Table of Contents
Introduction:
‘The Importance of Shakespeare’ is a notable essay written by Ashlee Jenson. As the title clearly indicates, the essay brings out how important Shakespeare is in the sphere of academics.
About the Author:
Ashlee Jenson is an eminent author accredited for penning the essay “The Importance of Shakespeare”.
Theme:
The theme of this essay is educational. It aims to educate the reader on the importance of studying Shakespearean texts and their literary merits.
Summary:
The essay begins with the author’s concerns over “writing” being “rapidly diminishing” in the modern world. They thus feel it is all the more important for academic scholars to return to what they term to be “true classics” – that is, the works of Shakespeare.
The author substantiates her case by providing ample examples. Firstly, they state that Shakespeare’s works have “basic human themes” that continue to be relatable to the reader through the passage of time.
Again, Shakespeare’s works are crucial as they provide ample historical knowledge, making it important for the reader to be well aware of such as “the conditions and circumstances of colonial America and pre-Revolutionary times”.
In addition to his contribution to history, the author states that Shakespeare had much to contribute to modernity as well. The “complexity” found in his works, as the author puts it, serves in revealing multiple layers of meanings in “ a character or plot”. To prove this, the author cites a 5-lined excerpt from Richard III to reveal the hidden meaning that can be gleaned from the dialogues of Lord Rivers, Lord Grey, and the Queen as to their false concerns about the King.
The author attributes the importance of Shakespeare also to his creative penmanship that lead to the creation of many words– examples being “”amazement”, “dislocate”, “premeditated”, “dexterously”, “windle”, “lackluster,” using the masculine singular pronoun—”his” for “its” —now used for poetic effect, and using some nouns as verbs, such as “he childed as I fathered.””
Last, but not least, the author sums up their argument by stating that Shakespeare’s works are “powerful, poignant, comedic, tragic, and romantic that many are still being routinely memorized and performed today, nearly four centuries later.” Citing the movie Shakespeare in Love and Ben Jonson’s quote “not of an age, but for all time”, the author strongly asserts the dominance of Shakespeare in the literary field and his importance in the same.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the author believes that Shakespeare’s works are integral to academic studies– as they themselves eloquently put it, “literature cannot survive without William Shakespeare”.
