Learning of past renowned writers

By Nurul Saadah

“A professional writer is an amateur who didn’t quit.” – Richard Bach

Many past authors and poets started from ‘nobody’, but eventually to ‘somebody’ throughout their writing journey. It is only possible as they never turn away after emotional ups and downs and strongly believe in their ability to persevere. Thus, quite a number of their works are still being used in today’s world because of their relevance and excellent content.

So which authors with well known works come to our mind?

Certainly, a lot of people know this greatest dramatist.

He is William Shakespeare, one of the famous writers in the English literature.

Shakespeare’s plays and poems are the living witness of wisdom, humanity and many-faceted nature of the man. His works present people and situations that are related to the issues of our generation.

For example, the characters in his plays delivered such emotional reality that transcends time. Not just that, familiar experiences, ranging from family squabbles to situation of falling in love and even war, are depicted in the plays. All elements regarding life, love, death, revenge, grief, jealousy, magic, mystery and murder can be found in his works.

The blockbuster plays of his are Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet and Macbeth. These remain popular as people are still studying, performing, and reinterpreting them by adaptation in various cultural and political contexts around the world.

The life journey and career of William Shakespeare ended in 1616. He died on 23 April 1616, at the age of 52. There is no extant sources in explaining the cause of the death.

The Two Noble Kinsmen, a tragedicomedy that was co-written with John Fletcher in 1613, is believed to be his last play.

Other than Shakespeare, Virginia Woolf  is considered as one of the most important modernist and feminist writers. She became a well known and successful English writer after she gained her status as an icon during the third wave of feminism in the 1970s.

Mrs. Dalloway, her best-known novel has been translated into fifty languages.

That is why Woolf is one of the greatest novelists and one of the mothers of feminism. She is labelled as ‘inspiring feminism” and has been the subject in plays, novels and films.

Therefore, Woolf is commemorated today by statues and also being dedicated for her work especially regarding the status of women and feminism movement.

However, Virginia Woolf suffered from depression after completing the manuscript of her last novel, Between the Acts and committed suicide on 28 March 1941 by drowning herself. She filled her overcoat pockets with stones and walked into the River Ouse near her home.

William Shakespeare, Virginia Woolf and all past renowned writers have dedicated their life, not only in entertaining the society, but their works also conveyed such deep and meaningful life lesson.

These writers may be gone, but we should never forget their hard work, in allowing us to gain knowledge about the past. Learning the past helps us to prepare for the future, and it takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature. ***

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