Shakespeare Writing Style

John Dryden once said, “But Shakespeare’s magic could not copied be; Within that circle none durst walk but he” (Mabillard). Shakespeare is one of the greatest poets and writers of all time. No one wrote like him or created the plays that he created. All of Shakespeare’s plays include different elements of the Renaissance and the Elizabethan Era that are incorporated into his characters and their actions. Shakespeare’s works are broken up into four periods that span from 1595-1613, and each contains a new writing style. These each depict different events that were happening at the time. During the first period, up to 1595, Shakespeare wrote extravagant plays such as Romeo and Juliet and used older plays as a basis for his work. In his second writing period, from 1595-1601, Shakespeare focused more on histories like Henry IV. The third period, 1601-1608, contained comedies and tragedies such as Julius Caesar, Hamlet, and Macbeth. Finally, the fourth stage, 1608-1613, is when Shakespeare wrote many romances. Some of his most famous pieces include Hamlet, Macbeth, Julius Caesar, and Hamlet. Each of these works include great amounts of history that Shakespeare experienced throughout his life.

Hamlet is Shakespeare’s greatest play, although he took most of it from other sources. Many believe that it is the story of the Norse legend that was written by Saxo Grammaticus. However, many other aspects of the play portray the social problems that occurred during Queen Elizabeth's rule. Queen Elizabeth was very against marriage because of what happened with her half-sister, Mary, and Philip. She saw the corruption and the obstacles with power and how it all affected the country. In Hamlet, the queen, Gertrude, gets remarried to her husband’s...

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... It focused on religion, politics, and all kinds of beliefs. The story of Hamlet reflected the corruption of female rule through the character of Gertrude and her wrong choices as queen. Macbeth targeted witchcraft, which was a major interest of King James I, and the disruption and restoration of order. Julius Caesar depicts the rebellion and turmoil during the Elizabethan Era. Last, Romeo and Juliet illustrates the love and honor aspects of Renaissance and the importance of Astrology. Although it may not be obvious, Shakespeare added many components of the time period into his writings by incorporating them into his characters and the whole plot sequence. His plays were incredibly famous then and still now and are used to understand more about him and the time period in which he lived. As Ben Johnson once said, “He was not of an age, but for all time” (Mabillard).