Antony and Cleopatra (Modern Library Classics)

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Antony and Cleopatra (Modern Library Classics)

by William Shakespeare, Eric Rasmussen (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Jonathan Bate (Editor)

3.57 · rating details · 7,920 ratings · 216 reviews

Written at the pinnacle of Shakespeare’s career and featuring his most soaring poetic idiom, Antony and Cleopatra is both an immortal love story and a political drama played out on a global scale.

Under the editorial supervision of Jonathan Bate and Eric Rasmussen, two of today’s most accomplished Shakespearean scholars, this Modern Library series incorporates definitive te...more

Paperback, 240 pages

Published August 4th 2009 by Modern Library (first published 1623)

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Nov 24, 2011

Bill Kerwin rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 16th-17th-c-brit

This play is so good that it is not merely a masterpiece but a mystery. The two protagonists are alternately noble and petty, wise and foolish, and yet never seem inconsistent or self-contradictory because Shakespeare--here is the mystery--consistently maintains a tone both ironic and heroic. Part of it is the language, which shifts seamlessly from mellifluous monologues adorned with cosmic imagery (comparing Anthony and Cleopatra to continents, stars,etc.) to the most modern-sounding, m...more

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Apr 24, 2009

Stephanie rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2009-plays

Book club selection (and I wish they had the correct edition to put here, because I'm superficially annoyed by how this one looks).

Edit: This is a play that I didn't like all that much the first time I read it. I am temperamentally prejudiced against characters who put Grand Passion over duty, to start with, so began with a chip on my shoulder against Antony. Then, of course, it's not the easiest Shakespeare play to read and there are a crazy number of scenes and all sorts of thin...more

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Nov 08, 2011

Asya Fergiani rated it

· review of another edition

This was required reading for a World Literature class I took last year. It was a painful read with self-serving characters. As much as Shakespeare is an acclaimed writer, I found little to enjoy about this play mostly because I found Cleopatra and Antony contrived and ridiculously without common sense for the historical icons they are. Being that it was a play, I’m not sure how much historical accuracy would be required after all it was written to entertain. Antony, “O, whither hast thou led m...more

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Oct 22, 2011

Helen (Helena/Nell) rated it

· review of another edition

I like this play. I love the poetry of it. Some of the lines seem to have lingered in my mind all my life:

"Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale,
Her infinite variety."

and

"The demi-Atlas of this earth, the arm
And burgonet of men. "

They are great lovers, Anthony and Cleopatra, and it is marvelous that they are not young lovers like Romeo and Juliet, just great lovers. I can’t help seeing Elizabeth Taylor and Richard ...more

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Aug 26, 2011

Molly rated it

· review of another edition

Loved this one. Fascinated by Cleopatra's ability to lead and wrap Antony around her little finger... How cool to add William Shakespeare to a chain championing the cause of women! And I love thinking about Cleopatra’s end in this light—that despite all of her flaws, she gets a final say on being female.

And now some grad school thoughts on being a king...
How could James I have wanted to see himself in the Augustus Caesar of Antony and Cleopatra? I admit to being an Antony fan...more

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Jan 31, 2011

Frances rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: plays

I wish I'd found the time to actually read this one when it was assigned in college. As it stands, it's one of the many books that fell by the wayside for me to pick up 3.5 years later and try to figure out what the hell I just read. Was it history or tragedy? It's about 25 pages longer than any of my other Signet Classics Shakespeare plays, and I'm about 25% more confused. With the exception of the first scene, we miss the entirety of the title characters' peacetime courtship. The characte...more

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Jun 04, 2010

Rowland Bismark rated it

· review of another edition

Scholars believe that Shakespeare wrote Antony and Cleopatra in 1606, immediately after Macbeth, and it is one of the last great tragedies that Shakespeare produced. The most geographically sweeping of Shakespeare’s plays, Antony and Cleopatra’s setting is the entire Roman Empire, its backdrop the well-documented history of Octavius Caesar, Marc Antony, and Cleopatra. Shakespeare’s primary source for Antony and Cleopatra was the Life of Marcus Antonius contained in Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble ...moreScholars believe that Shakespeare wrote Antony and Cleopatra in 1606, immediately after Macbeth, and it is one of the last great tragedies that Shakespeare produced. The most geographically sweeping of Shakespeare’s plays, Antony and Cleopatra’s setting is the entire Roman Empire, its backdrop the well-documented history of Octavius Caesar, Marc Antony, and Cleopatra. Shakespeare’s primary source for Antony and Cleopatra was the Life of Marcus Antonius contained in Plutarch’s Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans, which was translated into English by Sir Thomas North in 1579. North’s language was so rich that Shakespeare incorporated large, relatively unchanged excerpts of it into his text. The plot of the play also remains close to North’s history, although characters like Enobarbus and Cleopatra’s attendants are largely Shakespearean creations.

