William Shakespeare is widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the English language. He wrote almost forty plays in a span of twenty-five years; however, he was persistent in what exactly he wrote about. When one thinks of Shakespeare, he or she thinks of tragedies, histories, and comedies, for those were the only themes he based his works from. In his comedies, particularly Twelfth Night, he uses cross-dressing and gender norms as humorous devices. Although his humor was appropriate at
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It is common in today’s society for one to formulate beliefs and ideas regarding others based upon their appearance rather than the much deeper and hidden reality. This phenomenon can destroy relationships and individuals as people are often deceived by a false reality. William Shakespeare employs this theme during his widely recognised play, Macbeth. Shakespeare marks the regressive journey of a bold and courageous soldier, Macbeth, as he deteriorates enormously in his murder-filled quest of becoming
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Laurence Olivier stars and directs this performance-driven 1955 medieval version of the most ruthless monarch written by Shakespeare, Richard III. Full of intrigue and deceits, Olivier pulls the audience right into the story by making us confidants to his Richard’s secrets. The audience closely follows the action by Richard’s side and we get to see the reasoning behind every single one of his moves. Framed by a simplistic set and costumes, the attention centers primarily in the acting and the hidden
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Is Shakespeare relevant to modern students today you ask? Of course he is! As students, who doesn’t love a bit of murder and revenge like in Hamlet, or maybe a story of true love like in Romeo and Juliet, or to hate the real villain of a story, like Lady Macbeth. When you think of Shakespeare, you imagine a very old weird looking man with a daggy moustache and hair, whose words have to be repeated a few times to really understand them and story lines that make even the strangest shows on TV these
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inevitable downfall of such a system. William Shakespeare’s Hamlet has always intrigued scholars and critics by its contentious discourse, and it continues to do so. In Hamlet, Shakespeare dramatizes the crisis of moral corruption and the subsequent dysfunction of state by creating a world much like contemporary ones. Thus, providing critics and scholars with an akin basis to analyze the unfathomable nature of the play. As a result, The Tragedy of Hamlet is considered by many, the most mature and complex
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can never trust the human mind anyway. It’s a death trap.” (Anthony Hopkins.) In Hamlet written by Shakespeare, Hamlet tends to over think many situations, whether if he wants to live, if the ghost he sees is the devil and actually wants to trick him into murder, or even when Hamlet has the opportunity to kill Claudius he talks himself out of it. A person has an opportunity for greatness but is destined to fail. Hamlet is in many situations where he cannot win. He has the inability to balance reason
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Iago: Shakespeare's Venetian with ASPD Often times in theatrical productions it is all too easy to spot a character in a play who is evidently insane due to their erratic actions and miscellaneous babbling on stage. However, not every case of insanity shows itself as a ranting and raving madman, it can also be cool, calm, and collective.Yet, a characters mental state is not so black and white and it would be an injustice simply label a character as “insane” or “sane”, especially when it comes to
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In Henry David Thoreau’s book, Walden, he states that “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation” and that is true in many different ways. This quote is saying that when you are in a large group for a prolonged amount of time you may get tired of them and become desperate for alone time. I agree with this and it is displayed in the play, The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, and in some people's everyday lives. In the play, The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, it is very clear that Henry wants to
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The author creates the effect of surprise by making the reader believe that Ulrich and Georg Znaeym were going to kill each other, like if Ulrich knew he was going to kill Georg. The effect of surprise comes in when Ulrich and Georg come face-to-face and a splitting crash happens over their heads and a mass of falling beech tree thundered down on them, the author manipulates the pacing by letting the reader think that one character will get shot first and it all just ends there but what really happens
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Themes Different, Yet Similar We all have relationships. What if you couldn’t choose who you got to marry when you grow up? Well in the Elizabethan Era, most people’s parents choose who they were going to marry when they grew up. That’s how it was during A Midsummer Night’s Dream as well, but in today’s society, most people get to choose who they marry. In “Bringing Home the Wrong Race”, the parents tell their child what race they can and can’t marry. That’s how today’s society is. There are many
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