|
|
Two masterpieces of American Theatre "Streetcar Named Desire" and "Death of a Salesman" show the magnificent character of the common man. As Americans, we expect the average Joe to have nobility. Shakespeare takes every oppurtunity to belittle and degrade the common man. Another example of why Shakespeare is a poor writer.
In MacBeth Act 2 Scene 3 a porter answers the door. He is made to seem the fool and is used to show how foolish men can be with drink. This is no way to show the common man. Shakespeare does not take this oppurtunity to show that the common man keeps Scotland going no matter what the kings try to do. Interestingly enough, Shakespeare leaves the porter on stage throughout this scene. Other people exit and enter but Shakespeare never says "Exit Porter." So I quess that the common man has to be recognized as important.
In Hamlet Act 5 scene 1 Hamlet comes across the grave diggers. Once again Shakespeare avoids giving the the working man any dignity. He allows Hamlet to look the fool but that is OK because Hamlet is a fool. The grave diggers are merely background. The common man is just so much scenery.
Probably the best example of how much Shakespeare hates the common man is in all of his battles and wars. The common man is just so much fodder for the foolish endevours of the royals. Entire populations are wiped out so that we can see how horrible royals are. When Henry (any Henry) goes to war common men die. When Lear causes war common men die. In Macbeth's wars common men die. Common men die and receive no recognition or dignity.
Amazingly one of the best characters Shakespeare came up with is a common person. This character was so good that the queen asked Shakespeare to write another play with him in it. That character is of course Falstaff. He is a basic person. It is not surprising that he is well liked because he is a regular Joe. He is not royal and has no royal aspirations. He is just a person like any other. This makes him stand out from all the weirdo royal and aristocracy that take up space on the Shakespearean stage.