The action of the story takes place roughly two years after the events of Shakespeare’s earlier play about the Roman Empire, Julius Caesar. At the beginning of that tragedy, Caesar has triumphed over his rival Pompey the Great, the father of young Pompey in Antony and Cleopatra, and aspires to kingship. Caesar is then assassinated by Cassius and Brutus, who hope to preserve the Roman Republic. Instead, Cassius and Brutus are defeated by Mark Antony and Octavius Caesar, Julius’s nephew, who then join Marcus Aemilius Lepidus to create a three-man government, or triumvirate, over the empire.

Historically, the action of Antony and Cleopatra takes place over a ten-year span, whereas in the play the story is compressed to fit the needs of the stage. Antony is clearly much older than he was in Julius Caesar, and his political instincts seem to be waning. Octavius Caesar was only a minor character in the earlier play, but here he comes into his own as the man who will rise to become the first Roman emperor. Most of the political battles and machinations depicted are historically accurate, as is the romance of the title characters.

In his opening lines to Demetrius, Philo complains that Antony has abandoned the military endeavors on which his reputation is based for Cleopatra’s sake. His criticism of Antony’s “dotage,” or stupidity, introduces a tension between reason and emotion that runs throughout the play (I.i.1). Antony and Cleopatra’s first exchange heightens this tension, as they argue whether their love can be put into words and understood or whether it exceeds such faculties and boundaries of reason. If, according to Roman consensus, Antony is the military hero and disciplined statesmen that Caesar and others believe him to be, then he seems to have happily abandoned his reason in order to pursue his passion. He declares: “Let Rome in Tiber melt, and the wide arch / Of the ranged empire fall” (I.i.35–36). The play, however, is more concerned with the battle between reason and emotion than the triumph of one over the other, and this battle is waged most forcefully in the character of Antony. More than any other character in the play, Antony vacillates between Western and Eastern sensibilities, feeling pulled by both his duty to the empire and his desire for pleasure, his want of military glory and his passion for Cleopatra. Soon after his nonchalant dismissal of Caesar’s messenger, the empire, and his duty to it, he chastises himself for his neglect and commits to return to Rome, lest he “lose [him:]self in dotage” (I.ii.106).

As the play progresses, Antony continues to inhabit conflicting identities that play out the struggle between reason and emotion. At one moment, he is the vengeful war hero whom Caesar praises and fears. Soon thereafter, he sacrifices his military position by unwisely allowing Cleopatra to determine his course of action. As his Roman allies—even the ever-faithful Enobarbus—abandon him, Antony feels that he has, indeed, lost himself in dotage, and he determines to rescue his noble identity by taking his own life. At first, this course of action may appear to be a triumph of reason over passion, of -Western sensibilities over Eastern ones, but the play is not that simple. Although Antony dies believing himself a man of honor, discipline, and reason, our understanding of him is not nearly as straight-forward. In order to come to terms with Antony’s character, we must analyze the aspects of his identity that he ignores. He is, in the end, a man ruled by passion as much as by reason. Likewise, the play offers us a worldview in which one sensibility cannot easily dominate another. Reason cannot ever fully conquer the passions, nor can passion wholly undo reason.

Although Antony and Cleopatra details the conflict between Rome and Egypt, giving us an idea of the Elizabethan perceptions of the difference between Western and Eastern cultures, it does not make a definitive statement about which culture ultimately triumphs. In the play, the Western and Eastern poles of the world are characterized by those who inhabit them: Caesar, for instance, embodies the stoic duty of the West, while Cleopatra, in all her theatrical grandeur, represents the free-flowing passions of the East. Caesar’s concerns throughout the play are certainly imperial: he means to invade foreign lands in order to invest them with traditions and sensibilities of his own. But the play resists siding with this imperialist impulse. Shakespeare, in other words, does not align the play’s sympathies with the West; Antony and Cleopatra can hardly be read as propaganda for Western domination. On the contrary, the Roman understanding of Cleopatra and her kingdom seems exceedingly superficial. To Caesar, the queen of Egypt is little more than a whore with a flair for drama. His perspective allows little room for the real power of Cleopatra’s sexuality—she can, after all, persuade the most decorated of generals to follow her into ignoble retreat. Similarly, it allows little room for the indomitable strength of her will, which she demonstrates so forcefully at the end of the play as she refuses to allow herself to be turned into a “Egyptian puppet” for the entertainment of the Roman masses (V.ii.204).

