Let’s ask Shakespeare, he must know; after all, the word “love” occurs over 2000 times in his works. So why ramble on so much about it when you have no idea? Whether it is real, genuine, true love, we have certainly all asked ourselves that more than once and yet have mostly remained baffled.
What would Shakespeare say?
But first a short treatise on who Shakespeare was again: William Shakespeare was one of the most famous writers in world literature. His works still have a great influence on literature, art and culture. Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, in the 16th century. His exact date of birth is not known. He wrote numerous plays and sonnets throughout his career that are still known and loved around the world today. His work includes tragic, comic and historical works and deals with themes such as love, jealousy, power, politics and human nature. Shakespeare is often regarded as the greatest writer in the English language, and his works are still performed in theatres around the world and adapted in various media.
It’s a pity we can’t ask him in person to find out more about the hotly debated topic of hot love. But since his works have existed for more than 400 years and their themes have not lost a bit of their importance, the old master must have had a clue, which means that his works can at least provide many answers to the question of what constitutes real love, how it feels and how it clouds the mind.
‘What is it otherwise? A madness most discreet,
A choking gall and a preserving sweet.’
(Romeo and Juliet, Act 1)’
Bitter as gall and yet at the same time sweet as honey, that is how love is described. And old William is absolutely right. You feel it not only in your heart when you are in love, but also physically throughout your body. We all know the symptoms that come with being in love. There are the nice ones: The tingling in your pants, the butterflies in your stomach, that constant feeling of just being “high”. And then there are the not so nice ones – sweaty, wet hands, appetite and insomnia – which we somehow don’t even realise as long as we are happily in love … until the heartbreak comes, and these negative side effects roll over us like a tidal wave, and we just feel lousy. It is not for nothing that people in English-speaking countries say that they are “lovesick”. And there is definitely some truth in that!
‘Love is like a child, that longs for everything it can come by’
(The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Act 3)
Love makes us a greedy child again, who literally just wants to touch everything and put it in our mouths 😉 We just can’t keep our hands off the one we love and just want to cling to him like a limpet. On the other hand, we suffer like a little child when our beloved is not there. And you simply feel bad when he is not with you but with someone else. Just like a child who has had its favourite toy taken away from it in the sandpit. Then it’s even more important to have it easy!
‘Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind,
And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind’
(A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Act 1, Scene 1)
How often in the old days, one man’s quirks drove another to white heat! Chewing too loudly with your mouth open, a strange choice of clothes, strange rattling noises when he slumbers blissfully next to you at night while you yourself don’t sleep a wink because every time you snorkel again, you are driven one step closer to the brink of madness (followed by a rampage). And then suddenly HE is there! Somehow his trousers are too short and this washed-out Backstreet Boys T-shirt is also kind of ugly; never mind, you stare at him all the time with little hearts in your eyes. And then those little sighs and smacks at night when he’s sleeping, you just find it incredibly cute …. THEN you see your lover not with your eyes, but with your heart!
‘I do love nothing in the world so well as you—is not that strange?’
(Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4)
You’re out and about and this absolutely gorgeous guy, who you would have jumped at his throat in the past, makes advances, and you don’t give a damn because you know you already have the best one at home. And you don’t swipe right on any dating apps any more – if you haven’t deleted them long ago, anyway. Congratulations, your search is over, and you can count yourself among the few lucky people in this world for whom the man of their dreams has really become a reality. And he still is, long after the rose-coloured glasses have faded. Hold him tight!
So, Shakespeare is considered one of the finest poets of love poetry. His sonnets, such as “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” and “Let me not to the marriage of true minds”, are classics of love poetry. <3
Other famous writers and poets who have written a lot about love – not only
Shakespeare
Here are some examples:
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe – Goethe is a well-known German writer and poet who often dealt with the subject of love in his works. His most famous work of love is “Die Leiden des jungen Werthers”.
- William Wordsworth – Wordsworth was an English poet best known for his nature poems. However, in some of his works he also wrote about love, such as in the poem “She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways”.
- Jane Austen – Austen was an English writer whose novels often dealt with the themes of love and marriage. Her most famous works are Pride and Prejudice and Emma.
- Pablo Neruda – Neruda was a Chilean poet known for his love poems. His collection of poems “100 Love Sonnets” is a classic of love poetry.
- Emily Dickinson – Dickinson was an American poet who often wrote about love and life. Some of her most famous poems of love are “I cannot live with You” and “Wild Nights – Wild Nights!”
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