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Common Themes In William Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

Decent Essays

Hannah Pack
Mrs. Rindler
English II
13 October 2016
Shakespeare Who? Students have been learning about William Shakespeare’s greatest works for years. They have been taught that he was the greatest writer of his time and about how his works still live on today. Many people still believe that he was the mastermind behind the beautiful stories of Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet, however this is not true. People have been taught for centuries that Shakespeare wrote every one of his works, however evidence shows that he has stolen ideas and that he might not be the author of his famous works. Romeo and Juliet, one of Shakespeare’s best plays right? Many people associate the tragically beautiful story of Romeo and Juliet with Shakespeare; however …show more content…

Bandello introduces many of the specific themes that make Shakespeare’s play so well known today. ... provided the well-known last names of Montague and Capulet to the two titular characters. Bandello also added the element of the costume ball, at which Romeo and Juliet meet, and also the pertinent moment in which Juliet viciously kills herself with her lover’s dagger… rather than merely wasting away as Giannoza [Salernitano’s version] did. (Stone)
However it is widely believed that the French author Pierre Boaistuau closely followed Bandello, and that the translated version of Boaistuau’s version was what landed on William’s desk. (Stone) William did write his version of this iconic story; however he did steal many of the well-known themes from previous versions of the …show more content…

His story has been compared to Amleth, in a general sense the stories are very similar. (Internet Shakespeare Editions) However, when compared, the bard’s story is more complex than the earlier Danish version. In both stories the main character’s uncle murders their brother (Amleth or Hamlet’s father) and then ends up marrying their brother’s wife. “Amleth feigned not knowing his uncle’s crime through the pretense of “madness.” Hamlet feigned not knowing his uncle’s crime through an “antic disposition”, though Shakespeare leaves the extent to which he is really mad ambiguous” (Break the Enigma). Hamlet and Amleth pretended to not know their uncle’s crime because of “madness.” The stories also contain the similar themes of scolding their mother for marrying their husbands brother, trying to persuade their mom to change their ways, and avenging their father’s death. Overall these stories have very similar outlines, but when compared Hamlet is more complex and goes more in depth with the

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