The Complete Works of Shakespeare

Why it’s on the list: The 39 plays and 154 sonnets in one volume. Savodnik’s list treats Shakespeare as political philosophy rather than literature — the plays as a study of power, legitimacy and character.

Where I saw it: Peter Savodnik’s April 2026 post telling readers to work through Plato, Aristotle, Shakespeare, Hobbes, Locke and Rousseau — “To start.” Kyle saved it to his “Books To Read” note; this card is one of the twelve volumes that canon reduces to.

Connections

• William Shakespeare — from the same canon list.