Shakespearian Plays

The works of William Shakespeare bears no comparison in the history of arts. He was a versatile English poet, play writer and actor. He has written nearly 38 plays, 154 sonnets and countless poems between the years 1582–1612, which are remembered even to this day. They had great impact on English literature and western theatre. All his works have been translated into all known languages and they have been performed around over the world over a million times.

Although most of his works were written for English audience the appeal was universal. His writing style was greatly influenced by Christopher Marlowe. In 1594, Shakespeare became part-owner of Lord Chamberlain’s Men, a drama company. By then he had even started acting, along with writing plays. Under his presence the company became so famous which made King James I buy the company and then it was named as King’s men.

His plays revolved around tragedy, comedy, romance and history. He started his career reworking on other writers work which was common at that time. Since then he helped the playwrights to finish their work fast. Like Hamlet was the new adaptation of a lost play named Ur-Hamlet and King Lear was the new version of King Leer. His plays on history were inspired by the Greek, Roman and English history. Plays like Plutarch’s Parallel Lives and Raphael Holinshed’s The Chronicle of England inspired plays like Macbeth and King Lear. Tempest was his original work.

Shakespeare’s early works of 1590s were based on romantic comedies and historic nostalgia which were the storyline of works like A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Henry IV, Part I. After the plague, he began including rhymed couplets and dramatic dialogues in his work. His middle period works revolved around betrayal, murder, egoism, power, ambition, lust, tragedy and comedy. Plays like Othello, Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Troilus and Cressida were based on them. His later works were mostly romantic and fantasies such as The Winter’s Tale and The Tempest. His works were also published in press as a series of quartos. Two actors named John Heming’s and Henry Condell started First Folio to honour and publish Shakespeare’s work exclusively in 1623. Categories such as comedies, tragedies and histories were made in First Folio. Modern critics have added categories like problem-play and tragic-comedies.

The exact order of plays is unknown and has always been the subject of an argument as at his time, plays weren’t authoritatively printed. Many of his plays had many different blueprints due to the textual corruption like printer’s error and compositor’s misreading, so the recognition of his original work is a problem. Many words and spellings were invented by Shakespeare. He had a habit of writing his plays number of time using those different words and spellings. After his death, speculations have risen about the authenticity of Shakespeare’s work. There have been very little record about the events that happened in his life and nor does his will gives an account on any of his plays, poems, sonnets and ownership of the Globe theatre. It has been rumoured that they might be works of Francis Bacon or Christopher Marlowe.

The works that have been lost are Love’s Labour’ Won, Cardenio and Quixote. Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, King Lear, As You Like It, Hamlet, The Taming of the Shrew, Othello, Julius Caesar, The Tempest, The Merchant of Venice, Twelfth Night, Macbeth and Richard III are some the critically acclaimed works of William Shakespeare.

The Meaning of Friendship

The Meaning of Friendship
By Val Dorado

Friend is someone who could understand thoughts
Even sometimes, it does not fit into words
Friend appears in times of grief and pains
When it seems fate and reality collides in the same place
A friend holds back offering his both hands helping

Neither place nor seasons, a friend can trace and behold
It indeed, rest at the core of human psyche or soul
When the senses are weak and the feeling is hurt
A friend has a power to revive the losing hope
Recreate and reborn a dying spirit to cope

A friend provides time to share the laughter
Generous to show a vicarious feeling and empathy
An ingenuous being with no pretense and sensitive
With optimistic effort, scintillating and expressive
Magnanimous, persuasive and perfectly sensible

With all the dreams that are beyond necessary
He is a benefactor to lead the righteous path
Nurtured and molded by divine influence
He outshines anybody else with the real passion
Transcending time, space and emotion

The epitome of a friend is someone who deeply believes
In things mostly beyond reach of a simple mind
Has a strong credo in one's capacity, ability and decision
He accepts the truth about the inner details
Of an impervious unconscious

A friend with no alter ego
No thousand masks worn
But only an honest heart
With the ability to accept everything

Like the universe so timeless to point the beginnings
Even like the Earth more abundant to cease illusions
A fathomable friend is more than anything an eye could see
More than the incredible phenomena of fiction and reality
He, unspeciously could provide the words like love and eternity

Val Dorado

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A Good Love Poem

A Good Love Poem
By Mary Harnetiaux

Please find below what I believe is a good love poem:

What Our Love Means To Me

Your Love makes me feel complete
and there is no one who can compete.

