Shakespeare is still relevant today

William Shakespeare died more than 400 years ago, but we are still required to study his plays and sonnets. High school and university students alike study Shakespeare’s life and work.

Why is he still relevant today? As a teenager, I might not have appreciated Shakespeare’s work, but it doesn’t mean it is irrelevant.

No matter when it’s read, Shakespeare’s plays can ring true for modern audiences and readers. For example, take the plague in “Romeo and Juliet.” It isn’t a main plot point for the play, but it might remind someone of what is going on now with COVID-19. Not to mention, Shakespeare lived his life while the bubonic plague swept across England.

Some recent movies, plays and books are loosely based on plot lines or characters of Shakespeare’s work. Everyone has heard “The Lion King” is similar to “Hamlet” or the Weird Sisters in the “Harry Potter” series is based on the witches in “Macbeth.”

Shakespeare’s work can fit easily into today’s society because the plays have an openness to them. It inspires ideas that can be replicated throughout time.

Even if people don’t enjoy Shakespeare’s work, they are sure to be affected by parts of it. They might remember lines from some of the more famous plays, from Hamlet’s soliloquy “To be or not to be…” or Juliet’s “O Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou Romeo…”

The famous lines aren’t the only thing people quote. Shakespeare was a genius when it came to writing and he coined a bunch of phrases we still use today. Things like “neither rhyme nor reason,” “in my heart of hearts,” “what’s done is done,” “break the ice” and so many other phrases were first penned by Shakespeare.

Shakespeare is still relevant. His works can evoke emotion. Humans still experience love, loss, humor and tragedy and this will forever make it so Shakespeare is relevant.