Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century

In his own time, William Shakespeare (1564–1616) was seen as merely one among many talented playwrights and poets, but ever since the late 17th century he has been considered the supreme playwright, and to a lesser extent poet, of the English language. No other dramatist has been performed even remotely as often on the British (and later the world) stage as Shakespeare. The plays have often been drastically adapted in performance; King Lear, for instance, had a happy ending between 1681 and 1838. During the 18th and 19th cent ...

Including:

• Shakespeare's reputation - 17th century
• Shakespeare's reputation - 18th century
• Shakespeare's reputation - Britain
• Shakespeare's reputation - Elsewhere in Europe
• Shakespeare's reputation - 19th century
• Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in performance
• Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in criticism
• Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century
• Shakespeare's reputation - Film
• Shakespeare's reputation - Poetry
• Shakespeare's reputation - Critical quotations

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Shakespeare continued to be considered the greatest English writer of all time throughout the 20th century. Most Western educational systems required the textual study of two or more of Shakespeare's plays, and both amateur and professional stagings of Shakespeare were commonplace. Shakespeare's reputation was so sterling, his preeminence so unchallenged, that it was assumed. It was, indeed, the proliferation of high-quality, well-annotated texts and the unrivalled reputation of Shakespeare that allowed for stagings of Shakespeare's plays to remain textually faithful, but with an extraord ...

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Shakespeare's reputation, Shakespeare's reputation - 17th century, Shakespeare's reputation - 18th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Britain, Shakespeare's reputation - Elsewhere in Europe, Shakespeare's reputation - 19th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in performance, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in criticism, Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Film, Shakespeare's reputation - Poetry, Shakespeare's reputation - Critical quotations

Read more here: » Shakespeare's reputation: Encyclopedia II - Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century

It is impossible to calculate Shakespeare's reputation in his own lifetime and shortly after. England scarcely had a modern literature to speak of prior to the 1570s, and detailed critical commentaries on modern authors did not begin to appear until the reign of Charles I. The facts about his reputation must be surmised from fragmentary evidence. He was included in some contemporary lists of leading poets, but he seems to have lacked the stature of the aristocratic Philip Sidney, who became a cult figure due to his death in battle at a young ...

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Shakespeare's reputation, Shakespeare's reputation - 17th century, Shakespeare's reputation - 18th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Britain, Shakespeare's reputation - Elsewhere in Europe, Shakespeare's reputation - 19th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in performance, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in criticism, Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Film, Shakespeare's reputation - Poetry, Shakespeare's reputation - Critical quotations

Read more here: » Shakespeare's reputation: Encyclopedia II - Shakespeare's reputation - 17th century

Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in performance. Theatres and theatrical scenery became ever more elaborate in the 19th century, and the acting editions used were progressively cut and restructured to emphasize more and more the soliloquies and the stars, at the expense of pace and action. Performances were further slowed by the need for frequent pauses to change the scenery, creating a perceived need for even more cuts in order to keep performance length within tolerable limits; it became a generally accep ...

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Shakespeare's reputation, Shakespeare's reputation - 17th century, Shakespeare's reputation - 18th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Britain, Shakespeare's reputation - Elsewhere in Europe, Shakespeare's reputation - 19th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in performance, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in criticism, Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Film, Shakespeare's reputation - Poetry, Shakespeare's reputation - Critical quotations

Read more here: » Shakespeare's reputation: Encyclopedia II - Shakespeare's reputation - 19th century

Shakespeare's reputation - Britain. In the 18th century, Shakespeare dominated the London stage, while Shakespeare production turned increasingly into the creation of star turns for star actors. After the Licensing Act of 1737, one fourth of the plays performed were by Shakespeare, and on at least two occasions rival London playhouses staged the very same Shakespeare play at the same time (Romeo and Juliet in 1755 and King Lear the next year) and still commanded audiences. This occasion was a striki ...

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Shakespeare's reputation, Shakespeare's reputation - 17th century, Shakespeare's reputation - 18th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Britain, Shakespeare's reputation - Elsewhere in Europe, Shakespeare's reputation - 19th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in performance, Shakespeare's reputation - Shakespeare in criticism, Shakespeare's reputation - 20th century, Shakespeare's reputation - Film, Shakespeare's reputation - Poetry, Shakespeare's reputation - Critical quotations

Read more here: » Shakespeare's reputation: Encyclopedia II - Shakespeare's reputation - 18th century