For if we could take what we have together
and share it each day, what could be better

Each day I wake with you on my mind
you are the person I always hoped to find

So with each day I share with you
there is no doubt our love is true

Be with me forever and awhile
this relationship makes me smile.

Knowing you will always be with me
is the best future I can see

So if it is possible to grow together more
let's continue and see what is in store.

The end.

If you enjoy a good love poem please use this. If you have a love you don't want to lose or you are worried that you are losing the love of your life then by all means use this poem on a card with flowers.

Ok, so may be flowers will help too. Just remember the more serious the problems the bigger the bouquet should be!! Seriously love is so involved and when we find it we want to treasure it. If you have problems maybe you need to have a different perspective.

I do believe there is power in a good love poem but I think maybe we can listen to advise from others just make sure it is good advise. Happiness and Love to all!

Try A good Love Poem or maybe you need more.

If you are in a relationship that just broke up or needs help, you can find it here http://www.squidoo.com/PoemForExLover
There is nothing greater than having someone to love and someone who loves you! Make it the best it can be! Again enjoy the Poem and feel free to use it if you want to. Learn more about getting your ex back too! http://www.squidoo.com/PoemForExLover

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Your Wedding Vows and Wedding Poetry by Jayne Waldorf

Your wedding vows should suit you and your partner only, it really doesn't matter what anyone else expects you to do. These vows are made to each other and they are the most personal part of your wedding. If you mean every word and remember them always you are well on the way to a long and happy marriage.

You will be officially married once you have exchanged your vows; they are the most important part of the wedding ceremony.

Your vows represent what promises you are making to each other and what your marriage means.

Many people are now replacing the traditional vows with words of their own that are not so formal, they are deciding on their own words which better reflect the way they feel for each other and what their love means. You may feel that traditional vows are right for you but if not then you should decide on your own words.

Here are the typical wedding vows...

"I [your name] take you [your partners name] for my lawful [wife/husband] to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part"

Many people use these traditional vows as the foundation that they will modify to suit their needs by adding personalized touches where they like.

A lot of people like to include poetry in their vows. and also in their wedding invitations.

Some people also like to recite poems at the reception and this can add a really nice touch to the speeches.

You can get some good ideas for wedding poetry from wedding cards and these might even help inspire you or your partner to create your own poems for the wedding.

One relatively simple way to help you write your own poetry for your wedding is to write down the all the words and comments that you would like to say in a series of sentences and then go to a site like www.rhymezone.com on the internet and find words that rhyme with the words at the end of each sentence.

By rearranging the sentences and making appropriate changes you can create your own poetry that will be unique to your wedding ceremony.

The rearrangement of the words might mean you will need to add or remove phrases until your have a nice flowing poem. You will need to read it out aloud as this is the best way to see whether the poem flows or whether you need to add or remove 'filler' words.

It can be fun writing your own wedding vows or poetry however if you or your partner find it too difficult to get it sounding as you would like then you might need to consider using some pre-written wedding vows or poetry that you should be able to find with a search on the internet or as previously mentioned from wedding cards.

Just remember to never stop having fun because that's what it's all about - getting the most happiness in your life by sharing it with someone you love.

About the Author

Jayne Waldorf lives with her husband in Cheshire,England.Her new web site http://www.waldorfelite.com is a dating and relationship site.It will bring you advice, information,goods & services relating to dating, relationships, weddings, and marriage.

What Everyone Should Know About Selecting a Family Poem

What Everyone Should Know About Selecting a Family Poem

It’s unlikely that you ever sat around the dining room table or in the den with your family discussing poetry, that is unless you have an English professor for a parent which is also rather unlikely. Regardless, poetry is not a mainstream source of entertainment in today’s age and for that reason has waned considerably as a family pursuit. What better way to throw the entire family off balance than to find and share a poem with them.

Family poems Are Different

There is a difference between the kind of poem you might read on your own and the kind you would willingly share at the dinner table. Family poems are not the same breed as traditional poems. There are numerous factors to consider. First, will everyone at the table be willing to invest in a conversation about the poem? It needs to be interesting, slightly provocative but not too complicated.

Second, a family poem should be relatively tame. What child willingly listens to his parents read a poem with suggestive themes. The thought probably makes your ears burn, so why would you put your children through the same? While topics such as loss, politics or academics are interesting and get the family talking, some topics can kill conversation quicker than a misplaced insult. Be wary of how your family will react.

