Inspired by Shakespeare #1

The first of some articles where I will focus on appreciating Shakespeare, ideas for including his plays in your curriculum, book suggestions, creative writing...

*To see all of this article, click on the email link to view it in your browser*

Shakespeare's influence has flowed down through the generations and has left its mark on the words we use, on literature, film, and art. Authors have borrowed phrases from his work for the titles of their books (Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury, The Way to Dusty Death by Alistair Maclean, The Glimpses of the Moon by Edith Wharton, This Rough Magic by Mary Stewart) and movies have been based on his plays (West Side Story is a modern take on Romeo & Juliet and the 1956 movie Forbidden Planet is based on The Tempest)

Shakespeare’s work has inspired artists for hundreds of years. Ophelia, a character in Hamlet, is one of Shakespeare's most frequently painted subjects, with some artists such as John William Waterhouse, depicting her a number of times.
Below are paintings that have been inspired by the works of Shakespeare.

Hermia & Helena by Joseph Severn (1819) A Midsummer Night's Dream

Ophelia by John Waterhouse (1889) Hamlet

Ophelia by John Waterhouse (1894) Hamlet

Ophelia by John Waterhouse (1910) Hamlet

Lady Macbeth by John Singer Sargent (1889)

King Lear, Act I, Scene I by Edwin Austin Abbey (1898)

The First Madness of Ophelia by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1868) Hamlet

Titania by Henry Meynell Rheam (1859-1920) A Midsummer Night's Dream

The Play Scene in Hamlet by Edwin Austin Abbey (1897)

Gonerill & Reagan by Edwin Austin Abbey (1902) King Lear

Ophelia by John Everett Millais (1852) Hamlet

Miranda by John William Waterhouse (1916) The Tempest

The Princes in the Tower by John Everett Millais (1878) Richard III

Oberon, Titania and Puck with Fairies Dancing by William Blake (c.1876) A Midsummer Night's Dream

Ferdinand Lured by Ariel by John Everett Millais (1849) The Tempest

Juliet by Philip Hermogenes Calderon (1888) Romeo & Juliet

Much Ado About Nothing by Alfred Enmore, 1846

Jessica by Sir Samuel Luke Fildes (1888) The Merchant of Venice

Claudio, Deceived by Don John Accuses Hero by Marcus Stone (c.1861) Much Ado About Nothing

Perdita by Anthony Frederick Sandys (1866) The Winter's Tale

Desdemona by Frederic Leighton (1888) Othello

Othello and Desdemona in Venice by Theodore Chasseriau (1850) Othello

In my next article on Shakespeare, I’ll share my journey as a former Shakespeare illiterate, how I changed that, how we incorporated his plays into our curriculum and developed a love for the Bard.