Final answer:
Shakespeare wrote three main types of plays—Comedies, Tragedies, and Histories. Comedies featured happy endings, Tragedies depicted characters' downfall due to tragic flaws, and Histories chronicled the lives of English monarchs. He also wrote Romances, which combined elements of comedy and tragedy with supernatural aspects.
Step-by-step explanation:
Types of Plays Written by Shakespeare
William Shakespeare is renowned for his contributions to English literature, and particularly for his work in the drama genre. The three main types of plays Shakespeare wrote include Comedies, Tragedies, and Histories. Comedies were typically characterized by light tones, happy endings, and often culminated in marriages. Tragedies were marked by the downfall of a protagonist due to a tragic flaw or hamartia, noble characters, and an elevated language often written in iambic pentameter, with themes involving suffering and death. Histories, on the other hand, dealt with the lives of English monarchs and were designed to explore England's past.
During Shakespeare's time, he was not only a playwright but also took on the roles of a producer, actor, and a director. His plays were meant to be performed to audiences during the daytime, given the absence of artificial lighting. Aside from these three main categories, Shakespeare also introduced another type named Romances, which are later plays often featuring elements of both comedy and tragedy along with mystical or supernatural components.