Family Poems Can Also Be the Expected

A family poem can also be related directly to the family itself, a topic which an entire slew of writers have written about in detail. There are poems written directly for specific family members such as Wordsworth’s “To My Sister” that focus on sharing the feelings he has for his closest family member in verse dedication.

Other poets have written at length about how a family member has affected them personally, including the Shelleys, both Mary and Percey Bysshe. A great deal more writers have written about each other as family, crafting family poems about friends that are as close as family. The early 19th century poets of Byron, Shelley, and Keats were all very close friends in this way.

Regardless of their dedication though, a family poem from a master poet is unlike any other poem. It is the same as an especially thoughtful gift or a rarely given hug. For some of us, this might seem more impressive than for others. However, close or no, family poems are a great way to express that hidden or not so hidden love for those closest to you.

Consider Sharing Family Poems Regularly

Why not share a poem every Sunday at dinner? It’s a great way to get your family used to the concept of discussing something other than the latest episode of America’s Next Top Model and force them to be involved. Eventually, if it means not having a say in the conversation every Sunday night should they not, everyone will want to get involved.

What Everyone Should Know About Short Poems

What Everyone Should Know About Short Poems

Not everything needs to be long and cumbersome to be considered an art form and in poetry, this is especially the case. Poetry has long broken new frontiers in displaying brevity and concision with words as an artistic expression. From the Japanese haiku of only 17 syllables to the short form of a simple limerick, there are dozens of different kinds of short poetry.

Different Kinds of Short Poems

There are hundreds of different formats of poetry – from the classic sonnet to the increasingly rare sestina. However, very short poems are much rarer than one would expect. Traditional poets almost all followed a preconceived format, with a set meter and line format. It might be considered boring by today’s standards, but it was tradition and as a result, short poems were less common. However, there are some examples that break the rules including:

Haiku is the most famous of short poetic forms. Developed by the Japanese, this simple and elegant style has managed to find popularity in numerous cultures and countries.

Triolets are eight line short poems with a very unique rhyming scheme.

Ghazal is a Persian form of poetry that can be as short as ten lines, famously used by Rumi.

Cinquain is similar to the haiku in that each of the five lines is designated a certain number of syllables.

And of course free verse poems in which any format is acceptable

There are dozens of different forms of poetry though in which short poems can be written, using the familiar conventions and tweaking them with the artistic license that all poets have. In the case of some of history’s greatest poets, form was not nearly as important as substance.

Short Poems from History’s Greatest Poets

John Keats often wrote short, yet elaborate poems designed to capture all of the energies of a larger, more intensely styled work without putting its reader to sleep with overabundant metaphors. Though he only lived a scant 26 years, his work has had a profound effect on just about every poet since the early 19th century.

Robert Louis Stevenson of Treasure Island fame also penned his share of short poems, including “To Friends at Home” a very simple yet poignant message to his fellows back home describing how much he misses them. Like many writers of his time, his poetry has been overlooked in favor of his fiction. However, the two are almost equal in volume, and his short poetry is especially well written.

To friends at home, the lone, the admired, the lost
The gracious old, the lovely young, to May
The fair, December the beloved,
These from my blue horizon and green isles,
These from this pinnacle of distances I,
The unforgetful, dedicate.

One of the greatest poets to use short forms was Emily Dickinson. Her poems varied in length according to their subjects, be she was not unknown to have used 8 or fewer lines for her most poignant and ultimately best received poems to date. “A Charm Invests a Face” is a great example of this shortened, yet incredibly vivid style:

A charm invests a face
Imperfectly beheld.
The lady dare not lift her veil
For fear it be dispelled.

But peers beyond her mesh,
And wishes, and denies,
Lest interview annul a want
That image satisfies.

Three Easy Steps to Sharing the Ideal Sister Poem

Three Easy Steps to Sharing the Ideal Sister Poem

A sister is a wonderful friend, a close family relation and one of the first people that may deserve a poem. Someone who has decided to share with their sister a poem may feel at first rather awkward but can rest assured that they are not nearly the first to do so. Dozens of the world’s best poets have written a sister poem in their lifetime, an ode to the closest person to them in their family. Finding and sharing these sister poems can be done in as little as three steps.

