Shakespeare’s Life and Times
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Transcript of Shakespeare’s Life and Times
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