Shakespeare: His Life and Times
Early Life l l l Born 1564—died 1616 Stratford-upon-Avon Parents: John and Mary Arden Shakespeare • • Mary—daughter of wealthy landowner John—glovemaker, local politician
Location of Stratford-upon-Avon From: http: //www. where-can-i-find. com/tourist-maps. html
Stratford-on-Avon in Shakespeare’s Time As reproduced in William Rolfe, Shakespeare the Boy (1896).
Stratford-upon-Avon Today From Stratford’s web site: http: //www. stratford-upon-avon. co. uk/index. htm
Shakespeare’s Birthplace From: http: //perso. wanadoo. fr/danielle. esposito/
Education • Probably attended King’s New School in Stratford • Educated in: • Rhetoric • Logic • History • Latin
King’s New School From: http: //perso. wanadoo. fr/danielle. esposito/
Married Life • Married in 1582 to Anne Hathaway, who was pregnant at the time with their first daughter • Had twins in 1585 • Sometime between 1585 -1592, he moved to London and began working in theatre.
Shakespeare In Love It is thought that Shakespeare had a Mistress and a Mister… Mister was supposedly the money behind his productions
Anne Hathaway’s Cottage From: http: //perso. wanadoo. fr/danielle. esposito/
THE LOST YEARS 1583 -1592 Where in the world is William Shakespeare? ?
Theatre Career • Member and later part-owner of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, later called the King’s Men • Globe Theater built in 1599 by L. C. M. with Shakespeare as primary investor • Burned down in 1613 during one of Shakespeare’s plays
The Rebuilt Globe Theater, London
The Globe Theater
The Plays l 38 plays firmly attributed to Shakespeare 14 comedies l 10 histories l 10 tragedies l 4 romances l l l Possibly wrote three others Collaborated on several others
The Poetry • 154 Sonnets • Numerous other poems • “Venus & Adonis” and “The Rape of Lucre”
Shakespeare’s Language • Shakespeare wrote in “Early Modern English. ” • EME was not very different from “Modern English, ” • Language of the people • Created his own words
Shakespeare’s Language • A mix of old and very new • Rural and urban words/images • Understandable by the lowest peasant and the highest noble
DEATH He died April 23, 1616 Cause is unknown History says he drank too much wine and ate too many pickled herrings He left his wife the second best bed in his will.
Burial • Buried in Holy Trinity Church • Curse on his grave to anyone who moves his bones • Memorial stone in Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abby
Elizabethan Theatrical Conventions
A theatrical convention is a suspension of reality. v No electricity v Women forbidden to act on stage v Minimal, contemporary costumes v Minimal scenery These control the dialogue.
v Soliloquy v Aside v Blood v Use of supernatural Types of speech Audience loves to be scared.
v Use of disguises/ mistaken identity v Last speaker—highest in rank (in tragedies) v Multiple murders (in tragedies) v Multiple marriages (in comedies)