How Did Shakespeare Influence American Culture

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Shakespeare is still alive; well not literally but figuratively. William Shakespeare is a famous English poet, playwright, and even actor. He was born in the United Kingdom. Shakespeare’s parents were John and Mary Shakespeare. In his lifetime Shakespeare wrote 39 plays and about 5 sonnets. William Shakespeare is nationally known as one of the most famous English poets. He has influenced past American cultures, American writers and modern American cultures. Shakespeare has influenced past American cultures. George Washington, one of many founding fathers and America's first president was an “avid theatre-goer” (No Sweat Shakespeare). George was very fond of Shakespeare. When he became president he encouraged people to go to the theatre, despite the past with British. “In the 19th century travelling companies spread the plays into every corner of the United States. The American public now had the opportunity to see most of the plays” (No Sweat Shakespeare). Shakespeare created a unification between people in America there were the people who liked the comedy, some who liked tragedies, and others romance, but when it came down to it everyone was “in love” with Shakespeare's work. After watching Shakespeare lots of American writers started to…show more content…
As he got older William Faulkner ended up reading Shakespeare a lot. Greatly influenced by William Shakespeare to write, William Faulkner decided to make poetry just as Shakespeare did. After a while Faulkner’s poems turned into narrative forms like Shakespeare’s did. Known for his novels The Sound and the Fury, and As I Lay Dying, Faulkner won the 1949 Nobel Peace Prize in Literature. Shortly before his death in 1962, Faulkner said “of all writers, ‘We yearn to be as good as Shakespeare.’”(Silver Birch press). Shakespeare has not only influenced American writers in past, but has influenced modern day American

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