Ah, Shakespeare

                Shakespeare's stories and characters are timeless, so it's difficult to read something modern that doesn't reflect something from Shakespeare. The way that he uses the characters, plot twists, and use of language creates an outline for new writers. "He's everywhere."
                An example of how Shakespeare's characters and plots are incredibly well known is the Romeo and Juliet plot. Two lovers who can't be together because of something that is in between them, it's the set up for any romance novel and it's so simple. One series that I've read in particular has this plot throughout the every book. It is the Beautiful Creatures series. It's about a boy, Ethan, who is from a small town and a girl, Lena, who is different from regular girls. Lena has special powers and because of those powers, and her protective family, her and Ethan cannot be together. A more classic example of the Romeo and Juliet plot is West Side Story. West Side Story is about two rival gangs, the Jets and the Sharks (much like the two rival houses, the Montagues and the Capulets). In order to stop this rivalry, Officer Krupke holds a dance. This is where Tony and Maria meet across the crowded dance floor and fall in love. They are not masked like in Romeo and Juliet, but they still don't know each other's names or backgrounds. But since they are from rival gangs, they cannot be together. In other words, West Side Story is an exact replica of Romeo and Juliet's story. The Romeo and Juliet plot line is so straightforward that any student could mimic it.
                Another way that Shakespeare has influenced the modern day is that he added at least 2,000 words to the English dictionary. There are also a number of movies that are modern day versions of his plays: 10 Things I Hate About You, She's the Man, Kiss Me, Kate.
                Writers no matter how they use Shakespeare will use his work somehow. Even if it's subtle like the use of a name or a specific part in a plot that's only mentioned once. Either way, authors love using Shakespeare's plays as a skeleton for their own work.
                Even if students don't like reading Shakespeare, many of them have at least heard of some of his famous quotes: "Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo", "To be or not to be", "All the world's a stage," the list goes on and on. Even if students don't like reading Shakespeare, they have to admit that they have heard these quotes at least once. Also, even if students aren't necessarily exposed to Shakespeare until Middle School they are sometimes exposed to it through movies like The Lion King. The Lion King has a specific reference to Hamlet. The fact that Scar kills Mufasa, the current king, to take over the kingdom is the play-within-a-play scene. Even though students won't read Hamlet until high school, they will at least have one reference that they understand from their childhood.