William Shakespeare, Shakespeare also spelled Shakspere, byname Bard of Avon or Swan of Avon (baptized April 26, 1564,

Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, Eng. d ied April 23, 1616, Stratford-upon-Avon), English poet, dramatist, and actor, of ten called the English national poet and considered by many to be the greatest d ramatist of all time. Shakespeare occupies a position unique in world literature . Other poets, such as Homer and Dante, and novelists, such as Leo Tolstoy and C harles Dickens, have transcended national barriers; but no writer s living reputat ion can compare to that of Shakespeare, whose plays, written in the late 16th an d early 17th centuries for a small repertory theatre, are now performed and read more often and in more countries than ever before. The prophecy of his great co ntemporary, the poet and dramatist Ben Jonson, that Shakespeare was not of an age , but for all time, has been fulfilled. It may be audacious even to attempt a definition of his greatness, but it is not so difficult to describe the gifts that enabled him to create imaginative visio ns of pathos and mirth that, whether read or witnessed in the theatre, fill the mind and linger there. He is a writer of great intellectual rapidity, perceptive ness, and poetic power. Other writers have had these qualities, but with Shakesp eare the keenness of mind was applied not to abstruse or remote subjects but to human beings and their complete range of emotions and conflicts. Other writers h ave applied their keenness of mind in this way, but Shakespeare is astonishingly clever with words and images, so that his mental energy, when applied to intell igible human situations, finds full and memorable expression, convincing and ima ginatively stimulating. As if this were not enough, the art form into which his creative energies went was not remote and bookish but involved the vivid stage i mpersonation of human beings, commanding sympathy and inviting vicarious partici pation. Thus, Shakespeare s merits can survive translation into other languages an d into cultures remote from that of Elizabethan England. This is pathetic. [s4s] is pathetic. This is not "good old" /b/, this board is drier than ever. Ju st look at the current threads. There's almost nothing noteworthy or interesting to read or comedic. The only thing of interest I was able to find while browsin g was >>1211293 > Why does this even go on? Oooh, I poast thread of aother funneh-sounding food-ty pe item! I use :^) because its so funny and YOU GOT DUBS AGAIN NICE. Even though this guy's post was hilarious and promoted interaction, he said the word "fuck" in it so I'm just going to respond with "rude gb2 >>>/b/" that'll show him and improve the quality of this board! I think I'll post another "maymay" because it 's so funny right??? LOL I changed the spelling of a word to add the letters 'le l' or 'kek' in them haha. Or maybe I'll just make a retarded one-word reply like "pel", because that adds so much quality to this great board. LET'S JUST KEEP R EPEATING THE SAME SHIT OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVE R LOL HE POSTED TOPLELKEKDOGE!!!! I've been here since the evening of March 31st, 2013, and it's astounding to see the rate at which this board degraded from something interesting that made me l augh to this utter garbage. You're not shitposting, you're just posting shit.