Step #1 – Finding the Right Sister Poem

Writers such as William Wordsworth wrote beautiful poems dedicated to their sisters. His “To My Sister” is probably the most eloquent example of how a poem can be directed toward a loved family member without being overtly sentimental.

Another famous writer of the 19th century, Lord Byron, wrote to his sister as well in “Epistle to Augusta” The poem is a loving tribute to his beloved sister, showing the kind of familial love a poet is willing to express.

MY sister! my sweet sister! if a name
Dearer and purer were, it should be thine;
Mountains and seas divide us, but I claim
No tears, but tenderness to answer mine:
Go where I will, to me thou art the same—
A loved regret which I would not resign.
There yet are two things in my destiny,—
A world to roam through, and a home with thee.

Such words are not uncommon for the time period in which Byron wrote, but the care put into them not only displays his love for Augusta but the ability of a man to make those statements in all honesty.

Of course, not all sister poems are in loving tribute. Lewis Carroll always had a keen eye for how the mind of a child worked, writing great children’s classics such as Alice in Wonderland. His poem, “Brother and Sister” tells the tale of a young boy who tries to borrow a frying pan from the cook so as he can make an “Irish Stew” with his sister. Not all brothers are as willing as Byron to profess their sibling love.

Step #2 – How to Share a Sister Poem

After having found the right poem, it is important to decide when and where to share it with your sister. In some instances, it might be simply inappropriate. A man will feel awkward giving a poem to his sister on a random occasion, so might choose to write it within a card for a birthday or holiday instead of making a big deal out of it. A fellow sister might be more willing to offer an emotional gift at any time and simple read the sister poem.

Step #3 – Discussing the Sister Poem

One of the best parts about sharing poetry with anyone is that the next logical step is to discuss it. This may not be the goal in which case a carefully placed card is probably the best idea. However, for those that do not mind or in fact relish the chance to discuss poetry, hand delivering the poem might be the perfect opportunity to start an interesting conversation with a family member about that sister poem. It may not work out as planned, but it stretches the intellectual connection of two family members, something most gifts can never claim to do.

How to Read and Enjoy Sad Poems

How to Read and Enjoy Sad Poems

Love is a universal denominator, one that can bring everyone together or tear them apart. Sadness is equally universal (and with love on the line, inevitable), making it all that much more powerful. Of course, even with the kind of eerie power sadness has over us, why is it that sad poems are so compelling, bringing an awkward sense of joy at the same time as they evoke images of pain and longing?

Why Sad Poems?

Everyone has a different answer and though the scientific community will likely not be agreeing with the poets and writers of those sad poems any time soon, they can come to a consensus on one thing – sad poems are very popular. However, for the budding poetry fan, sad poems happen to be some of the best poems ever written and can surely serve to make for enjoyable reading, if only you take the right approach to them from the start.

Enjoying a Sad Poem

The first step to enjoying a sad poem is to recognize that it is a sad poem. Everyone feels sadness, despair and weakness at some time or another and handles it in their own way. For the poet, it is best expressed in words. Thus, the sad poem is a diary of sorts, relaying the kind of emotions that have plagued a poet for some time.

Sad poems also offer people a chance to connect with each other on a much more personal level and share an emotional closeness. A sad poem is often best read when you are either in a retrospective or down mood of your own. They allow a certain amount of reflection on a topic that has been bothersome of late. That sad poem might offer just the right amount of vicarious relief to forget the unfortunate (yet unforgettable) incident with your spouse’s parents or the explosive and yet somehow dull daily grind of a job going poorly.

The Best Sad Poems Around

The next step is to find a few truly magnificent sad poems to wallow with, and there are none better than those written by Emily Dickinson. Suffering a bit from depression as is the wont of many poets, her sad poems have become famous for their clever wordplay and short, direct expression. “I had been hungry all the years” is a great example of this style:

I had been hungry all the years;
My noon had come, to dine;
I, trembling, drew the table near,
And touched the curious wine.

‘Twas this on table I had seen,
When turning, hungry, lone,
I looked in windows, for the wealth
I could not hope to own.

While Dickinson was largely ignored during her own lifetime, other poets at the same time such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow were living giants, celebrities of their time. Even Longfellow wrote the occasional sad poem though as an expression of his personal anxieties. “The Day is Done” is a famously introspective sad poem, describing his own desire to read poems of sadness – an ironically appropriate topic.

