Shakespeare Relevance Essay
Shakespeare is a timeless playwright who has explored numerous themes throughout his classic plays that never lose appeal. Shakespeare's themes are timeless in the sense that they never go out of society's standards as long as humans exist. I will be exploring the themes of infatuation with beauty expressed in "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day"; evils of jealousy expressed in "A midsummer night's dream", and it takes tragedy to realize mistakes "Romeo and Juliet Opening Sonnet".
Infatuation with beauty is a enormous aspect of our society that never fades over time and only grows stronger. This theme is expressed in Shakespeare's poem to his wife called "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day". He express this theme with lines such as "Thou art more lovely and more temperate" and "But they eternal summer shall not fade" amongst others. This theme, although present less often in Shakespeare's era is a large aspect of modern day society.
English: Title page of the second quarto edition (...
List of titles of works based on Shakespearean phr...
English: "Midsummer Nights Dream Act IV Scene I--A...Clear examples of the presence of this theme is the numerous plastic surgery offices, tanning salons and beauty parlors. The reason people go to these places is to achieve society's definition of "beauty". However in today's day and age our perception of beauty is overshadowed by our infatuation with skin-deep beauty focusing on physical characteristics of a person. This is the same in Shakespeare's day except for technological differences such as surgery. During that time, people would powder skin while today people would change this with surgery. Infatuation with beauty is a theme applicable to every time period and can never fade from society.
The evils of jealousy is a theme largely present in our society. In Shakespeare's play "A Midsummer Night's Dream" this is shown through Oberon's jealousy of Titania which provoked him into trying to get...
Shakespeare's Relevance over Time
The writer repeated refers to something he calls the "Romeo and Juliet Opening Sonnet." The sonnet is listed as Sonnet # 18, and it is not part of the Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet at all. The comparison of Shakespeare's sonnet to th modern infatuation with plastic surgery is strained. Also, I am not sure how the writer concluded that the Elizabethan period was not infatuated with youth and its beauty. In her later years, Queen Elizabeth had a "mirror" created, that was actually a picture of herself in her prime, so that she could look at it and imagine that she was still young. The lengths she went through dress and makeup to forestall the appearance of age are legendary.
I have never before seen Midsummer Night's Dream compared to international relations, and I think the comparison is srained at best.
Romeo and Juliet is about much more than the families realizing their mistake after the tragedy of the star-crossed lovers.
In short, I think this essay needs substantial improvement.
1 out of 2 people found this comment useful.