing many excellent plays.

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 Conclusion of the Essay on William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is, without a doubt, one of the greatest writers of all times. Furthermore, his excellence in story writing, narrative building, and character development is of the highest order. Individuals of such a high calibre appear once in a century or are even rarer than that.

FAQs For Essay on William Shakespeare

Question 1: Why is William Shakespeare so famous?

Answer 1:  William Shakespeare’s story writing skills are of an extremely high-quality. Furthermore, his works are characterized by outstanding narrative building around the topics of jealousy, mystery, love, magic, death, murder, life, revenge, and grief. That is why William Shakespeare is so famous.

Question 2: What are some of the most famous works of William Shakespeare?

Answer 2: Some of the most famous works of William Shakespeare are as follows:

  • Romeo and Juliet
  • The Merchant of Venice
  • Much Ado About Nothing

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Essay on William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is one of the first names that come to our mind when we talk about English Literature. He was a famous writer of his time. His remarkable work in the field of literature left an everlasting impression on this world for forever. He wrote about 38 plays, 154 sonnets, 2 narrative poems and many other poems which are recognized as some of the greatest works in the history of English literature. He was an incredible writer whose works were so extraordinary that some had raised many speculations on the true origin of his works many years back. Here are a few sample essays on William Shakespeare.

Essay on William Shakespeare

100 Words Essay on William Shakespeare

A legendary writer and actor William Shakespeare was born on the 23April in 1564 to Mary Shakespeare and John Shakespeare. He was known for his works in the field of English Literature. He produced many plays, sonnets, poems, and verses. He was also known as a well-known stage actor. He completed his schooling at Stratford Grammar School.

He wrote almost every genre of work. Some of his famous comedy genre works are: The Comedy of Errors, The Taming of the Shrew and The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Romeo Juliet, Julius Caesar, and Titus Andronicus are some of his famous tragic genre works. Richard II, Richard III, and Henry V are some of his historic genre plays. This shows that William Shakespeare was a multi-talented man.

William Shakespeare died on the 23 April, in the year 1616. Shakespeare died at the age of 52 in his hometown Warwickshire, England. He died physically but his existence through his extraordinary work will live forever in this world.

200 Words Essay on William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare is one of the renowned names of English playwrights. He was a multi-talented man who was a writer, poet and actor. He produced about one hundred and fifty-four sonnets, two narrative poems, thirty-eight plays and a few verses. He was born in Stratford-upon-Avon to a good family with good financial status on 23 April, 1564.

He started his career as an actor and then he started writing. He produced most of his works from 1589 to 1613. He wrote many famous plays like Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar , etc. In the year 1608, Shakespeare wrote some of his finest works of the tragic genre like Othello, Macbeth, and King Lear. These tragic genre works were some of the last works which he wrote in his last few years of life. Julius Caesar and Romeo and Juliet are some of his most famous plays which are played in schools and colleges on various occasions. He wrote vast, voluminous, unique and every different genre of plays.

Several of Shakespeare’s works have been translated into other languages. Several movies and plays are also played in his plays. His works are loved by everyone of every age group. He is one of the most precious playwrights of the times. He died in his hometown at the age of 52 on 23 of April, 1616.

500 Words Essay on William Shakespeare

One of the world's most famous playwrights and a dramatist William Shakespeare was known for his works in English literature. He was also known as Bard of Avon (England’s national poet) for his outstanding and incredible writing skills. He wrote amazing and unbelievable 38 plays, 154 sonnets, 2 narrative poems and a few verses in the English language.

Early life Of Shakespeare

He was born at Stratford-upon-Avon on 23 April in the year 1564. His father was a successful businessman and his mother was a landowner’s daughter. He started his schooling at the age of 7 at Stratford Grammar School. School timing was long and the teachers there were strict. His school was surrounded by woods and fields, which could have influenced his writing skills which are full of nature. Avon is a river which flows in his town, and he was nicknamed Bard of Avon on this basis. He married an eight years older woman Anne Hathaway at the age of 18. They had three kids Susanna, and the twins Judith and Hamnet.

Shakespeare’s Inspirational Career

After completing his education, he moved to London where he started his career as an actor. He became a very famous actor by 1592. It was here that his career started taking shape. He was a member of “The Lord Chamberlain’s Men” one of the very famous theatre companies in the city. By the year 1594, he had produced about six plays which were performed in the company. He played in many of the plays as an actor at various places.

He produced many famous plays like Romeo and Juliet, Merchant of Venice, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, Henry V and many more. Julius Caesar was a tragic play he wrote in the last few years of his life. It was all about a bad omen that the king saw and it came true. In this play, the king is killed by his loyal and trustworthy people and friends. Romeo and Juliet are one of his other plays which were known for the beauty of the love Romeo and Juliet have for each other. All his plays give some morals to learn. His works were full of nature and he had written in almost every kind of genre. His works are known for unforgettable characters full of human qualities. In 1613, he took a break from acting and fully devoted himself to writing. And on 23 April, 1616 he died leaving this world with his incredible and irreplaceable works.

Shakespeare was a legend of English literature. His fantastic writing skills can take away anyone’s heart. His works are known for being character-centric, narrative-building, natural, realistic, and fictional and he has excellent writing skills. There is a saying that “People die but their words won’t” and it is true William Shakespeare, one of the greatest writers of all time will live forever through his words of writing and his works will always inspire and motivate us to do incredible things in our lives.

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Audiologist

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An oncologist is a specialised doctor responsible for providing medical care to patients diagnosed with cancer. He or she uses several therapies to control the cancer and its effect on the human body such as chemotherapy, immunotherapy, radiation therapy and biopsy. An oncologist designs a treatment plan based on a pathology report after diagnosing the type of cancer and where it is spreading inside the body.

Are you searching for an ‘Anatomist job description’? An Anatomist is a research professional who applies the laws of biological science to determine the ability of bodies of various living organisms including animals and humans to regenerate the damaged or destroyed organs. If you want to know what does an anatomist do, then read the entire article, where we will answer all your questions.

For an individual who opts for a career as an actor, the primary responsibility is to completely speak to the character he or she is playing and to persuade the crowd that the character is genuine by connecting with them and bringing them into the story. This applies to significant roles and littler parts, as all roles join to make an effective creation. Here in this article, we will discuss how to become an actor in India, actor exams, actor salary in India, and actor jobs. 

Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats create and direct original routines for themselves, in addition to developing interpretations of existing routines. The work of circus acrobats can be seen in a variety of performance settings, including circus, reality shows, sports events like the Olympics, movies and commercials. Individuals who opt for a career as acrobats must be prepared to face rejections and intermittent periods of work. The creativity of acrobats may extend to other aspects of the performance. For example, acrobats in the circus may work with gym trainers, celebrities or collaborate with other professionals to enhance such performance elements as costume and or maybe at the teaching end of the career.

Video Game Designer

Career as a video game designer is filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. A video game designer is someone who is involved in the process of creating a game from day one. He or she is responsible for fulfilling duties like designing the character of the game, the several levels involved, plot, art and similar other elements. Individuals who opt for a career as a video game designer may also write the codes for the game using different programming languages.

Depending on the video game designer job description and experience they may also have to lead a team and do the early testing of the game in order to suggest changes and find loopholes.

Radio Jockey

Radio Jockey is an exciting, promising career and a great challenge for music lovers. If you are really interested in a career as radio jockey, then it is very important for an RJ to have an automatic, fun, and friendly personality. If you want to get a job done in this field, a strong command of the language and a good voice are always good things. Apart from this, in order to be a good radio jockey, you will also listen to good radio jockeys so that you can understand their style and later make your own by practicing.

A career as radio jockey has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. If you want to know more about a career as radio jockey, and how to become a radio jockey then continue reading the article.

Choreographer

The word “choreography" actually comes from Greek words that mean “dance writing." Individuals who opt for a career as a choreographer create and direct original dances, in addition to developing interpretations of existing dances. A Choreographer dances and utilises his or her creativity in other aspects of dance performance. For example, he or she may work with the music director to select music or collaborate with other famous choreographers to enhance such performance elements as lighting, costume and set design.

Social Media Manager

A career as social media manager involves implementing the company’s or brand’s marketing plan across all social media channels. Social media managers help in building or improving a brand’s or a company’s website traffic, build brand awareness, create and implement marketing and brand strategy. Social media managers are key to important social communication as well.

Photographer

Photography is considered both a science and an art, an artistic means of expression in which the camera replaces the pen. In a career as a photographer, an individual is hired to capture the moments of public and private events, such as press conferences or weddings, or may also work inside a studio, where people go to get their picture clicked. Photography is divided into many streams each generating numerous career opportunities in photography. With the boom in advertising, media, and the fashion industry, photography has emerged as a lucrative and thrilling career option for many Indian youths.

An individual who is pursuing a career as a producer is responsible for managing the business aspects of production. They are involved in each aspect of production from its inception to deception. Famous movie producers review the script, recommend changes and visualise the story. 

They are responsible for overseeing the finance involved in the project and distributing the film for broadcasting on various platforms. A career as a producer is quite fulfilling as well as exhaustive in terms of playing different roles in order for a production to be successful. Famous movie producers are responsible for hiring creative and technical personnel on contract basis.

Copy Writer

In a career as a copywriter, one has to consult with the client and understand the brief well. A career as a copywriter has a lot to offer to deserving candidates. Several new mediums of advertising are opening therefore making it a lucrative career choice. Students can pursue various copywriter courses such as Journalism , Advertising , Marketing Management . Here, we have discussed how to become a freelance copywriter, copywriter career path, how to become a copywriter in India, and copywriting career outlook. 

In a career as a vlogger, one generally works for himself or herself. However, once an individual has gained viewership there are several brands and companies that approach them for paid collaboration. It is one of those fields where an individual can earn well while following his or her passion. 

Ever since internet costs got reduced the viewership for these types of content has increased on a large scale. Therefore, a career as a vlogger has a lot to offer. If you want to know more about the Vlogger eligibility, roles and responsibilities then continue reading the article. 

For publishing books, newspapers, magazines and digital material, editorial and commercial strategies are set by publishers. Individuals in publishing career paths make choices about the markets their businesses will reach and the type of content that their audience will be served. Individuals in book publisher careers collaborate with editorial staff, designers, authors, and freelance contributors who develop and manage the creation of content.

Careers in journalism are filled with excitement as well as responsibilities. One cannot afford to miss out on the details. As it is the small details that provide insights into a story. Depending on those insights a journalist goes about writing a news article. A journalism career can be stressful at times but if you are someone who is passionate about it then it is the right choice for you. If you want to know more about the media field and journalist career then continue reading this article.

Individuals in the editor career path is an unsung hero of the news industry who polishes the language of the news stories provided by stringers, reporters, copywriters and content writers and also news agencies. Individuals who opt for a career as an editor make it more persuasive, concise and clear for readers. In this article, we will discuss the details of the editor's career path such as how to become an editor in India, editor salary in India and editor skills and qualities.

Individuals who opt for a career as a reporter may often be at work on national holidays and festivities. He or she pitches various story ideas and covers news stories in risky situations. Students can pursue a BMC (Bachelor of Mass Communication) , B.M.M. (Bachelor of Mass Media) , or  MAJMC (MA in Journalism and Mass Communication) to become a reporter. While we sit at home reporters travel to locations to collect information that carries a news value.  

Corporate Executive

Are you searching for a Corporate Executive job description? A Corporate Executive role comes with administrative duties. He or she provides support to the leadership of the organisation. A Corporate Executive fulfils the business purpose and ensures its financial stability. In this article, we are going to discuss how to become corporate executive.

