How to Analyze a Shakespeare Play
For some Shakespeare is a vein of literary gold, promising wonderful human insights and beautiful prose with the turn of each page. Analyzing a Shakespeare play can be difficult if you aren't familiar with a few steps to make the process much easier. Learn how you can analyze a Shakespeare play and not feel left out in the literary cold.
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Instructions
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Read through the text once out loud. Try to use different voices for each character or ask friends or a class to read with you. Try to distinguish the characters' points of view and give them autonomous personalities.
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Thumb through the play and write down the names of all of the main characters. Identify the narrator, the protagonist, antagonist and supporting characters.
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Go through each sentence for which you did not understand the sentence structure or grammar, then use a source to help you decipher the Shakespearean language. Identify what role each character plays in developing the story. Compare them to the people in your life (who in the play would be you, who would be your best friend, mom, dad, etc.)
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Pick a character and be that character. Try to understand his emotional processing and relate to the other characters from the point of view of that particular person. Try to understand and catch all the numerous puns and jokes that Shakespeare uses.
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Plot the action arc of the play. Write down the rising action, the climax, turning points and the resolution on a piece of paper. Then draw the action arc visually so you see the rise and fall of action in the play. Pay attention to how the main character acts throughout the play and what changes occur.
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Find the microcosm or macrocosm that Shakespeare is referring to in the work. Often the playwright will identify a castle as a microcosm for the larger world, or the body will be a microcosm for heaven or hell. Identify what the overall moral message is and don't be surprised if the play is comic or tragic.
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Tips & Warnings
If you can find a production of the play you are attempting to analyze, then you might find it helpful to view the play acted out in its entirety.
Go through the play and identify themes that might have cropped up several times. Romeo and Juliet often refers to light and time while Macbeth often uses blood and witch imagery.
