Shakespeare and Burns: National Bards and British Identity
This paper examines how William Shakespeare and Robert Burns each rose to the status of national bard and the profound influence their work has had on English, Scottish, and British national identity. Beginning with biographical overviews of both poets, the paper traces Shakespeare's path to fame through the First Folio, royal patronage, and the British Empire's use of his work as a cultural tool. It then turns to Burns, exploring how his revival of the Scots language, his role in the Romantic Movement, and his politically radical writings shaped a distinctly Scottish cultural identity. The paper concludes that, though born in different eras and traditions, both men transformed their respective literary landscapes and continue to define British cultural heritage centuries after their deaths.
- Introduction: Research question and scope introduced
- William Shakespeare: Life and Work: Shakespeare's biography, plays, and writing style
- Shakespeare's Rise to Fame: Path to national recognition and global spread
- Shakespeare's Influence on English and British National Identity: Impact on English language and cultural identity
- Robert Burns: Life and Work: Burns's biography, themes, and literary style
- Burns's Rise to Fame and Influence on Scottish Identity: Burns's legacy, Scots language revival, and nationalism
- Conclusion: Comparative legacy of both national bards
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What makes this paper effective
- The parallel structure — moving from Shakespeare to Burns and mirroring the same analytical lens (life, rise to fame, cultural influence) — gives the comparative argument a clear, balanced shape.
- The paper grounds abstract claims about cultural identity in concrete historical events, such as the 1642 Puritan ban, the Act of Union, and the French Revolution, demonstrating how external forces shaped literary legacies.
- Specific textual and cultural evidence — invented words and phrases, Burns Night traditions, film adaptations — keeps the argument accessible without sacrificing scholarly grounding.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates effective comparative analysis: rather than treating Shakespeare and Burns as isolated subjects, it systematically measures each figure against the same criteria (language contribution, national symbolism, posthumous reputation) and draws explicit contrasts — for example, noting that Burns' fame did not bring wealth as Shakespeare's did, and that Burns revived a dying language while Shakespeare helped standardise a growing one.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a framing introduction that poses the central research question. It then devotes two sections each to Shakespeare (biography and rise; cultural influence) before moving to two parallel sections on Burns. A synthesising conclusion draws the two subjects together. This symmetrical seven-section structure allows readers to track the comparison at every stage and ensures neither subject dominates the argument disproportionately.
Introduction
William Shakespeare and Robert Burns are both iconic figures in the UK. Also known as the Bard of Avon, Shakespeare is often regarded as England's national poet and is considered the world's greatest English writer and dramatist. During his lifetime, Shakespeare authored tens of plays, over a hundred sonnets, and several narrative poems and verses (Marche, 2012). Shakespeare's work has been translated into virtually all major languages of the world and is performed more regularly than that of any other writer. Robert Burns, born close to one and a half centuries after the death of Shakespeare, was also a prominent poet. Similar to Shakespeare, Burns is regarded as Scotland's national poet (Hogg, 2008). Referred to as the Bard of Ayrshire, Burns is also recognised worldwide for his work (Cairney, 2000). As poets and playwrights, both Shakespeare and Burns have substantially influenced English literature and language as well as the British national identity. How did they come to acquire this status? This question constitutes the focus of this paper, which specifically demonstrates how Shakespeare and Burns became national bards and examines their influence on English, Scottish, and British national identity.
William Shakespeare: Life and Work
Shakespeare was born and grew up in Warwickshire's market town of Stratford-upon-Avon. Much of his personal life remains a mystery, and it is not known exactly when he was born; however, biographic records indicate that he was baptised on 26 April 1564 (Ellis, 2012). Shakespeare is believed to have begun his writing and acting career in London sometime between the late 1580s and the early 1590s. By 1592, he was a popular figure in the London theatre scene, with Richard III and Henry VI among his earliest plays. Shakespeare would later establish an acting company — Lord Chamberlain's Men — alongside other partners. He allegedly died in 1616, leaving behind an unmatched legacy of poetry and drama (Marche, 2012).
Over the course of his twenty years as a playwright, Shakespeare authored a total of 38 plays and 154 sonnets, covering themes as diverse as histories, tragedies, and comedies (Ellis, 2012). Popular works include Romeo and Juliet, Merchant of Venice, As You Like It, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Comedy of Errors, Titus Andronicus, Hamlet, and Macbeth (Fernandez, 2016). His works captured the entire spectrum of human emotion — love, romance, beauty, reconciliation, forgiveness, betrayal, tragedy, and politics. For example, his earliest plays, especially Henry V, Henry VI, and Richard II, depicted the destruction associated with corrupt rulers, while Hamlet portrays human temperament, betrayal, revenge, and moral collapse.
As a playwright, Shakespeare is renowned for his distinctive style of writing. He is well known for his outstanding use of metaphors, lyrical techniques, rhetorical devices, and reflective soliloquies (Ellis, 2012), as well as his ingenious choice of words and creative construction of English phrases. He is also recognised for his imaginative combination of different genres — comedies, tragedies, and histories — within a single work (Marche, 2012). His accomplished output has led some historians to wonder how a man with an uncertain educational background could pen poems and plays with such perfection (Fernandez, 2016).
Shakespeare did not receive as much admiration during his lifetime as he did after his death. Several years following his death, he was crowned the title Bard of Avon and recognised as England's national poet. In the four centuries since, his work has robustly influenced literature and theatre — specifically the English language, romantic poetry, and drama. Even when details of his personal life remain scanty, his poems, sonnets, and plays have been performed in villages, cities, and countries around the world, appealing to virtually every known human emotion and carrying universal themes that speak to peasants and kings alike. To date, there have been more than 400 film adaptations of Shakespeare's work (BBC, 2017a). Contemporary films drawing on his plays include Throne of Blood (1957), Tombstone (1993), Romeo + Juliet (1996), and Band of Brothers (2001).
References
BBC. (2017a). William Shakespeare: The life and legacy of England's bard. Retrieved October 24, 2017, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/timelines/z8k2p39#z3hk7hv
BBC. (2017b). Why is Robert Burns' work still so popular today. Retrieved October 24, 2017, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/guides/zswpsbk
Brown, M. (2017). Robert Burns. Retrieved October 25, 2017, from https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/robert-burns
Cairney, J. (2000). On the trail of Robert Burns. Edinburgh: Luath Press.
Ellis, D. (2012). The truth about William Shakespeare: Fact, fiction and modern biographies. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
Fernandez, J. (2016). Illustrated biography of William Shakespeare. New Delhi: General Press.
Hogg, P. (2008). Robert Burns: The patriot bard. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing.
Marche, S. (2012). How Shakespeare changed everything. New York: HarperCollins.
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