Comedies, Tragedies, and Histories
Comedies
Old Shakespearean comedies are different from the modern. In his plays, all the comedies included marriage and involved some sort of happy ending. Unlike his other types of plays, this particular one does not treat certain topics seriously, such as love. He uses puns, insults, and metaphors as to further express his humor. Another thing that stands out is his choice of such an intense plot. As you read, there are more twists and turns than were ever expected; the plot is overall more complex. Some examples you might recognize are As You Like It, Twelfth Night, Winter’s Tale, and Measure for Measure.
Tragedies
This style of Shakespeare's plays are pretty much the exact opposite of comedies. The protagonist is usually a hero, noble and wealthy, but always has some sort of character flaw. In the end, this flaw typically leads to the hero's downfall. Throughout the story there is a lot of suspense and climax, but finishes in some kind of disaster or with a death; hence the title "tragedy". There are three types of tragedies: classical, medieval, and renaissance. Some tragedies he wrote were Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Othello.
Histories
Despite the name of this type of play, Shakespearean histories weren't historically accurate. They gave you a sense of entertainment and hid underlying messages of his time rather than the implied setting in the book. They were all based on the lives of English kings or Roman history; this is why Macbeth and King Lear are regarded as tragedies and not histories. Particular examples include Henry(IV-VIIII), King John, Richard II, and Richard III.
(Sources: wikipedia.org, calpoly.edu, springfield.k12.il.us, shakespeare.about.com,
shakespeare.nuvvo.com)
Old Shakespearean comedies are different from the modern. In his plays, all the comedies included marriage and involved some sort of happy ending. Unlike his other types of plays, this particular one does not treat certain topics seriously, such as love. He uses puns, insults, and metaphors as to further express his humor. Another thing that stands out is his choice of such an intense plot. As you read, there are more twists and turns than were ever expected; the plot is overall more complex. Some examples you might recognize are As You Like It, Twelfth Night, Winter’s Tale, and Measure for Measure.
Tragedies
This style of Shakespeare's plays are pretty much the exact opposite of comedies. The protagonist is usually a hero, noble and wealthy, but always has some sort of character flaw. In the end, this flaw typically leads to the hero's downfall. Throughout the story there is a lot of suspense and climax, but finishes in some kind of disaster or with a death; hence the title "tragedy". There are three types of tragedies: classical, medieval, and renaissance. Some tragedies he wrote were Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Othello.
Histories
Despite the name of this type of play, Shakespearean histories weren't historically accurate. They gave you a sense of entertainment and hid underlying messages of his time rather than the implied setting in the book. They were all based on the lives of English kings or Roman history; this is why Macbeth and King Lear are regarded as tragedies and not histories. Particular examples include Henry(IV-VIIII), King John, Richard II, and Richard III.
(Sources: wikipedia.org, calpoly.edu, springfield.k12.il.us, shakespeare.about.com,
shakespeare.nuvvo.com)