The Life of Shakespeare

Early Life• Born in Stratford-upon-Avon• Father sold leather goods• Father served in local government• Mother had 8 children

Schooling• Grammar school• 6 days week, went from 6am-7pm• Mandatory church attendance• Later apprenticed father’s business

Marriage

• Marriage to Anne• She was 8 years older• They had 3 children

Early Theatrical Life

• 1593 - theatres closed due to plague

• Venus and Adonis - first poem• Member of Lord Chamberlin’s Men• Wrote sonnets

1594-1599

• Momentous for Shakespeare

• Became part owner of the Globe

Types of Literature

• Classical plays• History plays• Narrative poems and sonnets• Comedies

Troupe Change

• Queen Elizabeth died, and Chamberlin’s Men became King’s Men

• Performed 11 performances for King – 7 were Shakespeare’s

plays

Later Life• Did real estate investment in

Stratford• Money comfort allowed him to

write deeper stories and less entertainment

The Ending• Wrote final plays in 1613-14• Believed to have left acting at

1611• Retired with family• Died of unknown illness in 1616

Understanding the Plays

• Play within a play• Disguises• Love at first sight• Fluid action• Asides• Soliloquies

Understanding the Language

• Vocabulary• Puns• Banter• Innuendos• Deliberate

misunderstandings

• Strong emotions

Poetry within Plays• Prose vs. poetry• Iambic pentameter (often

unrhymed)• Couplets often end scene or act

Types of Humor

• Word play• Wit (banter)• Actions• Situational• Character