How to Write the Perfect Wedding Poem

How to Write the Perfect Wedding Poem

What better time or place to write a poem than for a wedding. The right wedding poem can serve any number of wonderful purposes. It can highlight the reception as a toast to the bride, groom, or their families. It can serve as an added personal touch between the bride and groom when exchanging vows. It can even be a great addition to invitations or announcements for the wedding. Whatever purpose a wedding poem serves, it is sure to be well received. The only hard part is writing one.

Famous Examples of Wedding Poems

There are not nearly as many poems written directly about weddings as some other important events. However, there are plenty of examples available of love poems and friendship poems that capture the essence of a wedding and of the feelings a bride and groom have for each other.

Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s incredibly famous (and slightly overused) “How Do I Love Thee?” has been used in wedding ceremonies for decades, while the simpler and more elegant verses of Emily Dickinson are a popular addition to wedding vows, especially in “It’s all I have to bring today.”

Starting on Your Own Wedding Poem

The first step to writing any poem is to know your audience. Who is the poem being written for? If it is a future spouse, it should be imbued with as much emotion and personal touch as possible. If it is for the bride and groom from a best man or maid of honor, it should be reverential and keyed to the friendships that exist. If it is for the families or friends attending, it can be nearly anything so long as it mentions friendship and cracks a few jokes in between.

Writing the Poem

The next step though is the most important. Crafting a poem is hard. It takes a lot of time, much more than the few short lines would make it seem. The best way to start is to write down everything you want to say in prose. No matter how much you have to say, write it down in as simple a form as you can. Don’t worry about the flowery verse yet. That comes later.

Next, start selecting the bits and pieces that have the most important position in your wedding poem. Any words you find particularly compelling should be written down as well. Poetry is art with words, don’t underestimate the power of a well placed word.

The poem does not need to rhyme. Nor does it need to be metered or in any kind of form. It just needs to be well thought out. Read it over and over and ensure that every line is important, every word has a place within the meaning of the poem. If the context is wrong or too many syllables jumble up a line, move them around. It will likely take half a dozen times reading and changing your poem before you begin to come close to being happy with it. And you may never be happy with the final wedding poem, but then no poets are.

How to Find the Perfect Anniversary Poem

How to Find the Perfect Anniversary Poem

Men everywhere have scrambled for centuries on the day or two leading into an anniversary to both remember and find the perfect gift for their spouse. It can be a nerve wracking process, the kind that ends in either a romantic evening for two or a cold stare from across a long dining room table. The right anniversary poem can go a long way in ensuring the second situation never comes to pass.

Why an Anniversary Poem is the Perfect Gift

Poetry has been handed back and forth as a gift for millennia. Before anything was written down even, in ancient times, poetry was a gift given from one person to the next and was greatly appreciated as it displayed thoughtfulness and intellect. An anniversary poem given to a wife shows much the same. Instead of the same box of chocolates or flowers – both of which are thoughtful, but expected – the right anniversary poem will light up her day and ensure the kind of response you always want to see on an anniversary.

The Right Anniversary Poem

The right anniversary poem does not need to be about an anniversary. The right love poem is an ideal gift or a beautiful description of the landscape if it is worded well enough. There are endless options to choose from. To avoid cheesiness, do not choose a poem that she has likely heard numerous times before. Shakespeare’s sonnets are beautiful, but they are well known. Try to find a poem that best suits your particular relationship by mirroring your situation directly. You will know it when you find it.

Places to Start

There are dozens of poets who have written poems specifically for an anniversary. Some of the most famous, to give you an idea of what these famous wordsmiths gave to their wives and husbands include touching declarations of love on anniversaries, the days following a new marriage or just because they wanted to say “I love you.”

Of the Romantic and Victorian poets by whom so many of us know romantic poetry to be written, Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Marriage Morning” is a prime example of the kind of anniversary poem a wife would surely love to receive. Describing the interminable nature of love, Tennyson describes his marriage as the culmination of his life’s work.

Emily Bronte’s poem “Love and Friendship”, while never directly speaking of marriage” describes the intertwined nature of love and friendship and how they feed each other, creating a stronger entity. The poem is short and evokes the simple image of a rose-briar and a holly-tree comingling, but speaks volumes of the love she had for her husband and family.

Poetry that describes the love for a wife or a husband is abundant throughout history and for that reason, though it might differ in context and form, the words of a couple that lived 200 or even 500 years ago can accurately describe the feelings a couple today, on their 20th anniversary feel for each other.