Curriculum fit: GCSE English Literature (a Shakespeare play is a required text). US: Common Core ELA Reading Literature standards (grades 9-12, including drama and Shakespeare).
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What Is It?
Shakespeare wrote his plays around 400 years ago, so the language can seem difficult. The key is to read in small chunks, look at the stage directions and use a glossary, then work out what is happening in each scene.
Plays were written to be performed, so think about how actors would say the lines and how the audience would react.
Key Formulas and Ideas
- Most of Shakespeare's high-status characters speak in blank verse: unrhymed iambic pentameter (10 syllables in a da-DUM pattern).
- Lower-status characters and comic scenes often use prose.
- Read context: the social attitudes and beliefs of the time, such as ideas about power, order and gender.
- Always link your analysis to what the language shows about character, theme and the writer's purpose.
Worked Examples
Reading a Line
How many syllables are in 'But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?'
- Count: But (1) soft (2) what (3) light (4) through (5) yon-der (6, 7) win-dow (8, 9) breaks (10).
- Ten syllables in an alternating pattern.
✓ Answer 10 syllables: iambic pentameter
Prose or Verse?
Why might a servant speak in prose while a king speaks in verse?
- Verse often signals high status or formal moments.
- Prose is used for everyday speech and lower-status characters.
✓ Answer Verse shows status and formality; prose shows ordinary speech
Modern Meaning
Why use a glossary when reading 'wherefore art thou'?
- 'Wherefore' means 'why', not 'where'.
- Knowing this changes your understanding of the line.
✓ Answer To understand old words correctly
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Skipping the stage directions.
- Assuming a word has its modern meaning.
- Retelling the plot without analysing language.
- Ignoring the context in which the play was written.
Practice Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Shakespeare use verse?
Verse gives a rhythm that can signal status and emotion, and makes speeches memorable.
How can I get better at Shakespeare?
Read short sections aloud, watch a performance and make a summary of each scene.
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GCSEA-LevelHigh SchoolAPSources and Review
- DfE: GCSE English literature subject content (archived copy)
- Common Core State Standards: English Language Arts and Literacy
Reviewed by StudyMorrow editorial review on 5 Nov 2026.