Multimedia Specialist

A multimedia specialist is a media professional who creates, audio, videos, graphic image files, computer animations for multimedia applications. He or she is responsible for planning, producing, and maintaining websites and applications. 

Quality Controller

A quality controller plays a crucial role in an organisation. He or she is responsible for performing quality checks on manufactured products. He or she identifies the defects in a product and rejects the product. 

A quality controller records detailed information about products with defects and sends it to the supervisor or plant manager to take necessary actions to improve the production process.

Production Manager

A QA Lead is in charge of the QA Team. The role of QA Lead comes with the responsibility of assessing services and products in order to determine that he or she meets the quality standards. He or she develops, implements and manages test plans. 

Process Development Engineer

The Process Development Engineers design, implement, manufacture, mine, and other production systems using technical knowledge and expertise in the industry. They use computer modeling software to test technologies and machinery. An individual who is opting career as Process Development Engineer is responsible for developing cost-effective and efficient processes. They also monitor the production process and ensure it functions smoothly and efficiently.

AWS Solution Architect

An AWS Solution Architect is someone who specializes in developing and implementing cloud computing systems. He or she has a good understanding of the various aspects of cloud computing and can confidently deploy and manage their systems. He or she troubleshoots the issues and evaluates the risk from the third party. 

Azure Administrator

An Azure Administrator is a professional responsible for implementing, monitoring, and maintaining Azure Solutions. He or she manages cloud infrastructure service instances and various cloud servers as well as sets up public and private cloud systems. 

Computer Programmer

Careers in computer programming primarily refer to the systematic act of writing code and moreover include wider computer science areas. The word 'programmer' or 'coder' has entered into practice with the growing number of newly self-taught tech enthusiasts. Computer programming careers involve the use of designs created by software developers and engineers and transforming them into commands that can be implemented by computers. These commands result in regular usage of social media sites, word-processing applications and browsers.

Information Security Manager

Individuals in the information security manager career path involves in overseeing and controlling all aspects of computer security. The IT security manager job description includes planning and carrying out security measures to protect the business data and information from corruption, theft, unauthorised access, and deliberate attack 

ITSM Manager

Automation test engineer.

An Automation Test Engineer job involves executing automated test scripts. He or she identifies the project’s problems and troubleshoots them. The role involves documenting the defect using management tools. He or she works with the application team in order to resolve any issues arising during the testing process. 

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No Sweat Shakespeare

A Guide To Writing Shakespeare Essays, Including Pitfalls & Tips

William Shakespeare is undoubtedly one of the most significant personalities of the world and culture in particular. This dramatist is considered to be an inventor of literary English language, an inventor of modern theater, and the greatest poet in the history of England. Starting in the 15th century, Shakespeare’s poems and plays have been published in a lot of countries and translated into almost all languages of the world. It is no wonder that students have to write a Shakespeare essay despite their disciplines and specialization. The assignments vary. You might get a task to analyze the sonnets or a play of a famous playwright and writer, write a book report, or say some words about his life in a Shakespeare biography essay. No matter what is your writing about, experts from  ProHighGrades  collected some ideas and essential tips that will help.

How to Write a Shakespeare Biography Essay

If you are to write essays about the background of a great author, you need to know his biography, and the peculiarities of the time he lived in. Here are some ideas:

  • Describe the town he was born and lived. Stratford-upon-Avon was a small English town, and his family was among the noble ones. You can analyze the primal education and the reasons to move to London.
  • Literature resources give a little knowledge of young Shakespeare. No one knows the real day of birth. The authors know he was baptized in April. History did not save much about his school or university education. The period which starts in the year 1585 and finishes in 1593 is called “the lost years of Shakespeare.” An excellent attempt to analyze and make suggestions concerning his real life and a search for additional facts will amaze the professors.
  • You can analyze the relationship between Shakespeare and other people. Some works and pages contain suggestions about his love, friends, etc. A good Shakespeare biography essay will try to study the stories related to the company surrounding him. Study the writers he mailed.
  • Finally, his last years and death are covered in mystery as well. You can try to find a reason why Shakespeare left a big part of his property to his daughter Susanna. Write about a real reason to move back to Stratford.

A good story about a simple man, people to follow him, the political and historical circumstances and terms, the rights of a human of Shakespeare’s society, popular suggestions, and references to his biography from other sources deserve to appear in an excellent Shakespeare essay.

How to Write an Essay About Shakespeare’s Works

Everybody read the author. Students compose tons of writings, where they give information about his collection of works. In order to claim some originality and score free points on exclusiveness, you need to consider many things:

  • All the essays about Shakespeare’s literature are written. People wrote about the classic plays after his sonnet or plots. Scholars read, search, and research the significance of his works in almost every paper. You need something contemporary. New plays and interpretations of the texts appear today (for example, a fresh Hamlet play with Benedict Cumberbatch). New movies come from Hollywood and other countries. Take them into account. Many original Shakespeare essay topics are reserved for you
  • If you are in despair, choose a way that worked for centuries. Analyze the title of a particular poem or play. A Midsummer Night’s Dream , the plays entitled by names ( Romeo and Juliet , Macbeth , Much Ado About Nothing and others are a reason to write a good, short essay about William Shakespeare.
  • A good idea is to analyze the characters of Shakespeare. His plays are not all full of action, but characters are deep. Conflicts, emotions, experience, and background stand behind every one. To make a Shakespeare paper better, reading work is not enough. Try to watch the performance of actors from plays and movies. Usually, they do not make an exact copy of the text but bring the new interpretation.
  • Good Shakespeare essay examples choose famous critics for referencing. A catchy quote or a properly referenced idea will make your essay worth money and effort. Remember that the question you ask in the Shakespeare paper must find its answer despite the length of a paper, and a number of essay pages needed.
  • Adjust your essay to a discipline. In every Shakespeare text, you can find something for a history, sociology, culture, linguistics, psychology, arts, mythology, and literature essay.

Shakespeare was not a simple person and now has a truly global identity. His impact on his and further times are great. Many people study him, and increasingly significant numbers will no doubt do so in the future. You can also count on the guys from EditProofRead to check out your paper to make sure it’s good.

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Hamlet holds up Yorick's skull in front of him, about to recite the 'Alas poor Yorick' monologue

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Writers — William Shakespeare

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Essays on William Shakespeare

What makes a good william shakespeare essay topic.

When it comes to crafting an exceptional essay on the works of William Shakespeare, the choice of topic is paramount. The right topic can breathe life into your essay, making it captivating, unique, and unforgettable. Here are some innovative tips to help you brainstorm and select an essay topic that will mesmerize your readers:

- Research and Immerse Yourself: Begin by immersing yourself in the vast repertoire of William Shakespeare's works. Dive into his plays, poems, and sonnets. This deep exploration will provide you with invaluable insights into his themes, characters, and writing style.

- Personal Passion: Opt for a topic that ignites a genuine spark of interest within you. When you are truly passionate about the subject matter, it will shine through in your writing, captivating your readers and making your essay more compelling.

- Unveiling the Unexplored: Seek out uncharted territory and lesser-known aspects of Shakespeare's works. Instead of treading the well-worn path of common themes or characters, venture into the hidden gems that lie within his literature.

- Contemporary Connections: Explore the relevance of Shakespeare's works in today's society and connect them to modern-day issues. Examining the timeless themes and their impact on the present can render your essay thought-provoking and engaging.

- Characters and Relationships Under the Microscope: Shakespeare's characters are multifaceted and intricate. Choose a topic that allows you to analyze their motivations, relationships, or character development within his plays.

- Comparative Analysis: Engage in a comparative exploration of Shakespeare's works alongside other literary pieces, historical events, or even contemporary movies or plays. This fresh perspective will make your essay stand out from the crowd.

- Social and Cultural Context: Delve into the social and cultural milieu that shaped Shakespeare's plays. Discuss how his works were influenced by the Elizabethan era and how they mirror the society of that time.

- Unveiling Symbolism and Imagery: Shakespeare's works are a treasure trove of symbolism and vivid imagery. Select a topic that allows you to analyze and interpret these literary devices, offering profound insights into the text.

- Controversial Contemplations: Shakespeare fearlessly explored contentious themes such as power, love, and morality. Choose a topic that tackles these provocative issues, sparking a lively debate among your readers.

- Unconventional Interpretations: Present a fresh and unconventional interpretation of a particular play, scene, or character. Challenge conventional ideas and encourage critical thinking with your unique perspective.

Remember, a remarkable Shakespeare essay topic should be captivating, original, and thought-provoking. By considering these recommendations, you will be able to select a topic that will enrapture your readers and showcase your exceptional analytical skills.

Essay Topic Ideas for William Shakespeare

Prepare to be dazzled by these outstanding essay topics on William Shakespeare:

  • The Empowerment of Women in Shakespeare's Tragedies
  • Fate and Its Grip on Romeo and Juliet
  • The Fine Line Between Madness and Sanity in Hamlet
  • Love's Intricacies and Deception in Much Ado About Nothing
  • Unraveling the Allure of Power and Ambition in Macbeth
  • Exploring the Dark Depths of Evil in Othello
  • Shakespeare's Brave Confrontation of Racism in The Merchant of Venice
  • The Mighty Influence of Language and Wordplay in A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • Revenge and Justice Collide in Titus Andronicus
  • The Greek Mythology Odyssey within Shakespeare's Plays
  • The Symbolic Tapestry of Nature in King Lear
  • Gender Roles and Identity in Twelfth Night
  • Time's Elusive Spell in The Tempest
  • The Supernatural's Sinister Dance in Macbeth
  • The Illusion of Appearance versus the Reality of Truth in Measure for Measure
  • The Complexities of Love's Dominion in Antony and Cleopatra
  • The Intricate Weaving of Politics in Julius Caesar
  • Jealousy's Venomous Touch in Othello
  • The Struggle between Duty and Desire in Hamlet
  • A Profound Exploration of Human Nature in Troilus and Cressida

Provocative Questions for Your William Shakespeare Essay

Prepare to embark on an intellectual journey with these thought-provoking essay questions on William Shakespeare:

  • How does Shakespeare challenge traditional gender roles in his plays?
  • What is the significance of the supernatural elements in Macbeth?
  • How does Shakespeare explore the theme of power and its corrupting influence in his tragedies?
  • Analyze the portrayal of love and relationships in Shakespeare's comedies.
  • To what extent does fate play a role in Romeo and Juliet, and are the characters responsible for their own destinies?
  • Discuss the concept of madness and its impact on the characters in Hamlet.
  • How does Shakespeare employ symbolism and imagery to convey his themes in The Tempest?
  • Analyze the role of loyalty and betrayal in Julius Caesar.
  • How does Othello's race affect the outcome of the play?
  • Discuss the portrayal of revenge in Shakespeare's plays.

Creative William Shakespeare Essay Prompts

Ignite your creativity with these captivating essay prompts on William Shakespeare:

  • Imagine you are a director staging a modern adaptation of one of Shakespeare's plays. How would you interpret the setting, costumes, and overall production to make it relevant to a contemporary audience?
  • Write a heartfelt letter from one of Shakespeare's characters to another, expressing their deepest desires, fears, or regrets.
  • Create a powerful monologue from the perspective of a minor character in any of Shakespeare's plays, unveiling their untold story or hidden emotions.
  • Write a riveting dialogue between Shakespeare and a modern-day playwright, discussing the enduring appeal and relevance of his works.
  • Imagine you are a literary critic tasked with analyzing a previously undiscovered Shakespearean sonnet. Interpret its meaning and discuss its significance within the context of his other works.

