Play Essays

As William Shakespeare weaved the storylines of his plays, he considered both the ignorant lowlife and the insightful intellectual. He constructed them to be entertaining enough to humor those with little intelligence, but also meaningful enough to attract intellectuals. In this particular play, “Macbeth”, Shakespeare makes a commentary about human …

For my essay I chose to describe the light and dark motifs in “Romeo and Juliet”. A motif is a term used to describe a passage in literature that has more than one universal meaning. It is used when a character or narrator is comparing one thing to another. For …

Hamlet’s first soliloquy strikes a note of despair and reveals his feelings towards life and the hasty marriage between his mother and his uncle. Hamlet wishes to “thaw and resolve […] into a dew” but is restrained by the canon law that condemns him to eternal suffering in hell if …

Shakespeare makes it quite clear to his audience at the beginning of the play that Iago plays the character of the common criminal, from his opening speech with Roderigo on Iago owing money to Roderigo. When Iago caries out his soliloquy we find out his philosophies on life and as …

Light and dark, kindness and cruelty, realism and fantasy, all of them dichotomies used by Tennessee Williams in A Streetcar Named Desire. Tennessee Williams uses many dichotomies, clear cut divisions, to illustrate main points. The most prominent dichotomy is the sweet and fragile Blanche opposed to the cruel and savage …

Philosophy on life and death is usually determined by a number of things. Religion, culture, traditions and family usually have something to do with the beliefs humans might have. During the course of a lifetime, experiences and accomplishments have a major influence on how we think as adults. During the …

In Shakespeare’s Othello, isolation is shown in all aspects of the play. The majority of the play takes place on the island of Cyprus. Protected by military fortifications as well as by the forces of nature, external forces seem to present little threat to the island. Although the island does …

This act commences with the murder of King Duncan. It is in this act that the reader is first convinced of Macbeth’s weakness, as contrasted by Lady Macbeth’s strength. Whereas Macbeth feels remorse for his actions, and wishes that his king could once more wake, Lady Macbeth contemplates on how …

Throughout history tyrants have come and gone. They come into position with knowledge and power. When the tyrant holds such power, he also holds a great responsibility. Because of the power, the tyrants ego will become very large causing his thinking to be camouflaged. However, since the mental state of …

The opposition of light and dark as symbols for life and death is the foundation upon which much of Shakespeare’s Macbeth is built. Darkness in our society is indicative of many symbols of evil. For instance, a black cat, dark night, and dark place are all ominous symbols. Light, as …