Shakespeare’s Life and Times

He was not of an age, but for all time. – Ben Jonson

Life in Renaissance England (1580s and onward)

Public sanitation Disease Growing cities Printing and Sailing Politics & religion

The streets were narrow, cobbled, slippery with the slime of refuse. Houses were crammed together, and there were a lot of furtive alleys. Chamber pots, or jordans, were emptied out of windows. There was no drainage. Fleet Ditch stank to make a man throw up his gorge. But the City had its natural cleansers--the kites, graceful birds that made their nests of rags and refuse in the forks of trees. They scavenged, eating anything with relish. ... And countering the bad, man-made odors, the smells of the countryside floated in. There were rosy milkmaids in the early morning streets, and sellers of newly gathered cresses.

Beginnings Born April 23, 1564 in

Strafford-upon-Avon, England 103 miles west of London

Court records & plays John, a leather merchant and

local politician Mary, daughter of wealthy

landowner 1 of 8 children

Marriage 1582: Married Anne

Hathaway, 26, at the age of 18 She was already

pregnant Gave birth to

Susanna ~1585: had twins,

Hamnet and Judith Lived at Straftford-

upon-Avon while WS worked in London

7 years… ???????????????????????????????????

?? No record exits, “lost years” Gone into hiding for poaching game

on landlord’s property? Assistant school master? Starbucks barista?

1592: He Resurfaces – start 4/11

Living as an actor and playwright in London Written criticism of his work: “…an upstart

crow, beautified with our feathers…” Managing partner in Lord Chamberlin’s

Men/King’s Men – an acting company in London Acting company: “sharers” who split

profits/debts and acted roles; boy apprentices

Establishing Himself

By 1597: 15/37 plays were published $$$ & came home once a year Built Globe Theatre in 1599

3 stories high No roof Held more than 1,500 spectators Burnt down in 1613 during Henry VIII

because a canon misfired Entrepreneur and playwright

Rebuilt Globe Theatre

Theatre of the Times…

Actors = all men, young boys played female roles, no kissing/hugging on stage

Groundlings = poor audience member who stood around “pit” and threw rotten vegetables during bad performances

Cost = 1 shilling to attend, 2 shillings to sit in balcony

Expensive seats = behind stage

Special Effects Mechanisms to lower actors from sky (angels and

gods) or bring them below stage by trapdoor (hell/funerals)

Little scenery – dialogue explained setting Elaborate costumes to tell profession, social class,

and family ties Identity tied to clothing – trickery involved nothing

more than changing costumes Sound effects: thunder, running horses, falling rain,

canon blasts, and music

Early Works Early 1590’s: Histories depicting the destructive results

of weak or corrupt rulers (except for Romeo and Juliet) Richard II Henry V Henry VI

Comedies: witty, romantic, charming A Midsummer Night’s Dream Much Ado About Nothing As You Like It

Later Works – After 1600

Tragedies: vividly capture human temperament, exploring deceit, retribution, betrayal, incest, and moral failure Hamlet Othello Macbeth

Tragi-Comedies: written in final period of life, end in reconciliation and forgiveness, but heavier subject matter than earlier comedies The Tempest Cymbeline The Winter’s Tale

All around… 36 plays

Longest is Hamlet, at 884,647 words and over 100,000 lines

154 sonnets Works translated into 80 different

languages Coined more than 500 new words:

amazement, countless, useful, radiance, lackluster, bump, lonely

Controversy Authorship of plays

Lack of evidence/primary sources and documentation

Education Literary training

Defense: Other authors had “sketchy” pasts with little

evidence/documentation of histories His education could have been of high caliber Circumstantial evidence based on his friendships

and relationships