William Shakespeare Essay FAQ

Q: How should I begin my essay on William Shakespeare?

A: Commence with a captivating introduction that sets the stage for your essay and introduces your thesis statement. You can start with a compelling quote, an intriguing fact, or a thought-provoking question.

Q: Can I choose a lesser-known play by Shakespeare as my essay topic?

A: Absolutely! Exploring lesser-known plays can provide a fresh perspective, allowing you to delve into unexplored themes and characters. Just ensure that you provide enough context and background information for your readers.

Q: Should I include direct quotes from Shakespeare's works in my essay?

A: Including quotes can enhance your analysis and provide evidence to support your arguments. However, make sure to seamlessly integrate and analyze the quotes, rather than using them as mere filler.

Q: Can I incorporate modern examples or references in my essay on Shakespeare?

A: Yes, incorporating modern examples or references can help readers connect with the themes and relevance of Shakespeare's works. Just ensure that the examples are relevant and enhance your analysis, rather than overshadowing it.

Q: How can I make my Shakespeare essay stand out from others?

A: To make your essay shine, choose a unique and thought-provoking topic, offer fresh interpretations, and employ engaging language and writing style. Support your arguments with evidence and provide a well-structured analysis.

Remember, writing a Shakespeare essay is an opportunity to showcase your critical thinking and analytical skills. Embark on a thrilling journey through the world of Shakespeare and let your creativity illuminate your writing!

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April 1564, Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom - April 23, 1616, Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Playwright, Poet, Actor

English Renaissance

Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Julius Caesar, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing,Twelfth Night, Macbeth, etc.

William Shakespeare, widely regarded as one of the greatest playwrights in history, possessed a unique and influential style of writing. His works demonstrate a mastery of language, poetic devices, and dramatic techniques that continue to captivate audiences centuries later. Shakespeare's writing style can be characterized by several distinctive features. Firstly, his use of language is rich and vibrant. He employed a vast vocabulary and crafted elaborate sentences, often employing complex wordplay and puns to create layers of meaning. Shakespeare's writing is renowned for its poetic beauty, rhythmic verse, and memorable lines that have become ingrained in the English language. Secondly, Shakespeare excelled in character development. His characters are multidimensional, with complex emotions and motivations. Through their soliloquies and dialogues, he explores the depths of human nature, delving into themes of love, jealousy, ambition, and morality. Each character's speech and mannerisms reflect their unique personality, contributing to the depth and realism of his plays. Lastly, Shakespeare's dramatic structure and storytelling techniques are unparalleled. He skillfully weaves together intricate plots, incorporating elements of comedy, tragedy, romance, and history. His plays feature dramatic tension, unexpected twists, and powerful climaxes that keep audiences engaged and emotionally invested.

One of Shakespeare's major contributions was his ability to delve into the depths of human emotions and the complexities of the human condition. Through his plays, he explored themes such as love, jealousy, ambition, revenge, and moral dilemmas, offering profound insights into the human psyche. His characters, like Hamlet, Macbeth, Juliet, and Othello, are iconic and have become archetypes in literature. Shakespeare's language and wordplay revolutionized English literature. He introduced new words, phrases, and expressions that have become an integral part of the English lexicon. His plays are a testament to his mastery of language, employing poetic techniques such as metaphors, similes, alliteration, and iambic pentameter to create rhythm, beauty, and depth in his writing. Moreover, Shakespeare's plays transcended the boundaries of time and place, showcasing universal themes and resonating with audiences across cultures and generations. His works continue to be performed and adapted in various forms, including stage productions, films, and literary adaptations, further solidifying his contribution to the world of literature.

Film Adaptations: Many of Shakespeare's plays have been adapted into films, bringing his stories to life on the silver screen. Notable examples include Franco Zeffirelli's "Romeo and Juliet" (1968), Kenneth Branagh's "Henry V" (1989), and Baz Luhrmann's modernized version of "Romeo + Juliet" (1996). TV Series and Episodes: Shakespeare's works have been featured in TV series and episodes, either through direct adaptations or by incorporating his themes and characters. For instance, the popular TV show "The Simpsons" has parodied Shakespeare in episodes like "A Midsummer's Nice Dream" and "Tales from the Public Domain." Shakespearean-Inspired Films: Some films draw inspiration from Shakespeare's works without being direct adaptations. Examples include "Shakespeare in Love" (1998), which explores the fictionalized romance between Shakespeare and a noblewoman, and "10 Things I Hate About You" (1999), a modern-day adaptation of "The Taming of the Shrew." Literary References: Shakespeare is often referenced in literature, showcasing his enduring influence. For instance, Aldous Huxley's dystopian novel "Brave New World" features characters who quote Shakespeare, and Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale" includes a clandestine resistance group called "Mayday," derived from "May Day" in Shakespeare's "The Tempest."

1. Shakespeare is known for writing 39 plays, including tragedies like "Hamlet," comedies like "A Midsummer Night's Dream," and histories like "Henry V." 2. Shakespeare is credited with introducing over 1,700 words to the English language, including popular terms such as "eyeball," "fashionable," and "lonely." 3. Shakespeare's works have been translated into more than 80 languages, making him one of the most widely translated playwrights in history. 4. Shakespeare's plays continue to be performed and studied worldwide, with an estimated 17,000 performances of his works every year. 5. Despite his literary fame, little is known about Shakespeare's personal life. There are gaps and uncertainties surrounding his birthdate, education, and even the authorship of his works. 6. The Globe Theatre: Shakespeare's plays were performed at the famous Globe Theatre in London, which he co-owned. The reconstructed Globe Theatre stands in London today and offers modern audiences a glimpse into the world of Elizabethan theatre. 7. In addition to his plays, Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, which are celebrated for their lyrical beauty and exploration of themes such as love, time, and mortality.

William Shakespeare is an essential topic for essay writing due to his immense significance in the world of literature and his enduring influence on various aspects of human culture. Exploring Shakespeare's works provides a rich opportunity to delve into themes of love, tragedy, power, and human nature. His plays and sonnets continue to captivate readers and audiences with their universal themes and timeless relevance. Studying Shakespeare allows us to gain a deeper understanding of the English language itself, as he contributed numerous words and phrases that are still in use today. Additionally, his innovative use of language, poetic techniques, and complex characterizations showcase his unparalleled mastery as a playwright. Furthermore, Shakespeare's impact extends beyond literature. His works have been adapted into numerous films, theater productions, and other art forms, making him a cultural icon. His plays also provide a valuable lens through which to analyze historical and social contexts, as they reflect the values, beliefs, and conflicts of the Elizabethan era.

"All that glitters is not gold." "By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes. Open, locks, Whoever knocks!" In William Shakespeare's Hamlet, "to be, or not to be, that is the question." In the 21st century, "to code, or not to code, that is the challenge.

1. Shakespeare, W., Shakespeare, W., & Kaplan, M. L. (2002). The merchant of Venice (pp. 25-120). Palgrave Macmillan US. (https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-137-07784-4_2) 2. Shakespeare, W. (2019). The tempest. In One-Hour Shakespeare (pp. 137-194). Routledge. (https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429262647-9/tempest-william-shakespeare) 3. Johnson, S. (2020). The Preface to The Plays of William Shakespeare (1765). In Samuel Johnson (pp. 423-462). Yale University Press. (https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.12987/9780300258004-040/html?lang=de) 4. Denvir, J. (1986). William Shakespeare and the Jurisprudence of Comedy. Stan. L. Rev., 39, 825. (https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/stflr39&div=38&id=&page=) 5. Demmen, J. (2020). Issues and challenges in compiling a corpus of early modern English plays for comparison with those of William Shakespeare. ICAME Journal, 44(1), 37-68. (https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/icame-2020-0002) 6. Liu, X., Xu, A., Liu, Z., Guo, Y., & Akkiraju, R. (2019, May). Cognitive learning: How to become william shakespeare. In Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-6). (https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.1145/3290607.3312844) 7. Xu, W., Ritter, A., Dolan, W. B., Grishman, R., & Cherry, C. (2012, December). Paraphrasing for style. In Proceedings of COLING 2012 (pp. 2899-2914). (https://aclanthology.org/C12-1177.pdf) 8. Craig, H. (2012). George Chapman, John Davies of Hereford, William Shakespeare, and" A Lover's Complaint". Shakespeare Quarterly, 63(2), 147-174. (https://www.jstor.org/stable/41679745) 9. Zhao, Y., & Zobel, J. (2007, January). Searching with style: Authorship attribution in classic literature. In Proceedings of the thirtieth Australasian conference on Computer science-Volume 62 (pp. 59-68). (https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=3973ff27eb173412ce532c8684b950f4cd9b0dc8)

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short essay on shakespeare

Biography Online

Biography

Short Biography William Shakespeare

Shakespeare

Short bio of William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon on 23rd April 1564.

His father William was a successful local businessman, and his mother Mary was the daughter of a landowner. Relatively prosperous, it is likely the family paid for Williams education, although there is no evidence he attended university.

In 1582 William, aged only 18, married an older woman named Anne Hathaway. They had three children, Susanna, Hamnet and Juliet. Their only son Hamnet died aged just 11.

shakespeare

Due to some well-timed investments, Shakespeare was able to secure a firm financial background, leaving time for writing and acting. The best of these investments was buying some real estate near Stratford in 1605, which soon doubled in value.

It seemed Shakespeare didn’t mind being absent from his family – he only returned home during Lent when all the theatres were closed. It is thought that during the 1590s he wrote the majority of his sonnets. This was a time of prolific writing and his plays developed a good deal of interest and controversy. His early plays were mainly comedies (e.g. Much Ado about Nothing , A Midsummer’s Night Dream ) and histories (e.g. Henry V )

By the early Seventeenth Century, Shakespeare had begun to write plays in the genre of tragedy. These plays, such as Hamlet , Othello and King Lear , often hinge on some fatal error or flaw in the lead character and provide fascinating insights into the darker aspects of human nature. These later plays are considered Shakespeare’s finest achievements.

When writing an introduction to Shakespeare’s First Folio of published plays in 1623, Johnson wrote of Shakespeare:

“not of an age, but for all time”

Shakespeare the Poet

William Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets mostly in the 1590s. These short poems, deal with issues such as lost love. His sonnets have an enduring appeal due to his formidable skill with language and words.

“Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove:”

– Sonnet CXVI

The Plays of Shakespeare

The plays of Shakespeare have been studied more than any other writing in the English language and have been translated into numerous languages. He was rare as a play-write for excelling in tragedies, comedies and histories. He deftly combined popular entertainment with an extraordinary poetic capacity for expression which is almost mantric in quality.

 “This above all: to thine ownself be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man. Farewell: my blessing season this in thee!”

– Lord Polonius, Hamlet Act I, Scene 3

During his lifetime, Shakespeare was not without controversy, but he also received lavish praise for his plays which were very popular and commercially successful.

His plays have retained an enduring appeal throughout history and the world. Some of his most popular plays include:

  • Twelfth Night
  • Romeo and Juliet
“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts…”

Death of Shakespeare

Shakespeare died in 1616; it is not clear how he died, and numerous suggestions have been put forward. John Ward, the local vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford (where Shakespeare is buried), writes in a diary account that:

“Shakespeare, Drayton, and Ben Jonson had a merry meeting and it seems drank too hard, for Shakespeare died of a fever there contracted.”

In 1616, there was an outbreak of typhus (“The new fever”) which may have been the cause. The average life expectancy of someone born in London, England in the Sixteenth Century was about 35 years old, Shakespeare died age 52.

Was Shakespeare really Shakespeare?

