--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Shakespeare, who was considered the…" description: "\"Shakespeare, who was considered the English Corneille, flourished at about the time of Lope de Vega. He had a strong and fertile genius, full of natura..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/voltaire-173_shakespeare_shakespeare-who-was-considered-the-engli_118690.png" --- # Shakespeare, who was considered the English Corneille… ![“Shakespeare, who was considered the English Corneille, flourished at about the time of Lope de Vega. He had a strong and fertile genius, full of naturalness andsublimity, without the slightest spark of good taste or the least knowledge of the rules… After two hundred years most of the outlandish…” quote by Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/voltaire-173_shakespeare_shakespeare-who-was-considered-the-engli_118690.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/voltaire-173_shakespeare_shakespeare-who-was-considered-the-engli_118690.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fea/voltaire-173_shakespeare_shakespeare-who-was-considered-the-engli_118690.png) > “Shakespeare, who was considered the English Corneille, flourished at about the time of Lope de Vega. He had a strong and fertile genius, full of naturalness andsublimity, without the slightest spark of good taste or the least knowledge of the rules… After two hundred years most of the outlandish and monstrous ideas of this author have acquired the right to be considered sublime, and almost all modern authors have copied him… It does not occur to people that they should not copy him, and the lack of success of their copies simply makes people think that he is inimitable.” [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Shakespeare’s daring, rule‑breaking imagination was once mocked but later revered, showing that originality often becomes the benchmark for future creators. **In simple terms:** Shakespeare’s odd ideas became the standard. Key Takeaway Radical originality reshapes taste over time. Themes literature cultural evolution creativity Mood reflective admiring Type historical critical When to use this quote - writing workshops - literary criticism Key Concepts canon formation taste reversal Practical Applications - encourage experimental writing - re‑evaluate dismissed works Questions to Reflect On - Why do some radical works become classics? - How does cultural context affect artistic acceptance? A Different Perspective Not all avant‑garde works achieve lasting influence; many remain marginal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Things happen for a reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen-for-a-reason/) ## Related quotes > [“If Shakespeare be considered as a MAN born in a rude age and educated in the lowest manner, without any instruction either from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/if-shakespeare-be-considered-as-a-man-born-in-a-rude-age-and-educated/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [Shakespeare is a drunken savage with some imagination whose plays please only in London and Canada.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/shakespeare-is-a-drunken-savage-with-some-imagination-whose-plays/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [I've definitely learned that if you want to have power as a woman in Shakespeare's time, and it's still relevant today, that you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/i-ve-definitely-learned-that-if-you-want-to-have-power-as-a-woman-in/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [This was Shakespeare's form ; Who walk'd in every path of human life, Felt every passion ; and to all mankind Doth now, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-akenside/this-was-shakespeare-s-form-who-walk-d-in-every-path-of-human-life/) [Mark Akenside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-akenside/) > [Juilliard is wonderful in that they don't pick just one way of working. They give you a palette. There is method acting. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-camargo/juilliard-is-wonderful-in-that-they-don-t-pick-just-one-way-of/) [Christian Camargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-camargo/) > [Shakespeare put no children in his plays for a reason," Sir Godfrey muttered, glaring at Alf and Binnie. "You're forgetting the Little Prince," Polly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/shakespeare-put-no-children-in-his-plays-for-a-reason-sir-godfrey/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [“Nernst was a great admirer of Shakespeare, and it is said that in a conference concerned with naming units after appropriate persons, he proposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-partington/nernst-was-a-great-admirer-of-shakespeare-and-it-is-said-that-in-a/) J.R. Partington > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/shakespeare-s-hamlet-there-is-nothing-either-good-or-bad-but-thinking/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [“It was wonderful flirting with him, all the razor-edged literary banter, like Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A battle of wit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-was-wonderful-flirting-with-him-all-the-razor-edged-literary/) [Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/) > [Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/anything-well-written-with-good-language-and-clarity-and-honesty-is/) [Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) ## More by Voltaire > [In every province, the chief occupations, in order of importance, are lovemaking, malicious gossip, and talking nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/in-every-province-the-chief-occupations-in-order-of-importance-are/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Fanaticism, to which men are so much inclined, has always served not only to render them more brutalized but more