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Shakespeare: His Life and Times Adapted from http: //www. public. asu. edu/~muckerrm/English_321_S 2005/Introduction. ppt

Early Life Born April 23, 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon Tradition has it that William Shakespeare died on his birthday, April 23, 1616, though many scholars believe this is a myth. Church records show he was interred at Trinity Church on April 5, 1616. Parents: John and Mary Arden Shakespeare Mary—daughter of wealthy landowner John—Leather merchant, local politician Scant records exist of William's childhood, and virtually none regarding his education. Scholars have surmised that he most likely attended the King's New School, in Stratford, which taught reading, writing and the classics. Being a public official's child, William would have undoubtedly qualified for free tuition. But this uncertainty regarding his education has led some to raise questions about the authorship of his work and even about whether or not William Shakespeare ever existed.

Location of Stratford-upon-Avon From: http: //www. where-can-i-find. com/tourist-maps. html

Shakespeare’s Birthplace From: http: //perso. wanadoo. fr/danielle. esposito/

Married Life • In 1582, when he was 18, he married Anne Hathaway (26), who was already pregnant with their first daughter (Susanna). • In 1585 Anne gave birth to twins Hamnet and Judith. Hamnent died in 1596 at the age of 11. • After the birth of the twins, Shakespeare went into a period known as the “lost years” as no records exist to record what Shakespeare was doing. • Sometime around 1592, he moved to London and began working in theatre.

§ § § e! tre! heatr Thea The T The § There is evidence that Shakespeare worked as an actor, producer, and playwright. Shakespeare was a managing partner in the Lord Chamberlain’s Men (an acting company) in London. This group changed its name to the King’s Men in 1603. By 1597, 15 of the 38 plays written by Shakespeare were published. In 1599, Shakespeare and his business partners built a theater on the banks of the Thames River. This theater was called the Globe Theater.

Things in London were not great… • Thames River polluted with raw sewage • Trees used up for fuel • Poverty

• g athindered B si con gerous dan odor Body g • stron hood Child ses • disea often ldrenore 5 i • Ched bef di rs yea x ll Po Sma • onic b • Buague Pl

The T hea te r d u rin g t his tim e … • The audience would eat, drink, and talk throughout performances • Most theaters were open air facilities that relied on natural light • Plays were performed in the afternoon to take advantage of the natural light • Very little scenery was used on the stage, but rather the performers relied on props, music, costumes, and the script itself • Women were not allowed to perform in Shakespeare’s plays so the female roles were portrayed by men

The Globe Theater

The Rebuilt Globe Theater, London

The Globe Theater

Groundlings • Most of the poorer audience members, referred to as groundlings, would pay one penny (which was almost an entire day's wage) to stand in front of the stage • The richer patrons would sit in the covered galleries, paying as much as half a crown each for their seats. • The groundlings stood around stage in “the pit” • Threw rotten vegetables at bad performances

The Plays § 38 plays firmly attributed to Shakespeare § comedies § histories § Tragedies § romances § Collaborated on several others

The Poetry • Numerous poems • 154 Sonnets

Sh ak e spe a re ’s d eat h • • • The cause of Shakespeare's death is a mystery, but an entry in the diary of John Ward, the vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford (where Shakespeare is buried), tells us that "Shakespeare, Drayton, and Ben Jonson had a merry meeting and it seems drank too hard, for Shakespeare died of a fever there contracted. ” He was 52.