Some academics, known as the “Oxfords,” claim that Shakespeare never actually wrote any plays. They contend Shakespeare was actually just a successful businessman, and for authorship suggest names such as Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford .  Arguments have also been made for Francis Bacon . The argument that Shakespeare was actually the Earl of Oxford relies on circumstantial evidence and similarities in his writing style and relationships between his life and the play of Shakespeare. 

However, there is no hard evidence tying the Earl of Oxford to the theatre or writing the scripts.  By contrast, there is evidence of William Shakespeare working in theatres and he received a variety of criticism from people such as Ben Johnson and Robert Greene. Also, the Earl of Oxford died in 1604, and it is generally agreed there were 12 plays published after this date. (Oxfords contend these plays were finished by other writers.)

It is also hard to believe the vain Earl of Oxford (who killed one of his own servants) would write such amazing scripts and then be happy with anonymity. Also, to maintain anonymity, it would also require the co-operation of numerous family members and other figures in the theatre world. The theory of other writers to Shakespeare only emerged centuries after the publishing of the First Folio.

Shakespeare’s Epitaph

Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare To digg the dust encloased heare Blessed by y man y spares hes stones And curst be he y moves my bones

– More interesting facts on Shakespeare

shakespear

Quotes on Shakespeare

“Shakespeare, no mere child of nature; no automaton of genius; no passive vehicle of inspiration possessed by the spirit, not possessing it; first studied patiently, meditated deeply, understood minutely, till knowledge became habitual and intuitive, wedded itself to his habitual feelings, and at length gave birth to that stupendous power by which he stands alone, with no equal or second in his own class; to that power which seated him on one of the two glorysmitten summits of the poetic mountain, with Milton’s his compeer, not rival.”

– Samuel Taylor Coleridge , Biographia Literaria (1817)

Citation: Pettinger, Tejvan . “Biography of William Shakespeare”, Oxford, www.biographyonline.net , 18th May 2006. Last updated 1 March 2019.

Popular quotes of Shakespeare

“This above all: to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.”

– Polonius, giving Laertes a pep talk. ( Hamlet )

“To be, or not to be: that is the question Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them. To die: to sleep;”

– Hamlet

“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in our philosophy.”

– Hamlet (to Horatio on seeing a ghost)

“We are such stuff As dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep.”

– The Tempest (Prospero)

The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.”

Julius Caesar (Cassius to Brutus)

“Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more. It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.”

– Macbeth (on learning of the death of Queen)

“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”

— Hamlet in Hamlet

“Self-love, my liege, is not so vile a sin, as self-neglecting.”

—Dauphin in Henry V

“Our doubts are traitors, And make us lose the good we oft might win, By fearing to attempt.”

—Lucio in Measure for Measure

The Oxford Shakespeare: The Complete Works 2nd Edition

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The Oxford Shakespeare: The Complete Works 2nd Edition at Amazon

Shakespeare: The Biography

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The Folger Shakespeare

Shakespeare's Life: From the Folger Shakespeare Editions

By Barbara Mowat and Paul Werstine Editors of the Folger Shakespeare Library Editions

Listen to this essay:

Surviving documents that give us glimpses into the life of William Shakespeare show us a playwright, poet, and actor who grew up in the market town of Stratford-upon-Avon, spent his professional life in London, and returned to Stratford a wealthy landowner. He was born in April 1564, died in April 1616, and is buried inside the chancel of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford.

We wish we could know more about the life of the world’s greatest dramatist. His plays and poems are testaments to his wide reading—especially to his knowledge of Virgil, Ovid, Plutarch, Holinshed’s  Chronicles , and the Bible—and to his mastery of the English language, but we can only speculate about his education. We know that the King’s New School in Stratford-upon-Avon was considered excellent. The school was one of the English “grammar schools” established to educate young men, primarily in Latin grammar and literature. As in other schools of the time, students began their studies at the age of four or five in the attached “petty school,” and there learned to read and write in English, studying primarily the catechism from the Book of Common Prayer. After two years in the petty school, students entered the lower form (grade) of the grammar school, where they began the serious study of Latin grammar and Latin texts that would occupy most of the remainder of their school days. (Several Latin texts that Shakespeare used repeatedly in writing his plays and poems were texts that schoolboys memorized and recited.) Latin comedies were introduced early in the lower form; in the upper form, which the boys entered at age ten or eleven, students wrote their own Latin orations and declamations, studied Latin historians and rhetoricians, and began the study of Greek using the Greek New Testament.

Title page of a 1573 Latin and Greek catechism for children. From Alexander Nowell, Catechismus paruus pueris primum Latine  . . . (1573).

Since the records of the Stratford “grammar school” do not survive, we cannot prove that William Shakespeare attended the school; however, every indication (his father’s position as an alderman and bailiff of Stratford, the playwright’s own knowledge of the Latin classics, scenes in the plays that recall grammar-school experiences—for example,  The Merry Wives of Windsor , 4.1 ) suggests that he did. We also lack generally accepted documentation about Shakespeare’s life after his schooling ended and his professional life in London began. His marriage in 1582 (at age eighteen) to Anne Hathaway and the subsequent births of his daughter Susanna (1583) and the twins Judith and Hamnet (1585) are recorded, but how he supported himself and where he lived are not known. Nor do we know when and why he left Stratford for the London theatrical world, nor how he rose to be the important figure in that world that he had become by the early 1590s.

We do know that by 1592 he had achieved some prominence in London as both an actor and a playwright. In that year was published a book by the playwright Robert Greene attacking an actor who had the audacity to write blank-verse drama and who was “in his own conceit [i.e., opinion] the only Shake-scene in a country.” Since Greene’s attack includes a parody of a line from one of Shakespeare’s early plays, there is little doubt that it is Shakespeare to whom he refers, a “Shake-scene” who had aroused Greene’s fury by successfully competing with university-educated dramatists like Greene himself. It was in 1593 that Shakespeare became a published poet. In that year he published his long narrative poem  Venus and Adonis ; in 1594, he followed it with  The Rape of Lucrece.  Both poems were dedicated to the young earl of Southampton (Henry Wriothesley), who may have become Shakespeare’s patron.

It seems no coincidence that Shakespeare wrote these narrative poems at a time when the theaters were closed because of the plague, a contagious epidemic disease that devastated the population of London. When the theaters reopened in 1594, Shakespeare apparently resumed his double career of actor and playwright and began his long (and seemingly profitable) service as an acting-company shareholder. Records for December of 1594 show him to be a leading member of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men. It was this company of actors, later named the King’s Men, for whom he would be a principal actor, dramatist, and shareholder for the rest of his career.

So far as we can tell, that career spanned about twenty years. In the 1590s, he wrote his plays on English history as well as several comedies and at least two tragedies ( Titus Andronicus  and  Romeo and Juliet ). These histories, comedies, and tragedies are the plays credited to him in 1598 in a work,  Palladis Tamia , that in one chapter compares English writers with “Greek, Latin, and Italian Poets.” There the author, Francis Meres, claims that Shakespeare is comparable to the Latin dramatists Seneca for tragedy and Plautus for comedy, and calls him “the most excellent in both kinds for the stage.” He also names him “Mellifluous and honey-tongued Shakespeare”: “I say,” writes Meres, “that the Muses would speak with Shakespeare’s fine filed phrase, if they would speak English.” Since Meres also mentions Shakespeare’s “sugared sonnets among his private friends,” it is assumed that many of Shakespeare’s sonnets (not published until 1609) were also written in the 1590s.

In 1599, Shakespeare’s company built a theater for themselves across the river from London, naming it the Globe. The plays that are considered by many to be Shakespeare’s major tragedies ( Hamlet , Othello , King Lear , and  Macbeth ) were written while the company was resident in this theater, as were such comedies as  Twelfth Night  and  Measure for Measure .  Many of Shakespeare’s plays were performed at court (both for Queen Elizabeth I and, after her death in 1603, for King James I), some were presented at the Inns of Court (the residences of London’s legal societies), and some were doubtless performed in other towns, at the universities, and at great houses when the King’s Men went on tour; otherwise, his plays from 1599 to 1608 were, so far as we know, performed only at the Globe. Between 1608 and 1612, Shakespeare wrote several plays—among them  The Winter’s Tale  and  The Tempest —presumably for the company’s new indoor Blackfriars theater, though the plays were performed also at the Globe and at court. Surviving documents describe a performance of  The Winter’s Tale  in 1611 at the Globe, for example, and performances of  The Tempest  in 1611 and 1613 at the royal palace of Whitehall.

Shakespeare seems to have written very little after 1612, the year in which he probably wrote  King Henry VIII .  (It was at a performance of  Henry VIII  in 1613 that the Globe caught fire and burned to the ground.) Sometime between 1610 and 1613, according to many biographers, he returned to live in Stratford-upon-Avon, where he owned a large house and considerable property, and where his wife and his two daughters lived. (His son Hamnet had died in 1596.) However, other biographers suggest that Shakespeare did not leave London for good until much closer to the time of his death. During his professional years in London, Shakespeare had presumably derived income from the acting company’s profits as well as from his own career as an actor, from the sale of his play manuscripts to the acting company, and, after 1599, from his shares as an owner of the Globe. It was presumably that income, carefully invested in land and other property, that made him the wealthy man that surviving documents show him to have become. It is also assumed that William Shakespeare’s growing wealth and reputation played some part in inclining the Crown, in 1596, to grant John Shakespeare, William’s father, the coat of arms that he had so long sought. William Shakespeare died in Stratford on April 23, 1616 (according to the epitaph carved under his bust in Holy Trinity Church) and was buried on April 25. Seven years after his death, his collected plays were published as  Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (the work now known as the First Folio).

Ptolemaic universe. From Marcus Manilius, The sphere of . . . (1675).

The years in which Shakespeare wrote were among the most exciting in English history. Intellectually, the discovery, translation, and printing of Greek and Roman classics were making available a set of works and worldviews that interacted complexly with Christian texts and beliefs. The result was a questioning, a vital intellectual ferment, that provided energy for the period’s amazing dramatic and literary output and that fed directly into Shakespeare’s plays. The Ghost in  Hamlet , for example, is wonderfully complicated in part because he is a figure from Roman tragedy—the spirit of the dead returning to seek revenge—who at the same time inhabits a Christian hell (or purgatory); Hamlet’s description of humankind reflects at one moment the Neoplatonic wonderment at mankind (“ What a piece of work is a man! ”) and, at the next, the Christian attitude toward sinful humanity (“ And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust? ”).

As intellectual horizons expanded, so also did geographical and cosmological horizons. New worlds—both North and South America—were explored, and in them were found human beings who lived and worshiped in ways radically different from those of Renaissance Europeans and Englishmen. The universe during these years also seemed to shift and expand. Copernicus had earlier theorized that the earth was not the center of the cosmos but revolved as a planet around the sun. Galileo’s telescope, created in 1609, allowed scientists to see that Copernicus had been correct: the universe was not organized with the earth at the center, nor was it so nicely circumscribed as people had, until that time, thought. In terms of expanding horizons, the impact of these discoveries on people’s beliefs—religious, scientific, and philosophical—cannot be overstated.

London, too, rapidly expanded and changed during the years (from the early 1590s to around 1610) that Shakespeare lived there. London—the center of England’s government, its economy, its royal court, its overseas trade—was, during these years, becoming an exciting metropolis, drawing to it thousands of new citizens every year. Troubled by overcrowding, by poverty, by recurring epidemics of the plague, London was also a mecca for the wealthy and the aristocratic, and for those who sought advancement at court, or power in government or finance or trade. One hears in Shakespeare’s plays the voices of London—the struggles for power, the fear of venereal disease, the language of buying and selling. One hears as well the voices of Stratford-upon-Avon—references to the nearby Forest of Arden, to sheepherding, to small-town gossip, to village fairs and markets. Part of the richness of Shakespeare’s work is the influence felt there of the various worlds in which he lived: the world of metropolitan London, the world of small-town and rural England, the world of the theater, and the worlds of craftsmen and shepherds.

