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Introduction toIntroduction toShakespeareShakespeare

English I


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William Shakespeare


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William Shakespeare was born the third of eightchildren on April 23, 1564, in the town of Stratford!ponA"on, England, to #ar$ Arden and %ohn Shakespeare&

'is father, %ohn, was a shopkeeper and a man of some

importance in Stratford who ser"ed at "ario!s times as

%!stice of the (eace and 'igh )ailiff *ma$or+&

ShakespeareThe man, the myth, the legend


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Shakespeares Birthplace
http://www.stratford-upon-avon.co.uk/jdavis.htm


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-As it is toda$&


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William attended grammar schoolwhere he st!died .atin grammar, .atin

literat!re, and rhetoric *the !ses oflang!age+& As far as we know, he had

no formal ed!cation&

Education


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King Edward VI/rammar School atStratford!ponA"on


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At the age of eighteen,Shakespeare fell in lo"e

with Anne 'athawa$who was 26& 0he$

married and had three

children& S!sanna was

the oldest, and 'amnet

and %!dith were twins&

'amnet died as a child&

.et 0here )e Love-


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There were not man$ forms of entertainment

d!ring this time& )ooks were not in wide circ!lation andan$one with half a brain co!ld onl$ take so m!ch of that

lo!s$ recorder m!sic and those inane p!ppet shows so

Shakespeare had the brilliant idea of becoming an actor&

Where Theres AWill


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B!t Wait & & &Theres More

Theatrical tro!pes of Eliabethan Englandwere kind of like the garage bands of their time&

Actors wo!ld often write their own pla$s,

impro"ise lines, and pla$ female roles& It wasnt

!n!s!al for them to ra"e for ho!rs or to bore their

friends into obli"ion& Incontro"ertible historical

e"idence strongl$ s!ggests actors of Shakespearestime wo!ld reg!larl$ trash inns, drink hea"il$,

chase locals, and generall$ wreak ha"oc&


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Aside from the birth of his children, little isknown abo!t Shakespeare between 152 and 152,

ecept that he b!ilt a career as an actor and

e"ent!all$ became an established and pop!larmember of the .ondon theatre circ!it&

And More & & &


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Shakespeares pla$ writing s!ccess began withhistorical works& )etween 15 and 153, he wrote

Henry VI, (arts 1,2, and 3,Richard IIIandA Comedy of

Errors& Romeo and Julietwas among the earl$ pla$s that

he wrote between 154 and 156& Shakespeare wrote a

total of thirt$ se"en pla$s, incl!ding s!ch masterpieces asJulius Caesar, Hamlet, Othello, King LearandMaceth&

Theres E"en More77


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As an actor, he was a member of a theatricalcompan$ known as .ord 8hamberlains #en, which

was later to become the 9ings #en& :ealth$ patrons

s!pported these theatrical gro!ps& 0he 9ings #en

were s!pported b$ 9ing %ames himself&

Shakespeare worked with 0he 9ings #en allof his writing life b$ pro"iding them with pla$s $ear

after $ear& 'e had a theater that needed pla$s, actors

who needed parts, and his own famil$ who needed to

be fed&

Still More Shakespeare& & &


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Theatre in Shakespeares time was en;o$edb$ commoners as well as the pri"ileged& so the pla$ers had to

compete with li"estock sales, screaming street

hawkers, and obnoio!s dr!nks on the street&

And Still More & & &


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He retired from the theater to his nati"eStratford in 1612& ?!e to his widespread fame and

s!ccess, he was able to b!$ the secondlargest ho!se

in Stratford with a cottage, a garden, and 1@ acresof soccer field

In earl$ 1616, he wrote his will, lea"ing hispropert$ to his da!ghter S!sanna, 3 po!nds to hisother da!ghter, %!dith, and his secondbest bed to

Anne beca!se it was her fa"orite&

Retirement


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Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616, on his 52ndbirthda$& 'e was b!ried at 0rinit$ 8h!rch in Stratford as

an honored citien& 'is tombstone bears the following

inscription

ood !riend" #or $esus% sake #or&ear

To di' the dust enclosed here(

Blest &e the man that spares these stones"

And cursed &e he )ho moves m* &ones(

R(I(+(


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These are hardl$ the best of Shakespeares lines, b!tlike his other lines, the$ seem to ha"e worked& 'is

bones lie !ndist!rbed to this da$&

R(I(+(


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Shakespeare0oda$

Shakespeares pla$s are still prod!ced allo"er the world& ?!ring a )roadwa$ season in the

