William Shakespeare

1. William Shakespeare Author Background

2. Birth and Parentage • Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon in England. • He was the son of John Shakespeare, a successful glover and alderman (councilman). • His mother was Mary Arden, the daughter of a rich farmer. • Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564. • His birthdate is unknown, but is traditionally observed on April 23, 1564 (it was custom to baptize babies 3 days after birth). • Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616.

3. School Life • Not much is known about Shakespeare’s education. • It is generally accepted that he was educated at the King’s New School in Stratford, a free school that was chartered in 1553. • Curriculum was enforced by law, and therefore we know that Shakespeare would have been educated in Latin and the Classics. • There is no evidence, however, that Shakespeare received a university education.

4. Marriage • At the age of 18, William Shakespeare married 26-year-old Anne Hathaway on November 27, 1582. • The marriage seemed to have been organized very quickly. • Speculation is that Anne may have been pregnant, which might have expedited the marriage.

5. Children • The hastiness of William and Anne’s marriage is plausible due to the fact that six months after the marriage, Anne gave birth to a daughter, Susanna. • Susanna was baptized on May 26, 1583. • Two years later, Anne gave birth to twins, a son named Hamnet and a daughter named Judith. • The twins were baptized on February 2, 1585. • Unfortunately, Hamnet, Shakespeare’s only son, died of unknown causes and was buried on August 11, 1596. • It is speculated that Hamlet was a tribute to Shakespeare’s son.

6. The Lost Years • After the birth of Shakespeare’s twins, very little was recorded about William until 1592, leaving a seven year gap in his life known as the “lost years.” • Speculation about these years is that Shakespeare moved to London and began working for a theater company as a horse-minder, beginning his ascension to fame. • Other thoughts are that he became a schoolmaster. • One report even suggests that Shakespeare fled Stratford to escape prosecution for poaching.

7. Theater Career • By 1592, Shakespeare developed a successful career in theater in London. • He was so famous that he was attacked by fellow playwrights, who felt that Shakespeare, a relatively-uneducated man, was challenging the intellect of university graduates. • Robert Greene said of Shakespeare, “there is an upstart Crow, beautified with our feathers, that with his Tiger’s heart wrapped in a Player’s hide, supposes he is as well able to bombast out a blank verse as the best of you.”

8. Theater Career • By 1594, Shakespeare was co-owner, actor, player, member, and principal playwright for a theatrical troupe called Lord Chamberlain’s Men. • This company quickly became the most successful and popular play company in London.

9. The King’s Men • When Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, Lord Chamberlain’s Men were awarded a royal patent by the new king, James I, and its name was changed to The King’s Men. • They were so successful that in 1599, the group built their own theater on the south bank of the Thames called The Globe Theater. • Shakespeare became so wealthy that he purchased the second-largest house in Stratford.

10. Acting Roles • Not much is known about the roles Shakespeare performed during his theater career in London. • However, in his First Folio of 1623, it stated that Shakespeare was one of “the Principal Actors in all these plays.” • Some biographers have written that Shakespeare often played “kingly” roles, such as the ghost of Hamlet’s father (the dead king of Denmark).

11. The Later Years • Shakespeare retired to Stratford in 1613. • He died on April 23, 1616, and was survived by his wife, Anne, and daughters Susanna and Judith. • Most of Shakespeare’s estate was left to Susanna, while he left for his wife Anne “his second best bed.” • Shakespeare’s daughters married, but due to deaths, there are no direct descendants of Shakespeare living.

12. The Curse • As a final poetic gesture, Shakespeare left an inscription on the stone covering his grave that read the following: • Good frend for Iesvs sake forbeare, • To digg the dvstencloasedheare. • Blese be ye man yt spares thes stones, • And cvrst be he yt moves my bones. • So, what was Shakespeare trying to say?

13. The Authorship Question Did Shakespeare really write the plays and sonnets?

14. WARNING!! This is all theory – nothing is proven. Take it with a grain of salt.

15. The Authorship Question • Many scholars have speculated over time that Shakespeare did not write the plays and sonnets, but that they were penned by someone else. • Throughout the years, many names have been proposed. The most recent, and most widely accepted possibility, is Edward de Vere.

16. The Authorship Question • Edward de Vere was the 17th Earl of Oxford. • He was born in 1550 and died in 1604. • Because of the date of his death, and the speculated dates of Shakespeare’s plays, many believe that De Vere could not have been the author.

17. The Authorship Question • There is a plethora of evidence in favor of De Vere’s authorship, despite heavy skepticism. • Many of Shakespeare’s plays are set in Italy and describe Italian life, despite the fact that Shakespeare never visited the country. • De Vere lived in Venice and spent a year traveling through Italy and France.

18. The Authorship Question • The plays and sonnets all greatly resemble the writings of Edward de Vere. There are also parallels in the dedications of Shakespeare’s plays. • Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrecewere dedicated to Southampton. Shakespeare’s first folio was dedicated to Montgomery and Pembroke.

19. The Authorship Question • Southampton, Montgomery and Pembroke were all Earls who were proposed to marry the daughters of Edward de Vere. • Montgomery was married to Susan de Vere and Pembroke was engaged but never married to Bridget de Vere.

20. The Authorship Question • There is also a strong link between Edward de Vere and Shakespeare’s sonnets. • The founder of the Shakespearean (English) sonnet form was Henry Howard, the Earl of Surrey. • Howard was De Vere’s uncle.

21. The Authorship Question • There also is a basic premise that Shakespeare, not being a member of the upper class, may not have had the education to write his plays and implement the language that he contributed to the English vocabulary. • De Vere, being an Earl, would have easily afforded a high quality education. • This, however, is all based on speculation.

22. The Authorship Question • The research done on the “authorship question” is often referred to as the Oxfordian Theory. You can find a plethora of resources on this theory on the internet or in academic libraries. • Recently, there was a film (“Anonymous”) that was based on the Oxfordian Theory. • On the link below, the director of “Anonymous” (Roland Emmerich) speaks about the Oxfordian Theory: • http://youtu.be/arBk4fUlCrw

23. OGT Drama Terms

24. Dialogue • Dialogue is a conversation between two or more characters.

25. Monologue • Monologue is a long speech spoken by one character to one or more other characters.

26. Soliloquy • Soliloquy is a speech in which a character speaks his or her thoughts aloud, usually alone on stage.

27. Stage Directions • Stage directions are information in the written play, not intended to be spoken by actors. They provide information about scenery, props, lighting, costumes, and actors’ movements on stage.

28. Other Non-Drama Terms to Know • Drama will also make use of terms related to fiction in general, such as: • Plot • Setting • Characters • Point of View • Theme