That Shakespeare inhabited such worlds we know from surviving London and Stratford documents, as well as from the evidence of the plays and poems themselves. From such records we can sketch the dramatist’s life. We know from his works that he was a voracious reader. We know from legal and business documents that he was a multifaceted theater man who became a wealthy landowner. We know a bit about his family life and a fair amount about his legal and financial dealings. Most scholars today depend upon such evidence as they draw their picture of the world’s greatest playwright. Such, however, has not always been the case. Until the late eighteenth century, the William Shakespeare who lived in most biographies was the creation of legend and tradition. This was the Shakespeare who was supposedly caught poaching deer at Charlecote, the estate of Sir Thomas Lucy close by Stratford; this was the Shakespeare who fled from Sir Thomas’s vengeance and made his way in London by taking care of horses outside a playhouse; this was the Shakespeare who reportedly could barely read, but whose natural gifts were extraordinary, whose father was a butcher who allowed his gifted son sometimes to help in the butcher shop, where William supposedly killed calves “in a high style,” making a speech for the occasion. It was this legendary William Shakespeare whose Falstaff (in  1  and  2 Henry IV ) so pleased Queen Elizabeth that she demanded a play about Falstaff in love, and demanded that it be written in fourteen days (hence the existence of  The Merry Wives of Windsor ). It was this legendary Shakespeare who reached the top of his acting career in the roles of the Ghost in  Hamlet  and old Adam in  As You Like It —and who died of a fever contracted by drinking too hard at “a merry meeting” with the poets Michael Drayton and Ben Jonson. This legendary Shakespeare is a rambunctious, undisciplined man, as attractively “wild” as his plays were seen by earlier generations to be. Unfortunately, there is no trace of evidence to support these wonderful stories.

Perhaps in response to the disreputable Shakespeare of legend—or perhaps in response to the fragmentary and, for some, all-too-ordinary Shakespeare documented by surviving records—some people since the mid-nineteenth century have argued that William Shakespeare could not have written the plays that bear his name. These persons have put forward some dozen names as more likely authors, among them Queen Elizabeth, Sir Francis Bacon, Edward de Vere (earl of Oxford), and Christopher Marlowe. Such attempts to find what for these people is a more believable author of the plays is a tribute to the regard in which the plays are held. Unfortunately for their claims, the documents that exist that provide evidence for the facts of Shakespeare’s life tie him inextricably to the body of plays and poems that bear his name. Unlikely as it seems to those who want the works to have been written by an aristocrat, a university graduate, or an “important” person, the plays and poems seem clearly to have been produced by a man from Stratford-upon-Avon with a very good “grammar-school” education and a life of experience in London and in the world of the London theater. How this particular man produced the works that dominate the cultures of much of the world four centuries after his death is one of life’s mysteries—and one that will continue to tease our imaginations as we continue to delight in his plays and poems.

Further Reading

Baldwin, T. W.  William Shakspere’s Petty School.  Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1943.

Baldwin here investigates the theory and practice of the petty school, the first level of education in Elizabethan England. He focuses on that educational system primarily as it is reflected in Shakespeare’s art.

Baldwin, T. W.  William Shakspere’s Small Latine and Lesse Greeke.  2 vols. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1944.

Baldwin attacks the view that Shakespeare was an uneducated genius—a view that had been dominant among Shakespeareans since the eighteenth century. Instead, Baldwin shows, the educational system of Shakespeare’s time would have given the playwright a strong background in the classics, and there is much in the plays that shows how Shakespeare benefited from such an education.

Beier, A. L., and Roger Finlay, eds.  London 1500–1700: The Making of the Metropolis.  New York: Longman, 1986.

Focusing on the economic and social history of early modern London, these collected essays probe aspects of metropolitan life, including “Population and Disease,” “Commerce and Manufacture,” and “Society and Change.”

Chambers, E. K.  William Shakespeare: A Study of Facts and Problems.  2 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1930.

Analyzing in great detail the scant historical data, Chambers’s complex, scholarly study considers the nature of the texts in which Shakespeare’s work is preserved.

Cressy, David.  Education in Tudor and Stuart England.  London: Edward Arnold, 1975.

This volume collects sixteenth-, seventeenth-, and early eighteenth-century documents detailing aspects of formal education in England, such as the curriculum, the control and organization of education, and the education of women.

Duncan-Jones, Katherine.  Shakespeare: An Ungentle Life.  London: Arden Shakespeare, 2010.

This biography, first published in 2001 under the title  Ungentle Shakespeare: Scenes from His Life,  sets out to look into the documents from Shakespeare’s personal life—especially legal and financial records—and it finds there a man very different from the one portrayed in more traditional biographies. He is “ungentle” in being born to a lower social class and in being a bit ruthless and more than a bit stingy. As the author notes, “three topics were formerly taboo both in polite society and in Shakespearean biography: social class, sex and money. I have been indelicate enough to give a good deal of attention to all three.” She examines “Shakespeare’s uphill struggle to achieve, or purchase, ‘gentle’ status.” She finds that “Shakespeare was strongly interested in intense relationships with well-born young men.” And she shows that he was “reluctant to divert much, if any, of his considerable wealth towards charitable, neighbourly, or altruistic ends.” She insists that his plays and poems are “great, and enduring,” and that it is in them “that the best of him is to be found.”

Dutton, Richard.  William Shakespeare: A Literary Life.  New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1989.

Not a biography in the traditional sense, Dutton’s very readable work nevertheless “follows the contours of Shakespeare’s life” as it examines Shakespeare’s career as playwright and poet, with consideration of his patrons, theatrical associations, and audience.

Honan, Park.  Shakespeare: A Life.  New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Honan’s accessible biography focuses on the various contexts of Shakespeare’s life—physical, social, political, and cultural—to place the dramatist within a lucidly described world. The biography includes detailed examinations of, for example, Stratford schooling, theatrical politics of 1590s London, and the careers of Shakespeare’s associates. The author draws on a wealth of established knowledge and on interesting new research into local records and documents; he also engages in speculation about, for example, the possibilities that Shakespeare was a tutor in a Catholic household in the north of England in the 1580s and that he acted particular roles in his own plays, areas that reflect new, but unproven and debatable, data—though Honan is usually careful to note where a particular narrative “has not been capable of proof or disproof.”

Potter, Lois.  The Life of William Shakespeare: A Critical Biography.  Malden, Mass.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012.

This critical biography of Shakespeare takes the playwright from cradle to grave, paying primary attention to his literary and theatrical milieu. The chapters “follow a chronological sequence,” each focusing on a handful of years in the playwright’s life. In the chapters that cover his playwriting years (5–17), each chapter focuses on events in Stratford-upon-Avon and in London (especially in the commercial theaters) while giving equal space to discussions of the plays and/or poems Shakespeare wrote during those years. Filled with information from Shakespeare’s literary and theatrical worlds, the biography also shares frequent insights into how modern productions of a given play can shed light on the play, especially in scenes that Shakespeare’s text presents ambiguously.

Schoenbaum, S.  William Shakespeare: A Compact Documentary Life.  New York: Oxford University Press, 1977.

Schoenbaum’s evidence-based biography of Shakespeare is a compact version of his magisterial folio-size  Shakespeare: A Documentary Life  (New York: Oxford University Press, 1975). Schoenbaum structures his readable “compact” narrative around the documents that still exist which chronicle Shakespeare’s familial, theatrical, legal, and financial existence. These documents, along with those discovered since the 1970s, form the basis of almost all Shakespeare biographies written since Schoenbaum’s books appeared.

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Shakespeare Studies & Criticism

Explore our collection, latest books & journal articles.

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Welcome to the home of Shakespeare Studies & Criticism on Oxford Academic. We hope you will enjoy this celebration of Shakespeare, and that this page will act as a springboard to new discoveries on your research journey.

Oxford Academic hosts three million journal articles, 400,000 book chapters, and two million images and multimedia. To find out how you can get access please visit our get help with access page .

Offers & updates

Latest posts on x, shakespeare on the oupblog.

short essay on shakespeare

Written in the stars: Prince Hal’s almanac

Marissa Nicosia

Saturn and Venus this year in conjunction! What says th’almanac to that?

Marissa Nicosia explores the role of the almanac as a measure of time in Shakespeare’s Henry IV , and the parallels between a past and present-day fascination with astrology.

short essay on shakespeare

Sir Stanley Wells and the First Folio

It’s often been difficult to dispel this reverence and distinguish an actual author behind it.

For enabling many readers to accomplish that, we have to thank Sir Stanley Wells, general editor of The Oxford Shakespeare and Emeritus Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Birmingham University. His diligent and common-sense scholarship has done much to de-mystify Shakespeare and reposition the plays as working documents.

OUP Archivist Martin Maw examines one scholar’s immense contribution to Shakespeare Studies.

short essay on shakespeare

“A tiger’s heart wrapped in a player’s hide”: Shakespeare under attack

Robert Stagg 

Around three years into his career as a dramatist, Shakespeare’s blank verse, came under attack.  

In 1592, playwright Robert Greene described William Shakespeare’s blank verse—his unrhymed iambic pentameter—as "bombastic".

Robert Stagg explores this criticism and how Shakespeare came to fend it off over the course of his career.

short essay on shakespeare

Why “the all-male stage” wasn’t

Pamela Allen Brown 

Why is “the all-male stage” inadequate as shorthand for the early modern stage?

Pamela Allen Brown explores gender roles on stage, and the arrival and impact of the 'innamorata accesa' (woman inflamed with passion), the trademark of the foreign diva.

short essay on shakespeare

How did Shakespeare become a London playwright?

Lena Cowen Orlin

Shakespeare’s first biographer, Nicholas Rowe, wrote in 1709 that the author married “while he was yet very young.” He then fell in with a bad crowd that “made a frequent practice of deer-stealing” from Warwickshire magnate Sir Thomas Lucy.

Lena Cowen Orlin traces the key events that took the playwright from Stratford to London.

short essay on shakespeare

Shakespeare and the sciences of emotion

Benedict S. Robinson

What role should literature have in the interdisciplinary study of emotion? The dominant answer today seems to be “not much.”

Using Shakespeare's Hamlet , Thomas Wright’s Passions of the Mind and Aristotle's Rhetoric ’ as points of departure, Benedict S. Robinson takes a wide view of emotion and "passion" to think about how passion also shaped the rise of new empirical sciences of the mind between 1600 and 1800.

short essay on shakespeare

Adapting Shakespeare: shattering stereotypes of Asian women onstage and onscreen

Alexa Alice Joubin

“I should like to see Miss Wong playing Shakespeare. Why not a Chinese Ophelia?”

Alexa Alice Joubin explores the perceptions and portrayal of Ophelia by Asian actors, arguing that gender roles in Shakespeare’s plays take on new meanings when they are embodied by Asian women.

short essay on shakespeare

Cut out characters and cracky plots: Jacob’s Room as Shakespeare play

Emily Kopley

But there is another reason, a reason outside of the novel, that Jacob is unknowable. He is the hero of a Shakespeare play.

Emily Kopley analyses Virginia Woolf's Jacob's Room as a Shakespeare play, using letters between her and her brother Thoby, as an insight into the novel.