In Antony and Cleopatra, West meets East, but it does not, regardless of Caesar’s triumph over the land of Egypt, conquer it. Cleopatra’s suicide suggests that something of the East’s spirit, the freedoms and passions that are not represented in the play’s conception of the West, cannot be subsumed by Caesar’s victory. The play suggests that the East will live on as a visible and unconquerable counterpoint to the West, bound as inseparably and eternally as Antony and Cleopatra are in their tomb.

In one sentence, i will say this is, "The Struggle Between Reason and Emotion"… :D
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Sep 25, 2009

Kay Fair rated it

· review of another edition

Their celebrity couple name would be... AntoPatra.

And essentially, that is what Antony and Cleopatra are: a celebrity couple. And just like the crazy jump-on-the-couch love of TomKat, their affection is subject to deep suspicion and speculation by the public. The romance of AntoPatra is often compared with that of Romeo and Juliet in regard to both passion and poetry. However, the circumstance of celebrity makes Antony and Cleopatra vastly, sadly different from the star-crossed young...moreTheir celebrity couple name would be... AntoPatra.

And essentially, that is what Antony and Cleopatra are: a celebrity couple. And just like the crazy jump-on-the-couch love of TomKat, their affection is subject to deep suspicion and speculation by the public. The romance of AntoPatra is often compared with that of Romeo and Juliet in regard to both passion and poetry. However, the circumstance of celebrity makes Antony and Cleopatra vastly, sadly different from the star-crossed young lovers of Verona. It is tantamount to comparing Brangelina with some high school sweethearts from Nowhere, Montana. Celebrities must adjust their behaviors and passions to suit their positions. The most interesting aspect of AntoPatra's love is therefore not the expression of their affection, but rather the adjustment of their amour.

These lovers seem to have torn a page from a Harold Pinter play and mastered the art of subtext, saying more between their lines than within them. This is especially the case when other characters are witness to the exchanges between the lovers. A celebrity couple is never truly alone, since they belong, at least in part, to the public. The fact that this is a play and an audience is truly present (even during "private" moments) just serves to elevate that paradox. For example, in Romeo and Juliet, the audience may often find itself holding its collective breath as it attempts not to interrupt the intimacy of the incredibly private trysts of the young lovers. On the other hand, in Antony and Cleopatra, the audience is the literal translation, an extension, of the public eye characterized onstage. Every cough and shuffle of the audience can just serve to remind Antony and Cleopatra that someone, somewhere, is always watching.

When a celebrity relationship first develops, we all conjecture over whether it's "for real." Is it just because his career is slacking? Is it a stunt to take media attention off her botched boob job? Etc. Etc. Ad Nauseum. And the more I view AntoPatra as a celebrity couple, the more I find myself analyzing the sincerity of their purported affection. Would Cleopatra love Antony if he were a mere Roman warrior? Would Antony care for Cleopatra if she were an Egyptian peasant? Likely not. I'll go out on a limb here and say defiantly not. While it can't be said that their love is based solely on the advantages one garners for the other (their relationship often creates more drama than glory), it is likely that they love based on the prestige of their partner. They see each other as worthy, powerful equals. As with modern celebrity couples, the attraction of power and wealth to power and wealth isn't necessarily just due to elitism. They understand (even if they fail to accept) the constraints that power, wealth and position imply. (Complete review available at www.whatrefuge.blogspot.com)(less)

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Sep 16, 2009

Mariah Fisher is currently reading it · review of another edition

Many important and intriguing things have happened so far. Cleopatra is in love with Antony, but he is required to go to Rome to visit Ceasar. Ceasar is upset because Antony's wife and brother plotted against him. Eventually Antony and Ceaser decide, with the help of Agrippa, that Antony will marry Octavia, Ceasar's sister. This plan is supposed to keep them in "alliance with one another.

