How Did Shakespeare Influence Literature

Joseph Lide
Ms. Morris
Advanced English 12
December 5, 2017
How Shakespeare Influenced Literature
During Shakespeare’s time, he wrote many plays. Those plays were seen by millions and are still popular today. He has been an inspiration to many. Many uses his works to gather ideas for their works. Shakespeare has influenced literature by his works of Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and Julius Caesar.
Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet, was an outstanding production. Many writers use this play to help write romances. Catronal said, “I have just finished reading a really good book called Juliet written by the American author Anne Fortier”(Catronal). The writer Anne Fortier used Romeo and Juliet to write a book called Juliet. Shakespeare is still
Macbeth has inspired many works that deal with the need for power. The New World Encyclopedia says,” Just as Macbeth and Lear subvert the natural order of things, Ahab takes on Nature in his determination to kill his prey – and his hubristic quest is doomed from the start”(New World Encyclopedia) . Moby- Dick is based on the factor of who is the better fisherman, meaning if you can catch him you are the best of the best. Moby- Dick is just one of the many different books inspired by Macbeth. It was also mentioned that,” Like Macbeth, Ripley wants what someone else has got. And just as Macbeth murders Duncan, Ripley bumps off golden boy Dickie Greenleaf, seeking to take his place”( New World Encyclopedia). Likewise, writers use Macbeth as an outline to tragedies. In Macbeth, Shakespeare uses jealousy to convey the conflict of the story. Since Shakespeare wrote many tragedies, his works were studied to write many
Julius Caesar is used as teaching material in school. The New World Encyclopedia said,” According to Shakespearean scholar James Shapiro, in Julius Caesar "the various strands of politics, character, inwardness, contemporary events, even Shakespeare's own reflections on the act of writing, began to infuse each other”( New World Encyclopedia). Julius Caesar is used because of the fact that it was on of the last Tragedies he wrote in his comedic period. That along with Romeo and Juliet, are two plays that are still studied today. It was Mentioned that,” This period begins and ends with two tragedies: Romeo and Juliet, the famous romantic tragedy of sexually charged adolescence, love, and death; and Julius Caesar—based on Sir Thomas North's 1579 translation of Plutarch's Parallel Lives—which introduced a new kind of drama”( New World Encyclopedia). Julius Caesar is also considered one of the best histories. Julius Caesar is used in many schools due to it being a history. Therefore, Julius Caesar is used in schools because of its historical