William Shakespeare, the most influential writer in all of English literature, was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England to a successful middle-class glove-maker. He attended grammar school but did not receive any formal education beyond that. In 1582, he married an older woman named Anne Hathaway and had three children with her. In 1590, he left his family and went to London to work as an actor and playwright. He quickly gained public and critical success and became the most popular playwright in England, eventually becoming a part-owner of the Globe Theater. He was a favorite of both Queen Elizabeth I and King James I, with the latter granting Shakespeare’s company the title of King’s Men.

Shakespeare's works were collected and printed in various editions in the century following his death. By the early eighteenth century, his reputation as the greatest poet ever to write in English was firmly established. Despite the unprecedented admiration for his works, very little is known about his personal life, leading to a lot of speculation and theories. However, the vast majority of scholars agree that Shakespeare was indeed the author of the thirty-seven plays and 154 sonnets attributed to him.

Shakespeare's legacy is immense, with many of his plays transcending beyond the category of brilliance and profoundly influencing the course of Western literature and culture. Despite the mysteries surrounding his personal life, his works continue to be studied, adapted, and celebrated around the world.

The play "Titus Andronicus" opens with the Roman general Titus Andronicus returning home after a ten-year war against the Goths, during which he lost most of his 25 sons. He brings back war prisoners, including Tamora, queen of the Goths, and her sons. Titus sacrifices Tamora's eldest son to appease the spirits of his dead sons. He is elected Rome's new emperor but names the late emperor's elder son, Saturninus, as ruler. Saturninus becomes engaged to Titus's daughter, Lavinia, but then makes Tamora his empress, who vows revenge against Titus.

Tamora encourages her sons to kill Bassianus and rape Lavinia. After the rape, they cut off Lavinia's hands and tongue to prevent her from identifying them. Tamora helps Aaron frame Titus's sons for Bassianus's murder, and Lucius is banished from Rome for attempting to save his brothers. Aaron tricks Titus into cutting off his own hand in exchange for his sons' lives, but Titus receives his sons' heads instead.

Lavinia reveals her attackers' identities by writing their names with a stick in her mouth. Titus seeks revenge by killing Demetrius and Chiron and making a meat pie out of them, which he serves to Tamora and Saturninus at a dinner party. He kills Lavinia and then stabs Tamora. Saturninus stabs Titus, and Lucius becomes the new emperor, sentencing Aaron and leaving Tamora's corpse for the animals. The play ends with Lucius promising to heal Rome after the violence and bloodshed.

The play "Hamlet" follows the story of Prince Hamlet of Denmark, who seeks to avenge his father's death after encountering the ghost of his father's spirit. The ghost informs Hamlet that his uncle Claudius, who has taken the throne and married Hamlet's mother, is responsible for his father's murder. Hamlet becomes obsessed with seeking revenge but is hindered by his contemplative nature and apparent madness. Claudius and Gertrude, Hamlet's mother, worry about his behavior and attempt to uncover its cause. They employ Hamlet's friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, to watch him. Hamlet devises a plan to test his uncle's guilt by having actors perform a scene resembling the murder of his father. Claudius reacts to the performance, confirming his guilt. However, Hamlet delays his revenge when he finds Claudius praying, believing that killing him while in prayer would not be an adequate revenge.

In the meantime, Ophelia, Hamlet's love interest, goes mad with grief after her father is killed, and drowns in a river. Her brother, Laertes, returns from France in a rage, seeking revenge against Hamlet. Claudius convinces Laertes that Hamlet is responsible for his father's and sister's deaths. Claudius plans to have Hamlet killed in a fencing match with Laertes, where Laertes' blade will be poisoned. If Hamlet does not die from the poison, Claudius has a goblet of wine poisoned as a backup plan. During the match, Hamlet wounds Laertes, who then reveals to him that Claudius is responsible for the queen's death. Claudius is killed with the poisoned sword and forced to drink the rest of the poisoned wine. Hamlet dies soon after, and Fortinbras, a Norwegian prince, arrives to take power of the kingdom. Horatio, Hamlet's friend, tells Fortinbras the tragic story, and Hamlet is carried away in a manner befitting a fallen soldier.

"Twelfth Night" is a play set in the kingdom of Illyria. The story follows Viola, a young woman who is swept onto the Illyrian shore after a shipwreck, and her twin brother Sebastian, who she believes has died in the wreck. Viola disguises herself as a man and takes the name Cesario, working as a page in the household of Duke Orsino. Orsino, who is in love with Lady Olivia, makes Cesario his messenger to try and win Olivia's affections. However, Olivia falls in love with Cesario, who she believes to be a man, creating a love triangle between Viola/Cesario, Orsino, and Olivia.

Meanwhile, we meet the other members of Olivia's household, including her drunkard uncle, Sir Toby, and her steward, Malvolio. Malvolio is tricked by Maria, Olivia's waiting-gentlewoman, into thinking Olivia is in love with him by forging a letter. He follows the letter's ridiculous instructions and is mocked and locked up by Sir Toby and Maria. Sebastian arrives in Illyria and is mistaken for Cesario by Sir Toby and Sir Andrew, who challenge him to a duel. Olivia sees Sebastian and thinks he is Cesario, asking him to marry her. Antonio, Sebastian's protector, is arrested by Orsino's officers and mistakes Cesario for Sebastian, pleading for his help.

Eventually, Viola and Orsino visit Olivia's house where Olivia welcomes Cesario, who she believes to be Sebastian, as her new husband. Sebastian appears, and all is revealed, resulting in the joyful reunion of the siblings and the happy couples getting married. The trick played on Malvolio is revealed, and he leaves in bitterness.

The play Macbeth begins with three witches who prophesize that Macbeth, a general, will become the Thane of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland, and that Banquo, his companion, will father a line of Scottish kings. Macbeth is named Thane of Cawdor as prophesied, and he becomes intrigued by the possibility of becoming king. His wife, Lady Macbeth, urges him to murder King Duncan to obtain the throne.

Macbeth eventually agrees, and after killing Duncan and blaming his death on the chamberlains, he becomes king. Fearing the prophecy that Banquo's heirs will take the throne, Macbeth hires murderers to kill Banquo and his son, but Fleance escapes. At a royal feast, Banquo's ghost appears, causing Macbeth to become paranoid and fearful of losing his power. He goes to the witches, who give him further prophecies, including the warning to beware of Macduff, a Scottish nobleman who opposed Macbeth's rise to power.

Macbeth becomes increasingly tyrannical and murderous, leading to a rebellion by the Scottish nobles and an invasion by an English army led by Malcolm, Duncan's son. Lady Macbeth becomes consumed by guilt and dies by suicide, while Macbeth faces Macduff in battle. Macduff reveals that he was not born of a woman but was instead delivered by cesarean section, fulfilling the witches' prophecy that Macbeth cannot be harmed by any man born of a woman. Macduff kills Macbeth, and Malcolm becomes the new king of Scotland.