Shakespeare’s epitaph • An epitaph is an inscription on or at a tomb or a grave in memory of the one buried there. • Shakespeare also wrote his own epitaph because during his time, when the graveyard was full, people would dig up someone's corpse and burn it so that another could be buried in that person's place. This disgusted Shakespeare, and he didn't want this type of disrespect after his death. His epitaph reads as follows: • Good Friends, for Jesus' sake forbear, To dig the bones enclosed here! Blest be the man that spares these stones, And curst be he that moves my bones. "

fl esh and b lood va nish into thin air po mp and circumstance seen bette r days a sorry sig ht ne ither rhyme nor reason full circle ses phra to mon uted to uted Com attrib are. . . espe Shak one fell swoop s N ot a mouse w a stirr ing In a pickle k Not s lept on e win od Too m uch of a go th ing Fo ul play ail dead as a doorn ke for goodn ess sa ster green-eye d mon

v Use of disguises/ mistaken identity v Last speaker—highest in rank (in tragedies) v Multiple murders (in tragedies) v Multiple marriages (in comedies)

• Shakespeare did NOT write in “Old English. ” • Old English is the language of Beowulf: Hwaet! We Gardena in geardagum Þeodcyninga Þrym gefrunon Hu ða æÞelingas ellen fremedon! (Hey! We have heard of the glory of the Spear. Danes in the old days, the kings of tribes, how noble princes showed great courage!)

• Shakespeare did not write in “Middle English. ” • Middle English is the language of Chaucer, the author of The Canterbury Tales: Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote The droghte of March hath perced to the roote And bathed every veyne in swich licour, Of which vertu engendred is the flour;

• Shakespeare wrote in “Early Modern English. ” • EME was not very different from “Modern English, ” except that it had some old holdovers. • The Shakespeare Glossary http: //www. bardweb. net/grammar/04 gloss. html

Omissions Again, for the sake of his poetry, Shakespeare often left out letters, syllables, and whole words. These omissions really aren't that much different from the way we speak today. We say: "Been to class yet? " “Is Mr. Roe givin' a test? " ”She didn’t come to school cause she didn’t write her paper. “ We leave out words and parts of words to speed up our speech. If we were speaking in complete sentences, we would say: "Have you been to class yet? " ”Yes, Mr. . Roe is giving a test. ” ”She didn’t come to school because she did not do her work. ”

A few examples of Shakespearean omissions/contractions follow: 'tis ~ it is ope ~ open o'er ~ over gi' ~ give ne'er ~ never i' ~ in e'er ~ ever oft ~ often e'en ~ even

• Shakespeare created over 1700 words! Shakespeare coined many words we still use today: • Critical • Majestic • Dwindle • Fashionable • Embrace (as a noun) • Vulnerable • Gossip • Gnarled • Premeditated

Reading Shakespeare: A Review Unlocking Shakespeare's Language, by Randal Robinson § Unusual Word Arrangements I ate the sandwich. I the sandwich ate. Ate the sandwich I. Ate I the sandwich. The sandwich I ate. The sandwich ate I. Robinson shows us that these four words can create six unique sentences which carry the same meaning. Locate the subject, verb, and the object of the sentence. Notice that the object of the sentence is often placed at the beginning (the sandwich) in front of the verb (ate) and subject (I). Rearrange the words in the order that makes the most sense to you (I ate the

Th e R eve nge Tra g ed y § § Revenge Tragedy: a dramatic genre in which the protagonist seeks revenge for an imagined or actual injury. Common Elements of the Revenge Tragedy: § Justice or re-establishing justice central (often trials and judgements abound) § Blood revenger is a central and sympathetic character § Revenge is a main part of the action and leads to catastrophe § § Ghost Calls for Revenge § § Feigned or Real Madness of the revenger § § § Revengers must die Dramatic Delay ensues during which revenger's madness and sympathy are developed Elimination of accomplices or tool villains Hero degenerates (often killing innocents) Play within a play helps/attempts to reveal aspects of the murder Final Action Bloody Spectacle for the sake of spectacle

§ Most scholars say that the revenge tragedies of Elizabethan and Jacobean drama stem from the Roman Tragedies, in particular Seneca’s Thyestes. § In Thyestes, in order to exact revenge on his brother Thyestes for adultery with his wife and stealing the throne, Atreus lures him to Argos under the pretext of a shared rule, but instead tricks him into eating his sons.