So earlier this week, I kept hearing folks argue online about the “greatest” Shakespeare plays. Got me thinking – what does “greatest” even mean? Most famous? Most performed? Just plain wildest story? Figured I’d sit down and wrestle with it myself.
First Stab at Listing ‘Em All Out
Grabbed my notebook – the cheap spiral one stained with coffee, obviously. Started scribbling down every Shakespeare play title I could remember off the top of my head. Hamlet was first, duh. Then Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth… kept going. Othello. King Lear. Had to pause for Antony and Cleopatra. Wrote down As You Like It and Twelfth Night cause I like the funny ones. Then… did I miss any? A Midsummer Night’s Dream! Almost forgot that one. Scribbled faster: Julius Caesar, The Tempest, Richard III. Pages started looking messy. Realized this list was getting LONG. Over thirty? Man, how did one guy write so much?
Trying (& Failing) to Rank “Objectively”
Okay, time to order them. Started trying to be “serious.” Thought about popularity. Which ones do folks know even if they never read Shakespeare? That was easy:
- Romeo and Juliet – Teenagers, swords, poison. Everybody knows this tragedy.
- Hamlet – The dude talking to a skull? Yeah.
- Macbeth – Witches, murder, that “Out damn spot!” lady. Iconic.
But then I got stuck. What about Othello? Huge jealousy story, crazy ending. Should it be top three? And King Lear – tearing kingdoms apart, an old man losing his mind? Heavy stuff. Where do the comedies fit? A Midsummer Night’s Dream is everywhere in the summer. Pure magic and chaos. My “objective” ranking felt impossible. Gave up. My notebook looked like a spider took a walk through spilled ink.
Going with My Gut (and What Sticks)
Trashed the complicated rating system. Just leaned back and asked myself: Which plays do I hear about constantly? Which ones pop up everywhere? The ones people argue about, perform the most, even just quote without knowing where it came from.
Here’s the messy list my brain finally landed on:
- Hamlet – It’s just… the top dog. Sorry, not sorry. “To be or not to be” is practically the guy’s theme song.
- Macbeth – Witches and ambition gone super wrong. Way darker and weirder than I remembered.
- Romeo and Juliet – Yeah, it’s young and dramatic, but man does it stick in your head. Instant name recognition.
- King Lear – Brutal. Heartbreaking. The family drama to end all family dramas. Heavy but essential.
- Othello – Jealousy made into a weapon. Powerful, terrifying, and super relevant.
- A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Pure fun and magic. Fairies messing everything up? Classic.
- The Tempest – Shipwrecks, magic islands, freedom. Feels big.
- Julius Caesar – Friends stabbing friends. Politics never changes.
- Much Ado About Nothing – Beatrice and Benedick arguing? Top-tier comedy for me.
- Twelfth Night – Twins, mistaken identity, chaos. Great fun.
Real Talk: It’s Messy!
Looking at my scratched-out lists and coffee rings, one thing was clear: ranking Shakespeare is kinda ridiculous. Ask ten people, get eleven different lists. Was I tempted to bump Antony and Cleopatra higher? Sure. Does Richard III deserve more love as a villain? Probably. Did I forget Henry V until just now? Oops. My final top 10 is really just the ones screaming the loudest in the cultural noise right now, mixed with my own fuzzy memories from school and seeing a few performed. It’s messy, personal, and definitely arguable. But hey, that’s Shakespeare – always stirring the pot, even centuries later. The dude just wrote too many bangers.
My cat looked more satisfied sleeping than I did trying to order these. That’s my report.