Anotny, Cleopatra, and Ceasar are the three main characters. Ceasar and Antony are involved...more

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Jun 18, 2009

Janine Kelly rated it

· review of another edition

This play was filled with memorable moments and quotes; particularly the more comedic scenes and lines often fufilled by Cleopatra. I enjoyed the contrasts within the play such as that of Shakespeare's portrayals of Rome and Eqypt and with this the people of Rome and Egypt and their ways of life. The perfect example of this is the ever changing character of Antony who at times seeks to fufill his title of great warrior whilst at others is merely something of hedonistic love, under the control of...more

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Nov 09, 2011

scissorstoariadne rated it

· review of another edition

As most Shakespearean plays, the language is beautiful (of the ones I've read, The Taming of the Shrew proved to be most stale in verse and disappointing in subject matter), and the Bard often exploits this to make his plays taut and resounding since plot development is mainly hazy. Cleopatra's verses, especially, were evocative and sensual, lending enough dramatic flair for a queen, a self-styled goddess, and famed historical figure.

What I disliked about this play, though, was Shak...more

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Jul 03, 2010

Laura rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics, audio-books, read-2010, hf-egypt

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Antony and Cleopatra is Shakespeare's last great tragedy.
Telling the story of one of history's most famous couples, Antony and Cleopatra contains some of the most beautiful poetry in the English Language.
Shakespeare's last great tragedy is an epic play of action set against a huge political and geographical backdrop, but at the centre of the play is a story about what happens when two people fall in love. In this play, love is a madness that leads to excess and imbalance. Antony and ...more

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Dec 17, 2011

Patrick rated it

· review of another edition

It's hard for me to really appreciate a play without seeing it performed. Even on the page, though, I found the back-and-forth in the later acts between Antony's and Octavius's forces wonderful to follow, and the short fast scenes, cutting between Rome and Egypt, really kept the plot moving and felt like a novel approach for Shakespeare. As always for Shakespeare, the two main characters are hard to pin down completely. It's hard for me to fully condemn Antony as a lovestruck libertine, although...more

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Mar 07, 2010

Bruce rated it

· review of another edition

This play has ever seemed divided, choppy, and fragmentary to me, jumping from time to time, locale to locale, emotion to emotion. And maybe that is what, in part, it is about, the dividedness of Antony – divided between Rome and Egypt, between his love for Cleopatra and a marriage of convenience to Octavia, between a life of ease and the life of a warrior, between the vacillations of his own mind. Cleopatra seems more stable by comparison but nonetheless has inexplicable actions as when she a...more

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Aug 03, 2010

Steve rated it

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Shelves: shakespeare

Ugh. Boring. Slow. Maybe it's really cool to watch, but it's really tedious to read fifteen scenes in Acts III and IV, especially when we know (from history) how it ends. It felt like more of a history than a tragedy: 1) because the slowness of the play made it seem like Shakespeare was held down by the facts rather than freed (as in the mythological plays like King Lear); 2) because neither Antony nor Cleopatra ever seem "great" and therefore can't have much of a downfall; 3) because ...more

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Jun 06, 2009

Chris rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: shakespeare, egypt, plays-scripts, ancient-greece-rome, italy, british-ren-lit, africa, cleopatra

When everyone thinks of great Shakespearean plays, Hamlet springs to mind, or Lear , or The Tempest, or Dream or the lust filled R&J. I, however, think Tony and Cleo, if I may be informal, is one of Shakespeare's best.

Instead of the heady, young ~~lust~~, sorry, love that is R&J we are presented with a mature love affair, a love affair that perhaps echoes the court of King James I. A world where the playwright is entirely sympathetic to an Antony who allows his appetite to dominate h...more

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Dec 31, 2010

Nikki rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics, plays, greek-roman, historical-fiction-alternatehistory

I didn't like Antony and Cleopatra very much at the beginning -- but then, it always seems to take about an act for me to get into the swing of a Shakespeare play. It helps with Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra that I'm familiar with the history it's based on. It took me a while to warm to the characters of Antony and Cleopatra, though, but for all that there's something very human about the way Cleopatra reacts to Antony -- now this, now that -- and how he responds to her.

There ...more

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Jun 28, 2007

Caitlin Costello rated it

· review of another edition

Antony returns to Italy after an affair in Egypt with Cleopatra. His wife dies and he courts the sister of Octavius Cesar. Cleo is furious at his new marriage and when they finally reunite Antony is killed and Cleo takes a few scenes before she kills herself in his tomb.