wicked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/fanaticism-to-which-men-are-so-much-inclined-has-always-served-not/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [We’re neither pure, nor wise, nor good; we do the best we know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/we-re-neither-pure-nor-wise-nor-good-we-do-the-best-we-know/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is with books as with men: a very small number play a great part, the rest are lost in the multitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-with-books-as-with-men-a-very-small-number-play-a-great-part/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Meslier was the most singular phenomenon ever seen among all the meteors fatal to the Christian religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/meslier-was-the-most-singular-phenomenon-ever-seen-among-all-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Every sensible man, every honorable man, must hold the Christian sect in horror." "Christianity is the most ridiculous, the most absurd and bloody religion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/every-sensible-man-every-honorable-man-must-hold-the-christian-sect/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Being unable to make people more reasonable, I preferred to be happy away from them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/being-unable-to-make-people-more-reasonable-i-preferred-to-be-happy/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-his-highness-sends-a-ship-to-egypt-does-he-trouble-his-head/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Madness is to think of too many things in succession too fast, or of one thing too exclusively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/madness-is-to-think-of-too-many-things-in-succession-too-fast-or-of/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/god-gave-us-the-gift-of-life-it-is-up-to-us-to-give-ourselves-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is not inequality which is the real misfortune, it is dependence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-is-not-inequality-which-is-the-real-misfortune-it-is-dependence/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Providence has given us hope and sleep as a compensation for the many cares of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/providence-has-given-us-hope-and-sleep-as-a-compensation-for-the-many/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Men use thought only to justify their wrong doings, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/men-use-thought-only-to-justify-their-wrong-doings-and-employ-speech/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [Work spares us from three evils: boredom, vice, and need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/work-spares-us-from-three-evils-boredom-vice-and-need/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) [Explore all 934 Voltaire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) ## More Shakespeare quotes > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/anything-well-written-with-good-language-and-clarity-and-honesty-is/) [Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/) > [“It was wonderful flirting with him, all the razor-edged literary banter, like Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A battle of wit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-was-wonderful-flirting-with-him-all-the-razor-edged-literary/) [Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [“Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/shakespeare-s-hamlet-there-is-nothing-either-good-or-bad-but-thinking/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“Nernst was a great admirer of Shakespeare, and it is said that in a conference concerned with naming units after appropriate persons, he proposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-partington/nernst-was-a-great-admirer-of-shakespeare-and-it-is-said-that-in-a/) J.R. Partington > [Shakespeare put no children in his plays for a reason," Sir Godfrey muttered, glaring at Alf and Binnie. "You're forgetting the Little Prince," Polly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/shakespeare-put-no-children-in-his-plays-for-a-reason-sir-godfrey/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [Juilliard is wonderful in that they don't pick just one way of working. They give you a palette. There is method acting. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-camargo/juilliard-is-wonderful-in-that-they-don-t-pick-just-one-way-of/) [Christian Camargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-camargo/) > [This was Shakespeare's form ; Who walk'd in every path of human life, Felt every passion ; and to all mankind Doth now, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-akenside/this-was-shakespeare-s-form-who-walk-d-in-every-path-of-human-life/) [Mark Akenside](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-akenside/) > [I've definitely learned that if you want to have power as a woman in Shakespeare's time, and it's still relevant today, that you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/i-ve-definitely-learned-that-if-you-want-to-have-power-as-a-woman-in/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [“I'm afraid I always find Shakespeare terribly dreary. All those long scenes where everybody is drunk and it's supposed to be funny.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agatha-christie/i-m-afraid-i-always-find-shakespeare-terribly-dreary-all-those-long/) [Agatha Christie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agatha-christie/) > [“Life... is a paradise to what we fear of death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/life-is-a-paradise-to-what-we-fear-of-death/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) [Browse all 1,516 Shakespeare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Shakespeare, who was considered the English Corneille, flourished at about the time of Lope de Vega. 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