“I’d argue that, just by knowing that a play is by Shakespeare, we assume that it’s deep and meaningful, and read in deeper interpretations and symbolism than we would otherwise.”
I largely agree, but there are some Shakespeare plays that are just not that deep or meaningful—Romeo and Juliet, for example. I think Shakespeare knew he was writing about some silly teenagers, but contemporary readers invest their relationship with more profundity than the play warrants. And, just to be a bit more nuanced, I read his plays for their superior wordplay and less for the deep interpretations that literary critics lay on top of them.
“I’d argue that, just by knowing that a play is by Shakespeare, we assume that it’s deep and meaningful, and read in deeper interpretations and symbolism than we would otherwise.”
I largely agree, but there are some Shakespeare plays that are just not that deep or meaningful—Romeo and Juliet, for example. I think Shakespeare knew he was writing about some silly teenagers, but contemporary readers invest their relationship with more profundity than the play warrants. And, just to be a bit more nuanced, I read his plays for their superior wordplay and less for the deep interpretations that literary critics lay on top of them.