Why do you think Shakespeare is characterized as the best author ever?

Answer 1

Shakespeare is still read, discussed, acted on the stage. Though I hardly think "the best ever" is something I've heard, he is among the best. His themes are timeless...his characters poignant, his settings easily understood, his writing emotional, witty, exceptional.

Answer 2

I didn't realize Shakespeare WAS characterized as the bext author "ever", but I will say he is definitly one of the best. This is because his stories, his play and poems, reach out to people. They are not easily forgotten and they touch certain parts of a person. They talk about subjects that transcend time (ie. Racism, Sexism, bad decisions, lost love, missed oppostunity, etc...) and readers can sympathize and/or empathize with the characters as they go through the story. His words are very descriptive and his stories easily come alive. While he did not invent the problems people face, he showed that everyone dealt with issues at one point or other in their life and made a connection from class to class, race to race, and gender to gender. He is characterized as one of the greatest author's ever because he writes like a person, for people, and his stories are remembered years after they have been written, seen or read.

Answer 3

Rather than a critical reflection of his work, consider the historical ramifications of Nationalism in Great Britain. As the country determined they wanted their own identity, as opposed to a Greek/Roman tradition, the Enlightenment saw people really begin to pinpoint and identify a national heritage. Shakespeare replaced Ovid, Homer, and Plato. Americans continue to identify with a British construct of Literature in the mainstream critical tradition. The end result? Shakespeare epitomizes the concept of what is "Good" for the Western tradition.

Answer 4

Shakespeare understood people, he knew what made them "tick" for lack of a better term. He told wildly different stories in an elegant light with fully developed characters. He knew how to drive up the tension as well as break it, he also clued the audience in on what was going on rather than excluding them. That's what made Shakespeare great and why his great writing live on.