William Shakespeare/Works

The Plays

Shakespeare's plays are traditionally organised into three groups: Comedies, Histories and Tragedies. The following (resortable) list sorts the plays according to their order in the First Folio, the first published edition of Shakespeare's plays. Today, some of the comedies are usually considered as a separate subgenre, the 'romances' or tragicomedies; these plays are so marked in the "Genre" column.

Title	Genre	Précis	Main Characters	Date Written	Date Published
The Tempest	Romance	Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, meets his usurpers on an island.	Prospero, Miranda	1611	1623
The Two Gentlemen of Verona	Comedy	The friendship of Valentine and Proteus versus their romantic love for Sylvia.	Valentine, Proteus	1593	1623
The Merry Wives of Windsor	Comedy	Falstaff attempts to seduce Mistresses Ford and Page.	Falstaff, Ford	1597	1602
Measure for Measure	Comedy	The Duke of Vienna leaves the enforcement of his laws to the harsh Antonio.	Vincentio, Angelo	1604	1623
The Comedy of Errors	Comedy	The farcical adventures of two sets of twins.	Antipholus, Dromio	1590	1623
Much Ado About Nothing	Comedy	Beatrice and Benedict wage a "merry war", concealing their true feelings.	Beatrice, Benedick	1598	1600
Love's Labour's Lost	Comedy	The King of Navarre and three companions agree to give up worldly pleasures,including love, for three years.	Ferdinand, Berowne	1593	1598
A Midsummer Night's Dream	Comedy	The adventures of young lovers, rude mechanicals, and fairies in Athens.	Oberon, Titania	1594	1600
The Merchant of Venice	Comedy	Antonio borrows from Shylock on behalf of his friend Bassanio.	Antonio, Shylock	1596	1600
As You Like It	Comedy	Rosalind and Celia escape to the Forest of Arden, Rosalind disguised as a boy.	Rosalind, Orlando	1598	1623
The Taming of the Shrew	Comedy	"Shrewish" Katherine must wed before her younger sister can.	Petruchio, Katherine	1591	1623
All's Well That Ends Well	Comedy	Helena plots to marry the reluctant Bertram.	Bertram, Helena	1603	1623
Twelfth Night, or What You Will	Comedy	Viola, shipwrecked, separated from her brother, and disguised as a boy, enters Duke Orsino's service. In love with Orsino herself, she must help him win the hand of Olivia.	Orsino, Viola, Olivia	1600	1623
The Winter's Tale	Romance	Jealousy ends marriage and friendship; time brings reconciliation	Leontes, Perdita	1610	1623
King John	History	The life and death of King John	John, Arthur	1596	1623
Richard II	History	Richard's mistakes lead to his downfall at the hands of Henry Bolingbroke.	Richard, Bolingbroke	1595	1597
Henry IV, Part 1	History	Henry has taken the throne, but must put down rebellion. He needs the help of his son, Hal, who is spending his youth in bad company.	Henry, Hal, Hotspur	1597	1598
Henry IV, Part 2	History	Henry's crown is again threatened by civil war, while Prince Hal returns to his life with the disreputable Falstaff.	Henry, Falstaff, Hal	1598	1600
Henry V	History	The English defeat the French at Agincourt.	Henry, Pistol	1599	1600
Henry VI, Part 1	History	The aftermath of the Death of Henry V	Henry, Talbot	1592	1623
Henry VI, Part 2	History	The beginning of the War of the Roses	Henry, Margaret	1591	1594
Henry VI, Part 3	History	The House of York defeats the House of Lancaster.The prelude to the rise of Richard III	Henry, Margaret	1591	1595
Richard III	History	Richard's seizure of the throne and defeat at Bosworth Field.	Richard, Clarence	1592	1597
Henry VIII	History	The scheming Cardinal Wolsey opposes Henry	Henry, Catherine	1613	1623
Troilus and Cressida	Tragedy	The love story of Troilus and Cressida set against the backdrop of the Trojan War	Troilus, Cressida	1602	1609
Coriolanus	Tragedy	The proud Roman general, Coriolanous betrays Rome.	Coriolanus, Volumnia	1608	1623
Titus Andronicus	Tragedy	Roman general and Gothic queen in a cycle of revenge	Titus, Tamara	1590	1594
Romeo and Juliet	Tragedy	Two "star-cross'd lovers" have a passionate affair, defying their families, with tragic results.	Romeo, Juliet	1595	1597
Timon of Athens	Tragedy	False friends cause Timon to become a misanthrope.	Timon, Apemantus	1606	1623
Julius Caesar	Tragedy	Conspirators assassinate Julius Caesar and are then defeated.	Brutus, Antony	1599	1623
Macbeth	Tragedy	Macbeth seeks to gain the Scottish throne through murder, believing that no man "of woman born" can kill him.	Macbeth, Lady Macbeth, Banquo	1605	1623
Hamlet	Tragedy	Hamlet seeks to avenge the death of his father.	Hamlet, Ophelia	1601	1603
King Lear	Tragedy	Lear foolishly chooses his scheming eldest daughters over Cordelia.	Lear, Cordelia, Regan Gloucester, Goneril	1605	1608
Othello	Tragedy	Othello is destroyed by his jealous love for Desdemona.	Othello, Iago, Desdemona	1604	1622
Antony and Cleopatra	Tragedy	Antony and Cleopatra are defeated by Octavius.	Antony, Cleopatra	1606	1623
Cymbeline	Romance	Villainy, a wicked stepmother and a separated family.	Imogen, Iachimo	1609	1623

The first printings of the First Folio omitted Troilus and Cressida, but it was quickly added. Scholars are generally agreed that all of these plays are at least partly by Shakespeare, and most his sole work. A minority of scholars believe them all his sole work.

Later in the seventeenth century, several other plays were added in later editions, but these were deleted again early in the eighteenth century. One of them, Pericles, Prince of Tyre, was restored in Malone's edition of 1792, and has regularly been included since. It is generally accepted as at least partly by Shakespeare.

In recent decades most scholars have come to accept The Two Noble Kinsmen as being by Fletcher and Shakespeare, and it is usually included in scholarly editions.

Most scholars accept some passages of Sir Thomas More as by Shakespeare, and some editions include either these passages or the whole play.

Many scholars have recently concluded that Edward III is at least partly by Shakespeare, and some editions include it.

Sources:

• "plays of William Shakespeare" (requires subscription). World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2005. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. Accessed November 7, 2007.
• Plot synopses from the Royal Shakespeare Company.
• Terry A. Gray, "Shakespeare's Canon." Mr. William Shakespeare and the Internet (website). Accessed November 7, 2007.

Poems

• Shakespeare's Sonnets
• Venus and Adonis
• The Rape of Lucrece
• The Passionate Pilgrim
• The Phoenix and the Turtle
• A Lover's Complaint

Lost plays

• Love's Labour's Won
• Cardenio

Apocrypha

• Edmund Ironside (play)
• Edward III
• Sir Thomas More
• Arden of Faversham