William Shakespeare

1564-1616

To be or not to be

What light th

rough yonder

window breaks?Frailty thy name is woman

Et tu, Brute?

All the world’s a stage

Parting is such sweet sorrow

Bew

are

the id

es o

f M

arch

Such stuff as dreams are made of

Shall I Shall I comparcompare thee e thee to a to a summersummer’s day’s day

To thine own self be

true

Life of William Shakespeare

Recognized birthday:

April 23, 1564. He died

the same daysame day 52 years

later.Born in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon to

John and Mary Shakespeare.

John Shakespeare worked as a glover (as well

as many other things) and achieved the

position of bailiff which similar to a town

mayor.

Life of William Shakespeare

Shakespeare attended grammar school

where he studied Latin and classical

Roman authors. He did not attend

University. His school day

would have lasted

from 6 a.m. to 5

p.m.!!!

Life of William Shakespeare

Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway in

1582. He was 18 and she was 26!!

Their children included Susanna, and twins:

Hamnet and Judith. Hamnet died at age 11,

some say from the bubonic plaque.

Not her

her

Shakespeare the Playwright and The and The

ControversyControversy Due to the limited amount of documented info. about his life, some critics

have questioned the truth behind Shakespeare.

Anti-StratfordiansAnti-Stratfordians – modern scholars who question the authorship of

Shakespeare’s plays. They argue that he either never existed, or if he did,

didn’t write any of the plays we associate him with. In fact, they believe they

could have even been written by Queen Elizabeth I!!!Queen Elizabeth I!!!

? ?

Shakespeare the Playwright

His first plays were written ~1590 (the chronology

of his works is arguable). Romeo and Juliet was

written around 1595; published in 1597.

Most plays at the time were not published, they

were just written for performance. Due to this,

most early publications of Shakespeare are

considered inaccurate –they were sold illegally/

pirated. 18 of these were printed in Shakespeare’s

lifetime –all in quarto format.

In fact, it wasn’t until 7 years after his death that

two fellow actors published an authentic copy of his

collection which included 36 plays in folio format.

Shakespeare the Actor In 1594 he joined the Lord Chamberlain’s Men – an acting company which

performed at the famous Globe TheatreGlobe Theatre

Public officials & the Church banned theatres to outside the city limits due to

their sometimes vulgar nature (the Globe is located on the Thames River).

Additionally, they worried about the spreading of the Plague in such overcrowded

spaces – theatres could hold 2,000-3,000 people!

Theatres were restricted to the same area of town as dog-fighting, bear-baiting,

& prostitution!

Plays were censored by the Office of the Revels – making sure scripts didn’t

include politically or socially offensive material.

The GlobeThe Globe caught on fire during a performance of Henry VII in 1613, and was

rebuilt the following year only to be destroyed by the Puritans in 1644. In the

1990s the Globe was rebuilt!

Shakespeare & the Renaissance Renaissance – Renaissance – rebirth; period of English history known for

its development of art, lit., science, & politics. Now often

referred to as Early ModernEarly Modern; dates include ~1450-1750.

Renaissance Influences on “the Bard”:Renaissance Influences on “the Bard”:

Cosmology – the nature of the universe was in question.Cosmology – the nature of the universe was in question.

Humors – belief that all things were composed of 4 elements: Humors – belief that all things were composed of 4 elements:

earth, air, water, and fire. earth, air, water, and fire.

In the body they were in the form of: blood (light-In the body they were in the form of: blood (light-

heartedness), phlegm (dull and kind), yellow bile heartedness), phlegm (dull and kind), yellow bile

(irritability), and black bile (melancholy). The balance of the (irritability), and black bile (melancholy). The balance of the

humors were believed to determine personality types. humors were believed to determine personality types.

The ReformationThe Reformation

Romeo (vs. Romeus) and Juliet

Like most of his works, the storyline of

R&J was not his originally. It primarily

came from the famous 1562 Arthur Brooke

poem, The Tragical History of Romeus and

Juliet.

Differences

Dramatically shortened the time frame from 9

months to a rapid 5 days!!!5 days!!!

Decreased Juliet’s age from 16 years to only 13!

Romeo and Juliet: The Structure

Tragedies follow the structure below:

Act I – Exposition

Act II – Rising Action

Act III – Turning Point

Act IV – Falling Action

Act V - Catastrophe

The structure of R&J mimics the motif of

dichotomy throughout the play – scenes

of tragedy are followed by scenes of

comedy.

Dichotomies in R&J Age vs. Youth

Hate vs. Love

Death vs. Life

Poetry vs. colloquial/ vulgar speech

Light vs. Dark

Use of puns and use of oxymoron

Dual nature of good and evil

Foil Characters

Romeo vs. Mercutio

Juliet vs. Nurse

O, mickle is the powerful grace that

lies

In herbs, plants, stones, and their true

qualities:

For nought so vile that on the earth

doth live

But to the earth some special good

doth give,

Shakespearean Language

Iambic Pentameter

Shakespeare wrote in unrhymed

iambic pentameter. A pattern of

unstressed (da) and stressed (DA)

syllables.

Pay attention to when he switches to

prose. Iambic Pentameter is used for

characters of high social standing,

while prose is the language of the

common people.

A Rhythm Exercise!!! Find the rhythm by tapping out the beats:

I would not, could not, in a box.

I could not, would not, with a fox.

I will not eat them with a mouse.

I will not eat them in a house.

I will not eat them here or there.

I will not eat them anywhere.

I do not eat green eggs and ham.

I do not like them, Sam-I-am.

A Rhythm Exercise!!! Find the rhythm by tapping out the beats:

But soft, what light through yonder window

breaks?...

See how she leans her cheek upon her hand!

O that I were a glove upon her hand!

Shakespearean Language

Iambic Pentameter-

Iamb = a stress pattern of two

beats, unstressed to stressed (da

DA)

Pent = five. Refers to five pairs

of iambs.

Meter = number of syllables in a

line of poetry

Shakespearean LanguageOther terms you will need to know:

Puns

Aside

Oxymoron

Soliloquy

Apostrophe Addressing someone not present, or a personified object or

idea

Shakespearean Sonnets

14 lines, ending with a rhyming couplet

For never was there a story of For never was there a story of more woemore woe

Than this of Juliet and her Than this of Juliet and her RomeoRomeo……