Measure for Measure

Early Modern Literary Geographies

Influenced by the work of cultural and human geographers, literary scholars have started to attend to the ways in which early modern people constructed their senses of the world out of interactions among places, spaces, and embodied practices. Early Modern Literary Geographies features innovative and agenda-setting research monographs that partake of this spatial turn.

Series Editors: Julie Sanders and Garrett Sullivan

short essay on shakespeare

Oxford Shakespeare Topics

Oxford Shakespeare Topics provide students and teachers with short books on important aspects of Shakespeare criticism and scholarship. Each book is written by an authority in its field, and combines accessible style with original discussion of its subject.

General Editors: Stanley Wells, Peter Holland, and Lena Cowen Orlin

short essay on shakespeare

Oxford Wells Shakespeare Lectures

These Lectures are derived from the series of biennial lectures established in 2008 in honour of Professor Stanley Wells. The inaugural lectures were given by Professor David Scott Kastan and since then a series of highly respected scholars have presented and published in this series.

The New Oxford Shakespeare: Modern Critical Edition

New Oxford Shakespeare

The New Oxford Shakespeare presents an entirely new consideration of all of Shakespeare's works, edited from first principles from the base-texts themselves, and drawing on the latest textual and theatrical scholarship.

The three interconnected print publications and the online edition have been created by an international, intergenerational team of scholars. The project's scope, depth, and vision provide the perfect platform for the future of Shakespeare studies.

Edited by: Gary Taylor, John Jowett, Terri Bourus, and Gabriel Egan

short essay on shakespeare

The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Race

Edited by Patricia Akhimie

Premodern critical race studies, long intertwined with Shakespeare studies, has broadened our understanding of the definitions and discourse of race and racism to include not only phenotype, but also religious and political identity, regional, national, and linguistic difference, and systems of differentiation based upon culture and custom.

Replete with fresh readings of the plays and poems, The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Race brings together some of the most important scholars thinking about the subject today.

short essay on shakespeare

The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Music

Edited by Christopher R. Wilson and Mervyn Cooke

With global coverage and an extensive survey of genres embracing music for theatre, opera, ballet, musicals, the concert hall, and film, in addition to Shakespeare's ongoing afterlives in folk music, jazz, and popular music.

The Handbook showcases the latest international research into the captivating and vast subject of the many uses of music in relation to Shakespeare's plays and poems, extending from the Bard's own time to the present day.

short essay on shakespeare

The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Dance

Edited by Lynsey McCulloch and Brandon Shaw

A concise reference on dance as both an integral feature of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century culture and as a means of translating Shakespearean text into movement - a process that raises questions of authorship and authority, cross-cultural communication, semantics, embodiment, and the relationship between word and image.

From narrative ballet adaptations to dance in musicals, physical theatre adaptations, and interpretations using non-Western dance forms this Handbook explores the relationship between William Shakespeare - his life, works, and afterlife - and dance.

short essay on shakespeare

The Oxford Handbook of Shakespeare and Embodiment

Edited by Valerie Traub

Extending the purview of feminist criticism, over 40 chapters offer an intersectional paradigm for considering representations of gender in the context of race, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, and religion.

Theoretically sophisticated and elegantly written this Handbook provides a comprehensive overview of current debates.

short essay on shakespeare

Shakespeare Quarterly | Submit your research  

Shakespeare Quarterly (SQ)  is a leading journal in Shakespeare studies, publishing highly original, rigorously researched essays, notes, and book reviews. Published for the Folger Shakespeare Library by Oxford University Press, SQ is peer-reviewed and extremely selective.

Read our Author Guidelines to find out how to submit your work

Shakespeare’s Reading

Sir Stanley Wells, CBE, describes the many different sources Shakespeare drew upon in his work. Highlighting comparison passages, Wells explores Shakespeare’s relationship with the different texts he read throughout his life.

Shakespeare and Women

Julie Crawford, Mark van Doren Professor of Humanities at Columbia University, discusses Shakespeare’s portrayal of the power balance between the sexes, women’s contribution to the Elizabethan stage, and Renaissance ideas about gender. She also considers key speeches by Desdemona and Emilia in Othello .

Shakespeare and Religion

Rev. Dr Paul Edmondson, Head of Research and Knowledge at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, explores the religious influences in Shakespeare’s work in the context of 16th century England - a time when the Church of England was given an established authority, Pope Pius V had excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I, and anti-Catholic laws were introduced.

Shakespeare and Sexuality

Sir Stanley Wells, CBE, analyses the references to sexuality in Shakespeare’s plays and poems. From his earlier comedies, such as The Two Gentleman of Verona or Much Ado About Nothing , where he is unafraid to play with this topic, to his middle and last texts where he demonstrates a deeper preoccupation with the destructive potential of sexual desire.

Shakespeare and Death

Laurie Maguire, Emeritus Professor, Magdalen College Oxford discusses the theme of death in Shakespeare's tragedies, histories, and comedies. She considers how Elizabethans encountered death on a daily basis, and how Shakespeare was clearly very familiar with the details of death, and murder.

Shakespeare and Music

Joseph M. Ortiz, Associate Professor of Liberal Arts at the University of Texas, El Paso, explains how music was experienced and understood in Shakespeare’s time, with reference to education, the emerging music publishing industry, conflicting religious views, audiences’ expectations, and music as an instrument of political power.

Shakespeare and Race

Ayanna Thompson considers the theme of race in Shakespeare’s plays, the extent to which he would have been aware of Africans, and how he introduced them into his plays. She discusses the current debate amongst black actors about whether or not to play the part of Othello .

Shakespeare and His Collaborators

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Jeffrey R. Wilson

Essays on hamlet.

Essays On Hamlet

Written as the author taught Hamlet every semester for a decade, these lightning essays ask big conceptual questions about the play with the urgency of a Shakespeare lover, and answer them with the rigor of a Shakespeare scholar. In doing so, Hamlet becomes a lens for life today, generating insights on everything from xenophobia, American fraternities, and religious fundamentalism to structural misogyny, suicide contagion, and toxic love.

Prioritizing close reading over historical context, these explorations are highly textual and highly theoretical, often philosophical, ethical, social, and political. Readers see King Hamlet as a pre-modern villain, King Claudius as a modern villain, and Prince Hamlet as a post-modern villain. Hamlet’s feigned madness becomes a window into failed insanity defenses in legal trials. He knows he’s being watched in “To be or not to be”: the soliloquy is a satire of philosophy. Horatio emerges as Shakespeare’s authorial avatar for meta-theatrical commentary, Fortinbras as the hero of the play. Fate becomes a viable concept for modern life, and honor a source of tragedy. The metaphor of music in the play makes Ophelia Hamlet’s instrument. Shakespeare, like the modern corporation, stands against sexism, yet perpetuates it unknowingly. We hear his thoughts on single parenting, sending children off to college, and the working class, plus his advice on acting and writing, and his claims to be the next Homer or Virgil. In the context of four centuries of Hamlet hate, we hear how the text draws audiences in, how it became so famous, and why it continues to captivate audiences.

At a time when the humanities are said to be in crisis, these essays are concrete examples of the mind-altering power of literature and literary studies, unravelling the ongoing implications of the English language’s most significant artistic object of the past millennium.

Publications

Why is Hamlet the most famous English artwork of the past millennium? Is it a sexist text? Why does Hamlet speak in prose? Why must he die? Does Hamlet depict revenge, or justice? How did the death of Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, transform into a story about a son dealing with the death of a father? Did Shakespeare know Aristotle’s theory of tragedy? How did our literary icon, Shakespeare, see his literary icons, Homer and Virgil? Why is there so much comedy in Shakespeare’s greatest tragedy? Why is love a force of evil in the play? Did Shakespeare believe there’s a divinity that shapes our ends? How did he define virtue? What did he think about psychology? politics? philosophy? What was Shakespeare’s image of himself as an author? What can he, arguably the greatest writer of all time, teach us about our own writing? What was his theory of literature? Why do people like Hamlet ? How do the Hamlet haters of today compare to those of yesteryears? Is it dangerous for our children to read a play that’s all about suicide? 

These are some of the questions asked in this book, a collection of essays on Shakespeare’s Hamlet stemming from my time teaching the play every semester in my Why Shakespeare? course at Harvard University. During this time, I saw a series of bright young minds from wildly diverse backgrounds find their footing in Hamlet, and it taught me a lot about how Shakespeare’s tragedy works, and why it remains with us in the modern world. Beyond ghosts, revenge, and tragedy, Hamlet is a play about being in college, being in love, gender, misogyny, friendship, theater, philosophy, theology, injustice, loss, comedy, depression, death, self-doubt, mental illness, white privilege, overbearing parents, existential angst, international politics, the classics, the afterlife, and the meaning of it all. 

These essays grow from the central paradox of the play: it helps us understand the world we live in, yet we don't really understand the text itself very well. For all the attention given to Hamlet , there’s no consensus on the big questions—how it works, why it grips people so fiercely, what it’s about. These essays pose first-order questions about what happens in Hamlet and why, mobilizing answers for reflections on life, making the essays both highly textual and highly theoretical. 

Each semester that I taught the play, I would write a new essay about Hamlet . They were meant to be models for students, the sort of essay that undergrads read and write – more rigorous than the puff pieces in the popular press, but riskier than the scholarship in most academic journals. While I later added scholarly outerwear, these pieces all began just like the essays I was assigning to students – as short close readings with a reader and a text and a desire to determine meaning when faced with a puzzling question or problem. 

The turn from text to context in recent scholarly books about Hamlet is quizzical since we still don’t have a strong sense of, to quote the title of John Dover Wilson’s 1935 book, What Happens in Hamlet. Is the ghost real? Is Hamlet mad, or just faking? Why does he delay? These are the kinds of questions students love to ask, but they haven’t been – can’t be – answered by reading the play in the context of its sources (recently addressed in Laurie Johnson’s The Tain of Hamlet [2013]), its multiple texts (analyzed by Paul Menzer in The Hamlets [2008] and Zachary Lesser in Hamlet after Q1 [2015]), the Protestant reformation (the focus of Stephen Greenblatt’s Hamlet in Purgatory [2001] and John E. Curran, Jr.’s Hamlet, Protestantism, and the Mourning of Contingency [2006]), Renaissance humanism (see Rhodri Lewis, Hamlet and the Vision of Darkness [2017]), Elizabethan political theory (see Margreta de Grazia, Hamlet without Hamlet [2007]), the play’s reception history (see David Bevington, Murder Most Foul: Hamlet through the Ages [2011]), its appropriation by modern philosophers (covered in Simon Critchley and Jamieson Webster’s The Hamlet Doctrine [2013] and Andrew Cutrofello’s All for Nothing: Hamlet’s Negativity [2014]), or its recent global travels (addressed, for example, in Margaret Latvian’s Hamlet’s Arab Journey [2011] and Dominic Dromgoole’s Hamlet Globe to Globe [2017]). 

Considering the context and afterlives of Hamlet is a worthy pursuit. I certainly consulted the above books for my essays, yet the confidence that comes from introducing context obscures the sharp panic we feel when confronting Shakespeare’s text itself. Even as the excellent recent book from Sonya Freeman Loftis, Allison Kellar, and Lisa Ulevich announces Hamlet has entered “an age of textual exhaustion,” there’s an odd tendency to avoid the text of Hamlet —to grasp for something more firm—when writing about it. There is a need to return to the text in a more immediate way to understand how Hamlet operates as a literary work, and how it can help us understand the world in which we live. 

