As a theatrical reviewer, Kott received praise for his readings of the classics, and above all of Shakespeare. In his influential volume "Shakespeare, Our Contemporary" (1964), he interpreted the plays in the light of philosophical and existential experiences of the 20th century, augmented with his own life's story. This autobiographical accent became a hallmark of his criticism, as exemplified in his collection of essays on theater, "The Gender of Rosalind". Kott sought to juxtapose Shakespeare with Eugène Ionesco and Samuel Beckett, but his greatest insight came from the juxtaposition of Shakespeare with his own life. He took a similar approach to his reading of Greek tragedy in "The Eating of the Gods". Reportedly, Peter Brook's film "King Lear" and Roman Polanski's "Macbeth" (both made in 1971) were influenced by Kott's view of Shakespearean high tragedy in relation to the 20th-century "nightmare of history". Another Kott collection of essays, "The Memory of the Body: Essays on Theatre and Death", extended his influence beyond theater in the English-speaking world.