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Mar 29, 2010

Angelia rated it

· review of another edition

Shakespeare's treatment of Cleopatra in the play is the subject of a lot of feminist criticism because he depicts her as lascivious. I can see this reading and certainly recognize it in the context of Renaissance conceptions of her: she is the whore of Babylon, basically. However, I do think that one can read her character differently and see her as strong-willed just as her lovers Julius Ceasar and Marc Antony are, and that her sexuality is just one of the powers available to her and the one th...more

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May 02, 2010

Micha rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: age-of-elizabeth, universe-tea

The problem with this was trying to negotiate Cleopatra's histrionics as a part of her intellectual scheming, as I think, just reading the play in a modern classroom, some of the effect is lost and she gets very easily dismissed as an over-dramatic flake. I read it after the class studied it, of course, and being prone to defence of such famous plays pretty much my only argument was, "Well T.S. Eliot liked it." Of course, me and "Old Possum" don't agree on everything by any m...more

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Apr 14, 2011

Karen rated it

· review of another edition

I had to read this play for my literature class and probably wouldn't have read it otherwise. Not that I don't like Shakespeare, it's just that his works aren't the easiest to read. But I discovered No Fear Shakespeare on Sparknotes.com which helped a lot! Yes, I did actually read the play, I didn't cheat I promise ^_~

As for the play itself, I did enjoy it. The story of Cleopatra and Mark Antony is very similar to Romeo and Juliet only the lovers are older and there's politics ...more

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Nov 24, 2010

Peter rated it

· review of another edition

"Antony and Cleopatra" is probably in my Top 5 Shakespeare plays. I've seen a lot of people refer to "Antony and Cleopatra" as one of the greatest love stories ever told and I couldn't disagree more. The play is infinitely more interesting when you question the authenticity of Antony and Cleopatra as characters. They are so helplessly obsessed with their appearances and reputations that they can barely (if ever) express any kind of genuine emotions, and because they are const...more

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Aug 08, 2009

Mazel rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: littérature-étrangère, théatre

Le serviteur : - Des nouvelles, monseigneur, de Rome.

Antoine : - C'est fâcheux ! Résume.

Cléopâtre : - Non, écoute-les, Antoine :

Fulvie peut-être est irritée, ou qui sait si ce César presque imberbe ne t'envoie pas ses puissants commandements : " Fais ceci ou cela ; saisis ce royaume, et affranchis cet autre ; exécute, ou sinon nous sévissons. "

Antoine : - Comment, mon amour ?

Cléopâtre : - Peut-être, ai-je dit ? c'est bien...more

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May 10, 2010

Rebecca rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics

Iridescent words 'n' alienating melodrama.
Kinda demonstrates the tedium of grandeur.

*votes R+J*

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Feb 18, 2010

Tom rated it

· review of another edition

This play could easily be the middle-aged answer to the youthful lovesickness of Romeo and Juliet. Only here, the title couple are more or less aware of what they're doing, and yet do it anyway. Antony is noble and good, but dallies with Cleopatra and loses everything. She herself has a few instances where she can save herself and her kingdom but refuses to do so. Two adults working through a passionate love affair and neglecting their own common sense...just as with the Montagues and the Ca...more

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Oct 29, 2010

Steven Salaita rated it

· review of another edition

This isn't really a review of Antony & Cleopatra, which I love, but a general observation about Shakespeare: my English department is in something of a debate about whether or not to retain Shakespeare as a required course now that the bureaucrats in the state have demanded we revise our core requisites. I'm almost always for throwing out convention or requirement, but I strangely find myself believing that a Shakespeare course should be demanded of English majors. Not to have such a requirem...more

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Jul 05, 2011

Dayna rated it

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Shelves: shakespeare

It took Charlie and I several months to get through this one. I recently read Stacy Schiff's excellent biography on Cleopatra and thought reading Shakespeare's rendition of her would be interesting. But unless you already know the story, and even if it is still somewhat fresh in your mind, this play can be thoroughly confusing.

Still, there are some beautiful lines, particularly Enobarbus's description of Cleopatra's first meeting with Antony, which, says Schiff, Shakespeare lifted alm...more

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Jan 11, 2011

Marija rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classics, drama, medieval-renaissance

Even though this is a play about the famed romance of Antony and Cleopatra, I found it a bit dry compared to some of Shakespeare’s other tragedies, especially considering this is his sequel to Julius Caesar. It is a good play with lots of lusty insinuations, as in Julius Caesar, but it’s still missing something…that one character or relationship that brings a sense of honest emotion to the play. The romance between Antony and Cleopatra is flat and reads more like a satire than the epic star-cros...moreEven though this is a play about the famed romance of Antony and Cleopatra, I found it a bit dry compared to some of Shakespeare’s other tragedies, especially considering this is his sequel to Julius Caesar. It is a good play with lots of lusty insinuations, as in Julius Caesar, but it’s still missing something…that one character or relationship that brings a sense of honest emotion to the play. The romance between Antony and Cleopatra is flat and reads more like a satire than the epic star-crossed love one thinks of when considering the history of these famous lovers. To me, the play felt more like a tragicomedy than a true tragedy.