That latter goal, yes, clings nostalgically to the notion that literature can help us understand life. Questions about life send us to literature in search of answers. Those of us who love literature learn to ask and answer questions about it as we become professional literary scholars. But often our answers to the questions scholars ask of literature do not connect back up with the questions about life that sent us to literature in the first place—which are often philosophical, ethical, social, and political. Those first-order questions are diluted and avoided in the minutia of much scholarship, left unanswered. Thus, my goal was to pose questions about Hamlet with the urgency of a Shakespeare lover and to answer them with the rigor of a Shakespeare scholar. 

In doing so, these essays challenge the conventional relationship between literature and theory. They pursue a kind of criticism where literature is not merely the recipient of philosophical ideas in the service of exegesis. Instead, the creative risks of literature provide exemplars to be theorized outward to help us understand on-going issues in life today. Beyond an occasion for the demonstration of existing theory, literature is a source for the creation of new theory.

Chapter One How Hamlet Works

Whether you love or hate Hamlet , you can acknowledge its massive popularity. So how does Hamlet work? How does it create audience enjoyment? Why is it so appealing, and to whom? Of all the available options, why Hamlet ? This chapter entertains three possible explanations for why the play is so popular in the modern world: the literary answer (as the English language’s best artwork about death—one of the very few universal human experiences in a modern world increasingly marked by cultural differences— Hamlet is timeless); the theatrical answer (with its mixture of tragedy and comedy, the role of Hamlet requires the best actor of each age, and the play’s popularity derives from the celebrity of its stars); and the philosophical answer (the play invites, encourages, facilitates, and sustains philosophical introspection and conversation from people who do not usually do such things, who find themselves doing those things with Hamlet , who sometimes feel embarrassed about doing those things, but who ultimately find the experience of having done them rewarding).

Chapter Two “It Started Like a Guilty Thing”: The Beginning of Hamlet and the Beginning of Modern Politics

King Hamlet is a tyrant and King Claudius a traitor but, because Shakespeare asked us to experience the events in Hamlet from the perspective of the young Prince Hamlet, we are much more inclined to detect and detest King Claudius’s political failings than King Hamlet’s. If so, then Shakespeare’s play Hamlet , so often seen as the birth of modern psychology, might also tell us a little bit about the beginnings of modern politics as well.

Chapter Three Horatio as Author: Storytelling and Stoic Tragedy

This chapter addresses Horatio’s emotionlessness in light of his role as a narrator, using this discussion to think about Shakespeare’s motives for writing tragedy in the wake of his son’s death. By rationalizing pain and suffering as tragedy, both Horatio and Shakespeare were able to avoid the self-destruction entailed in Hamlet’s emotional response to life’s hardships and injustices. Thus, the stoic Horatio, rather than the passionate Hamlet who repeatedly interrupts ‘The Mousetrap’, is the best authorial avatar for a Shakespeare who strategically wrote himself and his own voice out of his works. This argument then expands into a theory of ‘authorial catharsis’ and the suggestion that we can conceive of Shakespeare as a ‘poet of reason’ in contrast to a ‘poet of emotion’.

Chapter Four “To thine own self be true”: What Shakespeare Says about Sending Our Children Off to College

What does “To thine own self be true” actually mean? Be yourself? Don’t change who you are? Follow your own convictions? Don’t lie to yourself? This chapter argues that, if we understand meaning as intent, then “To thine own self be true” means, paradoxically, that “the self” does not exist. Or, more accurately, Shakespeare’s Hamlet implies that “the self” exists only as a rhetorical, philosophical, and psychological construct that we use to make sense of our experiences and actions in the world, not as anything real. If this is so, then this passage may offer us a way of thinking about Shakespeare as not just a playwright but also a moral philosopher, one who did his ethics in drama.

Chapter Five In Defense of Polonius

Your wife dies. You raise two children by yourself. You build a great career to provide for your family. You send your son off to college in another country, though you know he’s not ready. Now the prince wants to marry your daughter—that’s not easy to navigate. Then—get this—while you’re trying to save the queen’s life, the prince murders you. Your death destroys your kids. They die tragically. And what do you get for your efforts? Centuries of Shakespeare scholars dumping on you. If we see Polonius not through the eyes of his enemy, Prince Hamlet—the point of view Shakespeare’s play asks audiences to adopt—but in analogy to the common challenges of twenty-first-century parenting, Polonius is a single father struggling with work-life balance who sadly choses his career over his daughter’s well-being.

Chapter Six Sigma Alpha Elsinore: The Culture of Drunkenness in Shakespeare’s Hamlet

Claudius likes to party—a bit too much. He frequently binge drinks, is arguably an alcoholic, but not an aberration. Hamlet says Denmark is internationally known for heavy drinking. That’s what Shakespeare would have heard in the sixteenth century. By the seventeenth, English writers feared Denmark had taught their nation its drinking habits. Synthesizing criticism on alcoholism as an individual problem in Shakespeare’s texts and times with scholarship on national drinking habits in the early-modern age, this essay asks what the tragedy of alcoholism looks like when located not on the level of the individual, but on the level of a culture, as Shakespeare depicted in Hamlet. One window into these early-modern cultures of drunkenness is sociological studies of American college fraternities, especially the social-learning theories that explain how one person—one culture—teaches another its habits. For Claudius’s alcoholism is both culturally learned and culturally significant. And, as in fraternities, alcoholism in Hamlet is bound up with wealth, privilege, toxic masculinity, and tragedy. Thus, alcohol imagistically reappears in the vial of “cursed hebona,” Ophelia’s liquid death, and the poisoned cup in the final scene—moments that stand out in recent performances and adaptations with alcoholic Claudiuses and Gertrudes.

Chapter Seven Tragic Foundationalism

This chapter puts the modern philosopher Alain Badiou’s theory of foundationalism into dialogue with the early-modern playwright William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet . Doing so allows us to identify a new candidate for Hamlet’s traditionally hard-to-define hamartia – i.e., his “tragic mistake” – but it also allows us to consider the possibility of foundationalism as hamartia. Tragic foundationalism is the notion that fidelity to a single and substantive truth at the expense of an openness to evidence, reason, and change is an acute mistake which can lead to miscalculations of fact and virtue that create conflict and can end up in catastrophic destruction and the downfall of otherwise strong and noble people.

Chapter Eight “As a stranger give it welcome”: Shakespeare’s Advice for First-Year College Students

Encountering a new idea can be like meeting a strange person for the first time. Similarly, we dismiss new ideas before we get to know them. There is an answer to the problem of the human antipathy to strangeness in a somewhat strange place: a single line usually overlooked in William Shakespeare’s play Hamlet . If the ghost is “wondrous strange,” Hamlet says, invoking the ancient ethics of hospitality, “Therefore as a stranger give it welcome.” In this word, strange, and the social conventions attached to it, is both the instinctual, animalistic fear and aggression toward what is new and different (the problem) and a cultivated, humane response in hospitality and curiosity (the solution). Intellectual xenia is the answer to intellectual xenophobia.

Chapter Nine Parallels in Hamlet

Hamlet is more parallely than other texts. Fortinbras, Hamlet, and Laertes have their fathers murdered, then seek revenge. Brothers King Hamlet and King Claudius mirror brothers Old Norway and Old Fortinbras. Hamlet and Ophelia both lose their fathers, go mad, but there’s a method in their madness, and become suicidal. King Hamlet and Polonius are both domineering fathers. Hamlet and Polonius are both scholars, actors, verbose, pedantic, detectives using indirection, spying upon others, “by indirections find directions out." King Hamlet and King Claudius are both kings who are killed. Claudius using Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to spy on Hamlet mirrors Polonius using Reynaldo to spy on Laertes. Reynaldo and Hamlet both pretend to be something other than what they are in order to spy on and detect foes. Young Fortinbras and Prince Hamlet both have their forward momentum “arrest[ed].” Pyrrhus and Hamlet are son seeking revenge but paused a “neutral to his will.” The main plot of Hamlet reappears in the play-within-the-play. The Act I duel between King Hamlet and Old Fortinbras echoes in the Act V duel between Hamlet and Laertes. Claudius and Hamlet are both king killers. Sheesh—why are there so many dang parallels in Hamlet ? Is there some detectable reason why the story of Hamlet would call for the literary device of parallelism?

Chapter Ten Rosencrantz and Guildenstern: Why Hamlet Has Two Childhood Friends, Not Just One

Why have two of Hamlet’s childhood friends rather than just one? Do Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have individuated personalities? First of all, by increasing the number of friends who visit Hamlet, Shakespeare creates an atmosphere of being outnumbered, of multiple enemies encroaching upon Hamlet, of Hamlet feeling that the world is against him. Second, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are not interchangeable, as commonly thought. Shakespeare gave each an individuated personality. Guildenstern is friendlier with Hamlet, and their friendship collapses, while Rosencrantz is more distant and devious—a frenemy.

Chapter Eleven Shakespeare on the Classics, Shakespeare as a Classic: A Reading of Aeneas’s Tale to Dido

Of all the stories Shakespeare might have chosen, why have Hamlet ask the players to recite Aeneas’ tale to Dido of Pyrrhus’s slaughter of Priam? In this story, which comes not from Homer’s Iliad but from Virgil’s Aeneid and had already been adapted for the Elizabethan stage in Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragedy of Dido, Pyrrhus – more commonly known as Neoptolemus, the son of the famous Greek warrior Achilles – savagely slays Priam, the king of the Trojans and the father of Paris, who killed Pyrrhus’s father, Achilles, who killed Paris’s brother, Hector, who killed Achilles’s comrade, Patroclus. Clearly, the theme of revenge at work in this story would have appealed to Shakespeare as he was writing what would become the greatest revenge tragedy of all time. Moreover, Aeneas’s tale to Dido supplied Shakespeare with all of the connections he sought to make at this crucial point in his play and his career – connections between himself and Marlowe, between the start of Hamlet and the end, between Prince Hamlet and King Claudius, between epic poetry and tragic drama, and between the classical literature Shakespeare was still reading hundreds of years later and his own potential as a classic who might (and would) be read hundreds of years into the future.

Chapter Twelve How Theater Works, according to Hamlet

According to Hamlet, people who are guilty of a crime will, when seeing that crime represented on stage, “proclaim [their] malefactions”—but that simply isn’t how theater works. Guilty people sit though shows that depict their crimes all the time without being prompted to public confession. Why did Shakespeare—a remarkably observant student of theater—write this demonstrably false theory of drama into his protagonist? And why did Shakespeare then write the plot of the play to affirm that obviously inaccurate vision of theater? For Claudius is indeed stirred to confession by the play-within-the-play. Perhaps Hamlet’s theory of people proclaiming malefactions upon seeing their crimes represented onstage is not as outlandish as it first appears. Perhaps four centuries of obsession with Hamlet is the English-speaking world proclaiming its malefactions upon seeing them represented dramatically.

Chapter Thirteen “To be, or not to be”: Shakespeare Against Philosophy

This chapter hazards a new reading of the most famous passage in Western literature: “To be, or not to be” from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet . With this line, Hamlet poses his personal struggle, a question of life and death, as a metaphysical problem, as a question of existence and nothingness. However, “To be, or not to be” is not what it seems to be. It seems to be a representation of tragic angst, yet a consideration of the context of the speech reveals that “To be, or not to be” is actually a satire of philosophy and Shakespeare’s representation of the theatricality of everyday life. In this chapter, a close reading of the context and meaning of this passage leads into an attempt to formulate a Shakespearean image of philosophy.

