Here Are All The Shakespeare Quotes Found In Westworld
Let’s take a trip back school and check out all the Shakespeare quotes in Westworld.
Westworld did an incredible job of using subtle hints to reveal the stories behind Bernard (Jeffrey Wright) and the Man in Black (Ed Harris). The show even dropped a few references to Jurassic Park (also created by Michael Crichton). But did you catch all the Shakespeare quotes from the famous bard?
Get ready to dust off your old school books as we take a look at each line used in Westworld Season 1.
The Main Shakespeare Quote, “These violent delights have violent ends.”
Let’s start with the big one quoted by Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood) dad Peter Abernathy (Louis Herthum) in episode “The Original”. This Shakespeare quote comes from the greatest tale of love and heartbreak: Romeo and Juliet. It was spoken by Friar Tuck to Romeo as he tried to explain that Romeo’s love for Juliet may end up in some troubled waters.
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Does this sound familiar? We know that Arnold had a fondness of his creations. When Arnold discovered the hosts were becoming sentient, he tried to ward Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins). Well, it took 35 years for Ford to understand this, and he unleashed the hosts upon the guests of the park.
“When we are born, we cry that we are come/To this great stage of fools”
[Credit: HBO]Peter Abernathy really does love his Shakespeare. As he should. He was initially programmed as a professor that was party of a story called The Dinner Party. I’m sure the guests were surprised to here this quote at a party. However, the Shakespeare quote comes from King Lear.
Lear was talking about when babies are born, they immediately cry because they’re aware of the cruel world in which they are born. We’ve seen each host who has wandered out of their loop become aware of all the evil that has occurred to them over the years.
“Hell is empty/And all the devils are here”
This quote is straight out of The Tempest. In the story, Prospero conjures a storm to scare Ferdinand away. Ariel, told Prospero about how Ferdinand and his crew freaked out when they saw it.
Again, this plays into the story of the hosts gaining consciousness. They started to realize that the guests were indulging in all of their evil fantasies. I guess the world outside of Westworld wasn’t enough.
“By my most mechanical and dirty hand” and “I shall have such revenges on you both..”
When questioned by Robert Ford, Abernathy combines two Shakespeare quotes: one from Henry IV and the other from King Lear. According to Simon Callow of Bl.uk, he discussed how Shakespeare used mechanicals in his plays:
"Mechanicals – craftsmen, artisans – normally come out of Shakespeare’s plays rather well. They are witty and feisty, despite having the potential of turning into a mob: ‘Hence! home, you idle creatures get you home! / Is this a holiday?’ (1.1.1), cries Flavius, hectoringly, at the beginning of Julius Caesar, reminding them that as craftsmen, their working day is not their own."
It’s interesting that Abernathy, a host, used this quote. The hosts in the park are like little craftsmen or actors in someone else’s world. And when combined with the King Lear quote, they are ready to seek their revenge.
“For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come?”
[Credit: HBO]If you listen closely to Ford, after he killed Theresa (Sidse Babett Knudsen) using Bernard, he left out the words of death. It’s interesting that those words were not used as they were said in Hamlet. Maybe Ford has a different view of death after creating the hosts. What the view was might be explored in season 2 of Westworld.
“Brevity is the soul of wit.”
This quote from Hamlet was more than just a quip. Charlotte Hale (Tessa Thompson) quoted in reference to Lee Sizemore’s (Simon Quarterman) overblown stories. Sizemore spent so much time pouring his heart and soul into each of his stories, he forgot to add what the guests were looking for: their true nature.
It’s pretty cool to see Shakespeare used in Westworld to develop the story and bring life to each character. Which lines from the great Bard will we hear in Westworld Season 2?