Shakespeare’s LifeBorn April 23ish 1564

in Stratford upon Avon.

His parents were middle class.

At 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children.

At 21, he left Stratford and went to work in London.

He was a successful member of the acting group called the Lord Chamberlain’s men.

This company made him rather wealthy.

In 1613, he retired back to Stratford.

He died in 1616.

Shakespeare’s WorkHe did most of his

work between 1590 and 1613.

He worked as an actor and playwright.

He wrote 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and a handful of longer poems.

He wrote three kinds of plays: histories, comedies, and tragedies.

He gained some renown during his lifetime, but did not become really famous until much after his death.

Shakespeare’s InfluenceThe Romantics LOVED him. They based

some of their poetry on his style.He made romance a topic for tragedies.He explored the thoughts of the characters

more than the poets before him.Tons of today’s movies, plays, and books are

based on his ideas.His work is still considered the best English

literature.

While he was writing…Elizabeth I was Queen of England. (coolest

monarch ever)England was becoming a world power.Exploration and settlement of the Americas

was starting.The plague occasionally shut down markets,

theatres, and other public places.The Puritans were gaining power in England

as a religious force.

Some VocabularySoliloquy Iambic PentameterA prolonged period

where the actor speaks, but to the audience or him/herself rather than the other characters on stage.

The rhythm that Shakespeare’s sonnets and play have.

More VocabularyTragic Hero: Hero with a flaw that will cause the

play to end badly. (Achilles)Tragic Flaw: This thing wrong with the hero (His

heel)Protagonist: Main character who drives the

action (Tragic Hero)Antagonist: Works against the Protagonist to

cause the conflictFoil: Character who is the opposite of the

protagonist in some important way.Supporting and Minor Characters: others, less

important

Some More VocabularyAct- Shakespeare’s plays have 5 acts. These

separate major events.Scene- Each act has some number of scenes.

The distinguish between different settings.Line- Scenes are made of a series of line of

dialogue.

Plot StructureAct 1: Introduction.

Find out who the characters are, what the conflict is.Act 2: Rising Action

Things start happeningAct 3: Climax

The turning point, something changes that determines how the play will end

Act 4: Falling ActionIt’s not looking good for our intrepid hero

Act 5: CatastropheThe bad ending. Many characters suffer because of

the bad actions of the protagonist.

Look at this Cool Building!

Look at this Cool Building!

All these cool people are going to watch Shakespeare!

A House In Stratford from Shakespeare’s Day

Henry likes Shakespeare, and you should too!