Shakespeare, a master of language, found in nature an endless source of inspiration. His plays are adorned with vivid descriptions of the natural world, from the gentle rustling of leaves to the tempestuous roar of the sea. He saw in nature a mirror reflecting the complexities of human nature, finding “tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in everything.” Through his words, he invited us to find solace, wisdom, and beauty in the world around us, reminding us of our interconnectedness with all living things.

Shakespeare Nature Quotes

1. “The earth has music for those who listen.”
— Sonnet 29

2. “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”
— As You Like It, Act 2, Scene 7

3. “How far are we from Venice?
— The Merchant of Venice, Act 1, Scene 1

4. “This is the very same day that I was born.”
— A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 4, Scene 1

5. “The winter of our discontent / Made glorious summer by this sun of York.”
— Richard III, Act 1, Scene 1

6. “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.”
— The Tempest, Act 4, Scene 1

7. “So we grew together, like to a double cherry, seeming parted, but yet an union in partition.”
— A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 3, Scene 2

8. “The quality of mercy is not strained; it droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven upon the place beneath.”
— The Merchant of Venice, Act 4, Scene 1

9. “Thou shalt not be so long by the head as I am by the foot.”
— Much Ado About Nothing, Act 2, Scene 1

10. “Come, gentle night; come, loving black-browed night.”
— Romeo and Juliet, Act 3, Scene 2

11. “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”
— Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2

12. “He that is giddy thinks the world turns round.”
— The Taming of the Shrew, Act 4, Scene 1

13. “In nature’s infinite book of secrecy a little I can read.”
— The Winter’s Tale, Act 1, Scene 2

14. “O, she is rich in beauty; only poor / That when she dies, with beauty dies her store.”
— Sonnet 4

15. “Nature hath framed strange fellows in her time.”
— The Tempest, Act 5, Scene 1

16. “The elements themselves, till seven years’ heat, shall not behold her face at ample view.”
— The Winter’s Tale, Act 3, Scene 2

17. “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.”
— Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2

18. “On such a night as this, when the sweet wind did gently kiss the trees and they did make no noise.”
— The Merchant of Venice, Act 5, Scene 1

19. “The stars are not so bright as the sun.”
— The Winter’s Tale, Act 5, Scene 3

20. “The cloud-capp’d towers, the gorgeous palaces, the solemn temples, the great globe itself, yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve.”
— The Tempest, Act 4, Scene 1