While Shakespeare caused much controversy, he also earned lavish praise and has profoundly impacted the world over in areas of literature, culture, art, theatre, and film and is considered one of the best English language writers ever. From the Preface of the First Folio (1623) "To the memory of my beloved, The Author, Mr. William Shakespeare: and what he hath left us"--Ben Jonson;
"Thou art a Moniment, without a tombe
And art alive still, while thy Booke doth live,
And we have wits to read, and praise to give."
Click on the link to watch a short video about William Shakespeare.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW86UuKqrPQ
Influence:
Shakespeare's work has made a lasting impression on later theatre and literature. In particular, he expanded the dramatic potential ofcharacterisation, plot, language, and genre.Until Romeo and Juliet, for example, romance had not been viewed as a worthy topic for tragedy. Soliloquies had been used mainly to convey information about characters or events; but Shakespeare used them to explore characters' minds. His work heavily influenced later poetry. The Romantic poets attempted to revive Shakespearean verse drama, though with little success. Critic George Steiner described all English verse dramas from Coleridge to Tennyson as "feeble variations on Shakespearean themes."[146]
In Shakespeare's day, English grammar, spelling and pronunciation were less standardised than they are now,[151] and his use of language helped shape modern English.[152] Samuel Johnson quoted him more often than any other author in his A Dictionary of the English Language, the first serious work of its type.[153] Expressions such as "with bated breath" (Merchant of Venice) and "a foregone conclusion" (Othello) have found their way into everyday English speech.[154]
No comments:
Post a Comment