It was almost amusing watching these two powerhouse characters “conquered” by their love for each other. Cleopatra is overly dramatic, with explosive emotions that shift like the wind. At one moment she loves her messenger, offering him jewels, gold and provinces, the next moment she lunges at him with a dagger. ;) Antony—this famous warrior godlike in his abilities is also made helpless by his emotions. His suicide scene is pathetically amusing—a botched job. My favorite line in the play is the response the Clown gives to Cleopatra as he hands her the basket containing the asp: “Yes, forsooth: I wish you joy of the worm.”—such a loaded statement. ;)

As a side note, I’m conflicted about Octavius. On the one hand, he’s portrayed as the good guy, offering redemption and expressing true sadness and grief over the loss of both Antony and Cleopatra. Yet, he’s also crafty, going against the truce he makes with Pompey, creating the war that ultimately leads to Antony and Cleopatra’s deaths. Though it does make for an interesting ironic conclusion, given that he’s the last man standing.

I also didn’t like how the play lacks scenes with Octavia, Antony’s wife. Her presence for the most part is wasted here. I think the play would have been much better if Shakespeare drew out her character, which would have given the play the extra emotional element and conflict that’s currently lacking.
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Nov 25, 2010

Tea Susca rated it

· review of another edition

Una delle tragedie, a mio parere, più belle.
E' possibile rintracciare in essa tutta la poetica di Shakespeare: dalla corrispondenza dei piani paralleli al tempo che si dilata in modo da trasformare 24 ore in anni, dalle rappresentazioni sceniche delle pageants medievali all'onnipresente folle. Ultimo ma non meno importante, l'amore. L'amore disperato tra i due protagonisti. Un amore folle che porterà Antonio alla perdita della sua dignità di uomo di potere, venendo meno alla sua posizione ("...more

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Oct 22, 2010

Venus rated it

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Shelves: literature

آنتونیوس و کلئوپاترا یکی از دو تراژدی بزرگ شکسپیر است که با تاریخ روم ارتباط پیدا میکنند, دومی آن " ژولیوس قیصر " است. شکسپیر گرده ی هر دوی آنها را از روی کتاب معروف پلورتارک به نام " زندگی متوازی بزرگان یونان و روم " برداشت. گرچه زمینه ی کار همان بوده شکسپیر با تصرفهای شاعرانه ی خود داستانهای تازه ای پدید آورد, و در واقع این دو فرمانروای دلداده را که تا آن زمان شناخته شده ی تاریخی ای بیش نبودند در صف اول نام آوران عالم قرار داد.
آنتونیوس و کلئوپاترا با آنکه در عالم ادب ش...more

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About William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. Hi...moreWilliam Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language, and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon. At the age of 18 he married Anne Hathaway, who bore him three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. Between 1585 and 1592 he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part owner of the playing company the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men. He appears to have retired to Stratford around 1613, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive, and there has been considerable speculation about such matters as his sexuality, religious beliefs, and whether the works attributed to him were written by others.

Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1590 and 1613. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and artistry by the end of the sixteenth century. Next he wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest examples in the English language. In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known as romances, and collaborated with other playwrights. Many of his plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime, and in 1623, two of his former theatrical colleagues published the First Folio, a collected edition of his dramatic works that included all but two of the plays now recognised as Shakespeare's.

Shakespeare was a respected poet and playwright in his own day, but his reputation did not rise to its present heights until the nineteenth century. The Romantics, in particular, acclaimed Shakespeare's genius, and the Victorians hero-worshipped Shakespeare with a reverence that George Bernard Shaw called "bardolatry". In the twentieth century, his work was repeatedly adopted and rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance. His plays remain highly popular today and are consistently performed and reinterpreted in diverse cultural and political contexts throughout the world.
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“Music, moody food
Of us that trade in love.” — 17 people liked it

“We, ignorant of ourselves,
Beg often our own harms, which the wise powers
Deny us for our good; so find we profit
By losing of our prayers.” — 10 people liked it

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