Chapter Fourteen Contagious Suicide in and Around Hamlet

As in society today, suicide is contagious in Hamlet , at least in the example of Ophelia, the only death by suicide in the play, because she only becomes suicidal after hearing Hamlet talk about his own suicidal thoughts in “To be, or not to be.” Just as there are media guidelines for reporting on suicide, there are better and worse ways of handling Hamlet . Careful suicide coverage can change public misperceptions and reduce suicide contagion. Is the same true for careful literary criticism and classroom discussion of suicide texts? How can teachers and literary critics reduce suicide contagion and increase help-seeking behavior?

Chapter Fifteen Is Hamlet a Sexist Text? Overt Misogyny vs. Unconscious Bias

Students and fans of Shakespeare’s Hamlet persistently ask a question scholars and critics of the play have not yet definitively answered: is it a sexist text? The author of this text has been described as everything from a male chauvinist pig to a trailblazing proto-feminist, but recent work on the science behind discrimination and prejudice offers a new, better vocabulary in the notion of unconscious bias. More pervasive and slippery than explicit bigotry, unconscious bias involves the subtle, often unintentional words and actions which indicate the presence of biases we may not be aware of, ones we may even fight against. The Shakespeare who wrote Hamlet exhibited an unconscious bias against women, I argue, even as he sought to critique the mistreatment of women in a patriarchal society. The evidence for this unconscious bias is not to be found in the misogynistic statements made by the characters in the play. It exists, instead, in the demonstrable preference Shakespeare showed for men over women when deciding where to deploy his literary talents. Thus, Shakespeare's Hamlet is a powerful literary example – one which speaks to, say, the modern corporation – showing that deliberate efforts for egalitarianism do not insulate one from the effects of structural inequalities that both stem from and create unconscious bias.

Chapter Sixteen Style and Purpose in Acting and Writing

Purpose and style are connected in academic writing. To answer the question of style ( How should we write academic papers? ) we must first answer the question of purpose ( Why do we write academic papers? ). We can answer these questions, I suggest, by turning to an unexpected style guide that’s more than 400 years old: the famous passage on “the purpose of playing” in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet . In both acting and writing, a high style often accompanies an expressive purpose attempting to impress an elite audience yet actually alienating intellectual people, while a low style and mimetic purpose effectively engage an intellectual audience.

Chapter Seventeen 13 Ways of Looking at a Ghost

Why doesn’t Gertrude see the Ghost of King Hamlet in Act III, even though Horatio, Bernardo, Francisco, Marcellus, and Prince Hamlet all saw it in Act I? It’s a bit embarrassing that Shakespeare scholars don’t have a widely agreed-upon consensus that explains this really basic question that puzzles a lot of people who read or see Hamlet .

Chapter Eighteen The Tragedy of Love in Hamlet

The word “love” appears 84 times in Shakespeare’s Hamlet . “Father” only appears 73 times, “play” 60, “think” 55, “mother” 46, “mad” 44, “soul” 40, “God" 39, “death” 38, “life” 34, “nothing” 28, “son” 26, “honor” 21, “spirit” 19, “kill” 18, “revenge” 14, and “action” 12. Love isn’t the first theme that comes to mind when we think of Hamlet , but is surprisingly prominent. But love is tragic in Hamlet . The bloody catastrophe at the end of that play is principally driven not by hatred or a longing for revenge, but by love.

Chapter Nineteen Ophelia’s Songs: Moral Agency, Manipulation, and the Metaphor of Music in Hamlet

This chapter reads Ophelia’s songs in Act IV of Shakespeare’s Hamlet in the context of the meaning of music established elsewhere in the play. While the songs are usually seen as a marker of Ophelia’s madness (as a result of the death of her father) or freedom (from the constraints of patriarchy), they come – when read in light of the metaphor of music as manipulation – to symbolize her role as a pawn in Hamlet’s efforts to deceive his family. Thus, music was Shakespeare’s platform for connecting Ophelia’s story to one of the central questions in Hamlet : Do we have control over our own actions (like the musician), or are we controlled by others (like the instrument)?

Chapter Twenty A Quantitative Study of Prose and Verse in Hamlet

Why does Hamlet have so much prose? Did Shakespeare deliberately shift from verse to prose to signal something to his audiences? How would actors have handled the shifts from verse to prose? Would audiences have detected shifts from verse to prose? Is there an overarching principle that governs Shakespeare’s decision to use prose—a coherent principle that says, “If X, then use prose?”

Chapter Twenty-One The Fortunes of Fate in Hamlet : Divine Providence and Social Determinism

In Hamlet , fate is attacked from both sides: “fortune” presents a world of random happenstance, “will” a theory of efficacious human action. On this backdrop, this essay considers—irrespective of what the characters say and believe—what the structure and imagery Shakespeare wrote into Hamlet say about the possibility that some version of fate is at work in the play. I contend the world of Hamlet is governed by neither fate nor fortune, nor even the Christianized version of fate called “providence.” Yet there is a modern, secular, disenchanted form of fate at work in Hamlet—what is sometimes called “social determinism”—which calls into question the freedom of the individual will. As such, Shakespeare’s Hamlet both commented on the transformation of pagan fate into Christian providence that happened in the centuries leading up to the play, and anticipated the further transformation of fate from a theological to a sociological idea, which occurred in the centuries following Hamlet .

Chapter Twenty-Two The Working Class in Hamlet

There’s a lot for working-class folks to hate about Hamlet —not just because it’s old, dusty, difficult to understand, crammed down our throats in school, and filled with frills, tights, and those weird lace neck thingies that are just socially awkward to think about. Peak Renaissance weirdness. Claustrophobicly cloistered inside the castle of Elsinore, quaintly angsty over royal family problems, Hamlet feels like the literary epitome of elitism. “Lawless resolutes” is how the Wittenberg scholar Horatio describes the soldiers who join Fortinbras’s army in exchange “for food.” The Prince Hamlet who has never worked a day in his life denigrates Polonius as a “fishmonger”: quite the insult for a royal advisor to be called a working man. And King Claudius complains of the simplicity of "the distracted multitude.” But, in Hamlet , Shakespeare juxtaposed the nobles’ denigrations of the working class as readily available metaphors for all-things-awful with the rather valuable behavior of working-class characters themselves. When allowed to represent themselves, the working class in Hamlet are characterized as makers of things—of material goods and services like ships, graves, and plays, but also of ethical and political virtues like security, education, justice, and democracy. Meanwhile, Elsinore has a bad case of affluenza, the make-believe disease invented by an American lawyer who argued that his client's social privilege was so great that it created an obliviousness to law. While social elites rot society through the twin corrosives of political corruption and scholarly detachment, the working class keeps the machine running. They build the ships, plays, and graves society needs to function, and monitor the nuts-and-bolts of the ideals—like education and justice—that we aspire to uphold.

Chapter Twenty-Three The Honor Code at Harvard and in Hamlet

Students at Harvard College are asked, when they first join the school and several times during their years there, to affirm their awareness of and commitment to the school’s honor code. But instead of “the foundation of our community” that it is at Harvard, honor is tragic in Hamlet —a source of anxiety, blunder, and catastrophe. As this chapter shows, looking at Hamlet from our place at Harvard can bring us to see what a tangled knot honor can be, and we can start to theorize the difference between heroic and tragic honor.

Chapter Twenty-Four The Meaning of Death in Shakespeare’s Hamlet

By connecting the ways characters live their lives in Hamlet to the ways they die – on-stage or off, poisoned or stabbed, etc. – Shakespeare symbolized hamartia in catastrophe. In advancing this argument, this chapter develops two supporting ideas. First, the dissemination of tragic necessity: Shakespeare distributed the Aristotelian notion of tragic necessity – a causal relationship between a character’s hamartia (fault or error) and the catastrophe at the end of the play – from the protagonist to the other characters, such that, in Hamlet , those who are guilty must die, and those who die are guilty. Second, the spectacularity of death: there exists in Hamlet a positive correlation between the severity of a character’s hamartia (error or flaw) and the “spectacularity” of his or her death – that is, the extent to which it is presented as a visible and visceral spectacle on-stage.

Chapter Twenty-Five Tragic Excess in Hamlet

In Hamlet , Shakespeare paralleled the situations of Hamlet, Laertes, and Fortinbras (the father of each is killed, and each then seeks revenge) to promote the virtue of moderation: Hamlet moves too slowly, Laertes too swiftly – and they both die at the end of the play – but Fortinbras represents a golden mean which marries the slowness of Hamlet with the swiftness of Laertes. As argued in this essay, Shakespeare endorsed the virtue of balance by allowing Fortinbras to be one of the very few survivors of the play. In other words, excess is tragic in Hamlet .

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    200 Words Essay on William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare is one of the renowned names of English playwrights. He was a multi-talented man who was a writer, poet and actor. He produced about one hundred and fifty-four sonnets, two narrative poems, thirty-eight plays and a few verses. He was born in Stratford-upon-Avon to a good family with ...

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    William Shakespeare (baptized April 26, 1564, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England—died April 23, 1616, Stratford-upon-Avon) was a poet, dramatist, and actor often called the English national poet. He is considered by many to be the greatest dramatist of all time. Shakespeare occupies a position unique in world literature.Other poets, such as Homer and Dante, and novelists, such as Leo ...

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    William Shakespeare (1564-1616). English poet and playwright - Shakespeare is widely considered to be the greatest writer in the English language. He wrote 38 plays and 154 sonnets. Short bio of William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon on 23rd April 1564. His father William was a successful local businessman ...

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    A+ Student Essay: The Significance of Equivocation in Macbeth. Macbeth is a play about subterfuge and trickery. Macbeth, his wife, and the three Weird Sisters are linked in their mutual refusal to come right out and say things directly. Instead, they rely on implications, riddles, and ambiguity to evade the truth.

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    Title page of a 1573 Latin and Greek catechism for children. From Alexander Nowell, Catechismus paruus pueris primum Latine . . . (1573). Since the records of the Stratford "grammar school" do not survive, we cannot prove that William Shakespeare attended the school; however, every indication (his father's position as an alderman and bailiff of Stratford, the playwright's own knowledge ...

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  16. William Shakespeare: A Very Short Introduction

    Abstract. William Shakespeare: A Very Short Introduction provides a guide to the life and writings of one of the world's greatest and best-known dramatists: William Shakespeare. Looking at his early life and education, it explores Shakespeare's social and intellectual background and the literary traditions on which Shakespeare drew.

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    The Shakespeare Project and Ensuing Essays xvii. trend of our discourse. The intent to integrate notes as part of the text is indebted to Nabokov and Borges, but owns critical antecedents, most notably in my experience F.O. Mathiessen's remarkable scriptora in The Achievement of T.S. Eliot(1959).

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  19. Hamlet: Mini Essays

    At any given moment during the play, the most accurate assessment of Hamlet's state of mind probably lies somewhere between sanity and insanity. Hamlet certainly displays a high degree of mania and instability throughout much of the play, but his "madness" is perhaps too purposeful and pointed for us to conclude that he actually loses his ...

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    The rhyme scheme of most of Shakespeare's sonnets, #29 included, is abab, odod, efef, and gg, underlining the four sections of the poem. The meter of the sonnet is by definition iambic pentameter ...

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    Suggested Essay Topics. 1. Sonnet 18 is one of the most famous poems in the English language. Why do you think this is the case? How does the speaker use natural imagery to create a picture of the young man's beauty? 2. In Sonnet 1, the speaker argues that the only way for the young man to defy the ravaging power of time is to reproduce, but ...

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    Preface to Shakespeare by Samuel Johnson is a critical statement regarding not only Shakespeare but writing in general. In the preface, which begins Johnson's 1765 edition of Shakespeare's ...