William Shakespeare's Influence

William Shakespeare's influence extends from theatre and literature to present-day movies and the English language itself. Widely regarded as the greatest writer of the English language, and the world's pre-eminent dramatist, Shakespeare transformed European theatre by expanding expectations about what could be accomplished through characterization, plot, language and genre. Shakespeare's writings have also influenced a large number of notable novelists and poets over the years, including Herman Melville and Charles Dickens, and continue to influence new authors even today. Shakespeare is the most quoted writer in the history of the English-speaking world after the various writers of the Bible, and many of his quotations and neologisms have passed into everyday usage in English and other languages.

Read more about William Shakespeare's Influence:  Changes in English At The Time, Influence On Theatre, Influence On European and American Literature, Influence On The English Language, See Also

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    Tomorrow is Saint Valentine’s day,
    All in the morning betime,
    And I a maid at your window,
    To be your Valentine.
    William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

    While Darwinian Man, though well-behaved,
    At best is only a monkey shaved!
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    Whether we shall meet again I know not.
    Therefore our everlasting farewell take.
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    I am always glad to think that my education was, for the most part, informal, and had not the slightest reference to a future business career. It left me free and untrammeled to approach my business problems without the limiting influence of specific training.
    Alice Foote MacDougall (1867–1945)