William Shakespeare a Great Dramatist

“The soul of the age he was not of an age but for all ages”

(Ben Johnson)

Shakespeare is a great dramatist of the world. His works are still considered remarkable and significant. He is recognized because of his immense variety of his works. Genius and art worked together in union, and we get objects of wonder which his plays continue to be. He wrote thirty seven plays, but all are created different impressions of beauty, art and wisdom. Shakespeare’s dramas were performed in theatres and people were always very anxious to see the performances of his dramas. He had provided his audience all pleasurable emotions and enlarged our knowledge and understanding of human psyche. Moreover Shakespeare had a marvellous understanding of human life and human psychology. There are close pieces of psycho analysis, soul dissection and elemental human passions which are common to mankind in every age and country. A dramatist always true to nature, when we read and watch  his dramas we find that man has to act under the given circumstances and he acts exactly his fate allowed him to do. Human passions and emotions were closely observed by him and constantly suggest the operation fatal forces hovering all around us and sending us, poor mortals to our doom. The human conflict under his hands becomes symbolic of the universal conflict of the good and evil. His characters thus become larger than life figures, who are struggling against some malignant forces. Furthermore his understanding of human life and human nature and complexities is amazing. We find gems of practical wisdom and philosophical truth which are as true and valuable today as when they were written by Shakespeare. We find generalised reflections on human life and tragedy. DOWDEN states that’ “Shakespeare lived and moved in two worlds ,one limited practical, positive the other a world opening in to two infinites, and infinite of thought and an infinitive of passion.” The infinitive of thought and infinitive of passion were both possible for him. He would have become ROMEO, and brooding thought and speculation would have turned him into a HAMLET. Therefore in the realm of characterisation Shakespeare reigns supreme. Shakespeare’s characters are types as well as individuals. They have their own individual peculiarities and personal idiosyncrasies, and they also present certain class, profession and passion. For example OTHELLO, HAMLET and KING LEAR have highly individualised peculiarities. OTHELLO stands for jealousy, HAMLET stands for the philosophical temperament, and KING LEAR stands for pattern of intemperance. EDMUND, EDGER, IAGO, and DESDEMONA are all portrayed with the even handedness, completeness and originality. The first well- known play by Shakespeare is the tragedy of ROMEO and JULIET written in 1594-95.A MID SUMMAR NIGHT’S are the DREAM,THE MERCHANT OF VENICE,HAMLET,TROILUS AND CRESSIDA are the greatest tragedies of Shakespeare. The tragic-comedy dramas are KING LEAR, MACBETH, OTHELLO, ANTONY AND CLEOPETRA, THE WINTER ‘S TALE and TEMPEST. Although his dramas contain virtue, happiness and chastity but these contain evil, ugliness, and misery too. His stories are of the evil caused, hatred jealousy and treachery and the conquest of this evil in the course of time by integrity, constancy and courageous love aided by good fortune. Thus many of his contemporaries showed great discrimination and insight in appreciating his real superiority.

JOHN DRYDEN states that “SHAKESPEARE was the man who of the moderns and perhaps ancient poets had the largest and most comprehensive soul. “The father of our dramatic poets”