Why Are Shakespeare Truly Renowned

Micah Stuver
English 1101
Professor Anita Breedlove
14 November 2017
Why are Shakespeare's Works So Renowned? Shakespeare's plays, poems, and sonnets, which emerged in the late 1500s to the early 1600s, have stimulated substantial adulation and intellectual study from audiences since their debut. In America's culture today, it would be difficult to find an individual who has not heard of Shakespeare or his works. Though many enjoy seeing the Bard's rare knack for highlighting humanity and its inherent ills, many students neither desire to translate his language nor wish to discover the meaning behind it. A question arises when one considers the renown of Shakespeare's contributions: Why are Shakespeare's works so highly regarded? Thus, this

Though the times of which the Bard wrote have changed, humanity remains the same. Through Shakespeare's widely known play, Macbeth, one can easily observe that Macbeth's greed for power and prestige, which are evident faults today, ultimately leads to his much-deserved doom. In Julius Ceaser, the reader can learn that those who live by the sword, those who lead a life of violence, also die by the sword. Caesar, who warred with others to gain power and dominance, died a violent death, and Brutus, who killed Caesar in brutality, died at the vengeful hands of Antony, Caesar's greatest ally. Unquestionably, those who live violent lives today also meet their deaths through violence as well. Furthermore, Shakespeare's works convey some of the most heart-throbbing of human interactions: love. In Shakespeare's most noted work, Romeo and Juliet, the reader follows the tale of Romeo and Juliet's devotion for one another; in the end, Romeo and Juliet, like many of their fellow men today, value a chance at love above their own lives. However, Shakespeare's works achieve far more than faithfully conveying the human condition. In addition, his works serve to accurately illustrate the history, livelihood, and cultural values of Europeans in the

The importance of this historical insight, surely, can be attributed to Shakespeare's unique perspective into the political, social, and ideological happenings of the 16th century. History, unfortunately, is often recorded by those who hold great power and who are likely to skew the facts. Refreshingly, Shakespeare's unusual perspective remains unbiased against those in power, and it can therefore give the reader the most factual account of history. The great Bard, in addition to his genuine political pieces about the rule of British royalty, produced plays in a variety of differing social conditions evident in Macbeth, Julius Caesar, and Much Ado About Nothing. Consequently, throughout all of these plays, Shakespeare retains the perspective of the destitute and noble alike, shedding light upon the livelihood of both classes. The best example of this device is clearest in Henry V; as the story progresses, the events of poor Pistol and the regal King Henry are shown equally. Moreover, the reader can glean a firsthand account of the cultural values during the 1500s. From Much Ado About Nothing, the reader is affirmed in the comparatively high moral standards of the 16th century. When Hero is accused of losing her chastity, she, along with her family, believe that her death would be easier to bear than the loss of her reputation and