Reasons Why Hamilton Is Basically Modern Shakespeare

Because Lin-Manuel Miranda may not have written Hamlet, but he's definitely got some elements in common with that play's writer...

The success of Hamilton is no accident; Lin-Manuel Miranda has essentially written a modern-day version of the Henriad—No, wait, don't run away, I'm totally serious! Sure, this may seem like a total fangirl moment where I'm trying to validate my obsession with a musical about America's first Treasury Secretary, but I also have an MA in English Lit and more knowledge about theatre history than is probably necessary, so just hear me out.

Both Shakespeare and Miranda took big fat history books as source material.

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Everyone talks about how the source material for Hamilton is an 800-page tome by Ron Chernow, and William Shakespeare also found most of his inspiration in big historical texts, such as the intimidating Holinshed's Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland.

There are similar thematic threads and structural elements.

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Both the Henriad and Hamilton deal with very similar themes, such as patriotism, relationships between fathers and sons, and legacy. And Miranda is very aware that there are Shakespearean things afoot-- at one point, Hamilton makes a stanza's worth of reference to Macbeth. There are multiple reasons for this in the context of the play and the historical period (making references to Shakespeare was an A+ way to show off your cultural knowledge). But it's also purposefully placed-- Macbeth and Hamilton have some legitimate similarities, and the Reynolds Pamphlet is going to be Hamilton's Dunsinane.

Miranda and Shakespeare have a willingness to make history work for them.

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So, Shakespeare's plays are not exactly historically accurate, with the plots and characters having certain elements changed to make them more appealing to the audience (try comparing his Cleopatra to the real woman, and you will come up with some major differences). Miranda did the same thing, tweaking historical events to tell a better story (for example, Angelica Schuyler was married before meeting Alexander Hamilton, but Miranda chose to elevate the dramatic tension by having her single and able to mingle at their meeting). This is actually pretty difficult to handle and do respectfully, and the balance is the sign of a deft hand.

Shakespeare and Miranda use their nation's past to write about their present.

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The only way Shakespeare could write about politics was within the structure of a history. Shakespeare's England was very stressed out about the future without a direct heir to the Elizabethan throne, but nobody could directly talk about it. So instead, the stresses had to be codified by looking back. Miranda's play is about some very big stresses Americans have about their nation's future-- immigration, equality, political integrity, even street violence. Also, can I get a metric on how many times the word debt is in the play's text? Because it's not an accident. The play is well-known for having a purposefully diverse cast, and Miranda has repeatedly said that it's "story about America then, told by America now".

Both Miranda and Shakespeare employ rhymes to get their message across.

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Back when I was an English teacher, I had a thing I did where I got one of my students to "drop a beat" while I recited a monologue. I didn't try to force any special tones, I just read it as I normally would-- but it was an awesome moment with students because, seriously, you put a beat behind a Shakespearean monologue and it instantly turns into hip hop. There's an internal beat that resonates right away. Miranda's hip hop approach brings the whole thing full circle. Hamilton resonates on the same frequency as Hamlet. Practically the entire first act of Hamilton is a symbolic bookend to the St Crispin's Day speech in tone and subject matter.

Obviously, I could keep going, and I could also go more in depth. But I want to know what you think! Is Lin-Manuel Miranda tapping into our Shakespeare sensibilities? Let me know in the comments below.

A. Renée Roach is a historian, literary critic, education, and digital culture expert. She holds a Master of Arts in English Literature from Middlebury College's Bread Loaf School of English, and is working on a Master of Sciences in Library and Information Sciences from Pratt Institute. She is also a certified English teacher. Find her on Twitter at @vaguelysublime.