Chapter 6: When in Doubt, It's From Shakespeare...
This chapter discusses how widely used the works of Shakespeare are in modern literature.
The amount of Shakespeare that can be found in works of literature between the 18th and 20th centuries is extremely surprising. A number of modern works of literature have been based off Shakespeare's plays such as Woody Allen's 'A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy', a film based off Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and the BBC TV series 'Masterpiece', which is based off 'Othello'. The famous musical 'West Side Story' is a reworking of Shakespeare's famous play 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'Romeo and Juliet' has even been dramatized in a number of films, including one set in modern times with guns and skyscrapers, starring the one and only Leonardo DiCaprio. another adaptions of 'Romeo and Juliet' include 'Romiette and Julio', an adaption with a happy ending. Some of Shakespeare's other works, such as 'Hamlet' have also been turned into films such as, 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead'.
A number of Shakespeare's works have been used as inspiration for other works, but we use a large number of quotes, or variations of them , in day to day life and in our writing, without realising that they came from some of Shakespeare's works. These include:
And finally:
Writers often quote works of Shakespeare, possibly using some of the quotations above, it's not necessarily because Shakespeare is the best person to quote in a piece of writing, but that writers usually quote what they hear a lot or know well. Shakespeare's works are so well known, so widely used, and have such deep meaning, which makes them ideal to quote and use in written works.
The amount of Shakespeare that can be found in works of literature between the 18th and 20th centuries is extremely surprising. A number of modern works of literature have been based off Shakespeare's plays such as Woody Allen's 'A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy', a film based off Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and the BBC TV series 'Masterpiece', which is based off 'Othello'. The famous musical 'West Side Story' is a reworking of Shakespeare's famous play 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'Romeo and Juliet' has even been dramatized in a number of films, including one set in modern times with guns and skyscrapers, starring the one and only Leonardo DiCaprio. another adaptions of 'Romeo and Juliet' include 'Romiette and Julio', an adaption with a happy ending. Some of Shakespeare's other works, such as 'Hamlet' have also been turned into films such as, 'Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead'.
A number of Shakespeare's works have been used as inspiration for other works, but we use a large number of quotes, or variations of them , in day to day life and in our writing, without realising that they came from some of Shakespeare's works. These include:
- 'To thine own self be true.'
- 'All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players.'
- 'What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.'
- 'Goodnight, sweet price and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!'
- 'Get thee to a nunnery.'
- 'A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!'
- 'Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble.'
- 'By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes.'
And finally:
- 'To be, or not to be, that is the question.'
Writers often quote works of Shakespeare, possibly using some of the quotations above, it's not necessarily because Shakespeare is the best person to quote in a piece of writing, but that writers usually quote what they hear a lot or know well. Shakespeare's works are so well known, so widely used, and have such deep meaning, which makes them ideal to quote and use in written works.
References:
'Thomas C. Foster, 2013. How to Read Literature Like a Professor: For Kids. Reprint Edition. HarperCollins.'
'Title Image: http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1753479/thumbs/o-WILLIAM-SHAKESPEARE-facebook.jpg'
'Thomas C. Foster, 2013. How to Read Literature Like a Professor: For Kids. Reprint Edition. HarperCollins.'
'Title Image: http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1753479/thumbs/o-WILLIAM-SHAKESPEARE-facebook.jpg'