If we consider tyrannies today, our greater knowledge of the use of power, was Shakespeare not just wrong but sentimental?
Were we misled and are we paying for it now?
Jerzy, I deliberately left it open.
Shakespeare tends to paint tyrants as sentimental, they regret, they worry. They feel guilt. None of this appears true and does not reflect Stalin, Hitler, Putin.
The Hollow Crown uses discussions of the plays and their characters to illuminate the careers of real-life historical figures. These figures range from admirable, even heroic individuals such as George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to less—sometimes far less—sympathetic ones such as Benedict Arnold and Adolf Hitler.
In addition, Cohen’s pithy summaries of the lessons that the plays teach provide a series of maxims about the three stages of the arc of power:
On seizing power:
. . . the success of a conspiracy depends as much on the weakness of those conspired against as the skill of those who are plotting.
. . . like many a successful conspirator, he [Octavius in Julius Caesar] succeeds in part by being underrated.
On wielding power:
Shakespeare’s most powerful kings are, to a man, calculating and careful, their hearts under control.
. . . having received an office or title, be it king, president, or chief executive officer, the holder must continue to win it day in, day out.
On losing power:
It is the nature of power to be fragile and contingent, and it is the nature of powerful men and women to forget that fact.
(Citation from: https://www.americanpurpose.com/articles/shakespeare-on-power/
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William Shakespeare understood power: what it is, how it works, how it is gained, and how it is lost. In The Hollow Crown, Eliot A. Cohen reveals how the battling princes of Henry IV and scheming senators of Julius Caesar can teach us to better understand power and politics today. The White House, after all, is a court—with intrigue and conflict rivaling those on the Globe’s stage—as is an army, a business, or a university. And each court is full of driven characters, in all their ambition, cruelty, and humanity. Henry V’s inspiring speeches reframe John F. Kennedy’s appeal, Richard III’s wantonness illuminates Vladimir Putin’s brutality, and The Tempest’s grace offers a window into the presidency of George Washington. An original and incisive perspective, The Hollow Crown shows how Shakespeare’s works transform our understanding of the leaders who, for good or ill, make and rule our world.
https://www.amazon.com/Hollow-Crown-Shakespeare-Leaders-Rise/dp/1541644867/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3HO088MRRJ4PJ&keywords=eliot+a.+cohen+the+hollow+crown&qid=1697649289&s=books&sprefix=eliot+a.+cohen+the+hollow+crown%2Cstripbooks%2C67&sr=1-1&ref=americanpurpose.com
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No , dear Stanley Wilkin ; it is a matter of classical reception, careful reading and comparative learning transfers into our modern times.
Thanks for the brilliant question !