Shakespeare - Each Play in One Line

Shakespeare wrote more than 30 plays, it is difficult to choose which to read. Here is a list of plays, each follows by one line of summary.

All's Well That Ends Well
Helena manages to marry Bertram, but he does not agree to be a true husband to her until she tricks him into sleeping with her.

Antony and Cleopatra
Mark Antony's love for the exotic Cleopatra brings about his downfall at the hands of Octavius Caesar.

As You Like It 
Exiled from a corrupt court, Rosalind and Orlando flee into the forest, where they fall in love and their problems are resolved.

Comedy of Errors
Antipholus of Syracuse and his servant Dromio visit Ephesus, where they are repeatedly mistaken for their twin brothers, Antipholus of Epheseus and his servant Dromio.


Coriolanus 
Prevented from becoming a consul by his pride and hasty words, Coriolanus avenges himself on Rome by attacking it with the Volscians, who eventually assassinate him.

Cymbeline
Believing that his wife Imogen is unfaithful, Posthumus tries to have her killed, but she saves herself by disguising herself as a boy.

Hamlet 
Charged by his father's ghost to kill his uncle, the new King Claudius, Prince Hamlet struggles with doubt and alienation in Denmark's corrupt court. 

Henry IV, Part I
Prince Hal rises above his criminal youth to become a military hero. 

Henry IV, Part II
King Henry IV's weakness makes England vulnerable to ambitious nobles and rebellious commoners.

Henry V 
Prince Harry rises above his criminal youth to become a military hero. 

Henry VI, Part I
With the great King Henry V dead, personal rivalries and political factions lead England to lose control of France, whose spirit is revived by Joan of Arc's victories.

Henry VI, Part II
The Duke of York instigates a popular rebellion, makes a claim to the throne, and wins the first battle of the Wars of the Roses against King Henry VI's forces.

Henry VI, Part III
The Duke of York's son takes up the struggle and deposes Henry VI to become King Edward IV, but his brothers and other alienated supporters threaten his reign. 

Henry VIII 
During the reign of Henry VIII, a series of powerful men and women of the kingdom fall from grace so that history can bring about the birth of Henry's daughter, Elizabeth. 

Julius Caesar 
Brutus helps murder Caesar to protect Roman liberty, but Mark Antony casts doubt on Brutus's motives, drives him out of Rome, and hunts him down.

King John
Challenged from many sides, King John makes and breaks unpredictable alliances with the French, the pope and his own nobles. 

King Lear
King Lear divides Britain between his daughters, who bring ruin to the kingdom.

Love's Labour's Lost
A King and his lords swear to avoid women, but cannot keep their words.

Macbeth
Inspired by a witches prophecy, Macbeth murders his way to the throne of Scotland, but his conscience plagues him and his fellow lords rise up against him.

Measure for Measure
Angelo enforces a strict code of sexual morals in Vienna, but then tries to force the chaste Isabella to have sex with him.

Merchant of Venice, The
Shylock tries to use the law to butcher the merchant Antonio, but the resourceful Portia disguises herself as a legal scholar and saves Antonio.

Merry Wives of Windsor
Falstaff tries to seduce two married women, but they turn the tables on him and shame him.

Midsummer Night's Dream
After a bewildering night in a fairy-haunted forest, three couples are united in marriage.

Much Ado about Nothing
Believing that his fiancee Hero is unfaithly, Claudio publicly shames her before recognizing his mistake and marrying her; longtime rivals Beatrice and Benedick are tricked into admitting that they love each other.

Othello 
The Moor general Othello kills his wife Desdemona out of jealousy after Iago lies to him that she has been unfaithful.

Pericles
In a series of adventures, Pericles loses his wife and daughter, but years later all three are reunited.

Richard II 
Bolingbroke (King Henry IV) seizes the throme from the poetic and ineffectual King Richard II, but his reign is troubled.

Richard III
After resolving to steal the crown from his brother Edward, Richard becomes increasingly evil, murdering everyone who stands in his way.

Romeo and Juliet 
Romeo and Juliet, children of rival families, marry in secret but die tragically, reconciling their families.

Taming of the Shrew, The
Petruccio tames his strong-willed wife, Katherine, by subjecting her to a grueling ordeal.

Tempest, The
Prospero, a powerful magician who used to be the duke of Milan, causes his enemies to wash up on his island, then uses his magic to reconcile with them and regain his dukedom.,

Timon of Athens 
When Timon goes bankrupt and discovers that his friends are false, he turns against Athens.

Titus Andronicus 
After the unjust execution of his sons and the rape and mutilation of his daughter Lavinia, Titus takes revenge by feeding the empress's sons to her in a pie.

Troilus and Cressida 

Troilus persuades Cressida to be his lover, but she betrays him when she moves to the Greek camp.

Twelfth Night

Viola dresses as a man to find employment with Orsino, but she falls in love with her employer.

Two Gentlemen of Verona, The

Proteus forsakes his betrothed Julia and betrays his best friend Valentine in pursuit of Valentine's beloved Silvia, but then repents.



Two Noble Kinsmen, The
When Arcite and Palamon, two equally worthy cousins, compete for Emilia's hand, Arcite beats Palamon in battle but Palamon wins Emilia anyway.

Winter's Tale, The
King Leontes' insane jealousy causes him to lose his friend Polixenes, his wife Hermione, and his daughter Perdita, but when Perdita grows up and marries Polixenes' son Florizel, Hermione comes to life and all are reconciled.