1s, one critic estimated that if Shakespeare were

ali"e, he wo!ld be recei"ing B25, a week in

ro$alties for a prod!ction of


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Shakespearecontin!ed

Shakespeare was in the acting compan$, .ord 8hamberlainCs #en *later called the 9ings #en+

He wrote3@ pla$s, 154 sonnets, and 2 long poems

His work was not p!blished d!ring his lifetime

b!t fo!r $ears later in the Dirst olioD bookShakespeare is considered a Dman for allseasonsD beca!se his pla$s appeal to e"er$one

*all ages and across time+


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0he Shakespeare ?ebate

0here is m!ch spec!lation as to whether or notthere was an act!al =Shakespeare&>

#an$ historians claim that =Shakespeare> isact!all$ a collection of se"eral poets andpla$wrights works, while others claim that itwas a pse!don$m for another writer&

0he three men most associated with the=Shakespeare ?ebate> are Edward ?e Fere,rancis )acon, and 8hristopher #arlow&


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0he Shakespeare ?ebate

0he reasoning behind the contro"ers$ seems to

lie in the fact that man$ people find it diffic!lt to

accept that a man of poor ed!cation and!pbringing co!ld write s!ch eloG!ent

masterpieces and ha"e s!ch a strong command

of the English lang!age&

0he important thing is not to foc!s on whether

he was real or not, b!t instead we sho!ld foc!s

on the great pieces of literat!re that we ha"e

attrib!ted to him&


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0he /lobe 0heater


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Shakespeare performed his pla$s here

8onstr!cted in 15


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TThehe GGlobe continuedlobe continued

Seating:Seating:Pit: General crowdPit: General crowd

Galleries: A small additional fee wouldGalleries: A small additional fee wouldget you these seatsget you these seats

Box Seats: Royalty or noblemen onlyBox Seats: Royalty or noblemen only

The capacity for the play performanceThe capacity for the play performancewas 3!!!was 3!!!

Sound effects were made in the hutsSound effects were made in the hutsGhosts could appear on stage throughGhosts could appear on stage through

trap doorstrap doors


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TThehe GGlobe continuedlobe continued

"lags trumpets and fliers told when there"lags trumpets and fliers told when therewould be a playwould be a play

The flags also told the audience what typeThe flags also told the audience what type

of play they would be seeing:of play they would be seeing:Red flag # history playRed flag # history play$hite flag # comedy play$hite flag # comedy play

Blac% "lag # tragedy playBlac% "lag # tragedy play


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Shakespearean Actors andAccessories
http://www.costumes.org/history/renaissance/boehn/16thcentwatch.jpghttp://www.costumes.org/history/renaissance/boehn/1580hofherr1.jpg


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Shakespearean Actors andAccessories
http://www.costumes.org/history/greatwomen/10340_32.jpghttp://www.costumes.org/history/greatwomen/10340_26.jpg


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,ost!mes ,ontin!ed & & &

England had =,lothing Acts> whichforbade certain classes of people from

dressing like a higher class&So, for an actora person of the lowerclasses to dress like a nobleman or a

king was something of a scandal&


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Life of anElizabethanActorActor must have a strong voice-must be able to yell over the voices of hecklers, drunks andcrowds

- must have singing skills

Strongbody

-acrobatics/gymnastics/juggling/wrestling & able tophysically fend off rowdy audience members who jump onstage

- EXPERT fencing skills. Real swords were used and everynow and then, an actor would actually be killed on stage if histiming and skillswerentgood enough.

- strength to move heavy props


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skilled in speech and rh$med "erse

Kse of p!ns and ;okes

traged$ skills

L!ick wit for hecklers

pla$ female roles

be able to pla$ man$ different roles in one

pla$&


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All pla$s were performed d!ring earl$ afternoonbeca!se there was no electricit$ for a night timeperformance& 0he a!dience members sat FEHM close to

the stage, and sometimes, the$ co!ld pa$ a penn$ etraand act!all$ sit or be =g!tted> b$ hisopponent& 0he a!dience wo!ld grow hatef!l, lo!d, r!de,and destr!cti"e if the battles didnt seem real or gor$eno!gh& In order to appear realistic at s!ch close rangeto the a!dience, the actors sleight of hand had to be

G!icker than the a!diences e$e&

Tricker$N =#agic> Skills


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InsideShakespeare%slobe

This is aphotograph of the

newl$ restored/lobe 0heater in

England& 0his

pict!re showswhat the stage

looks like&


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The /lobe was the first actor owned

theater& 0he theatre held !p to 3 people&0here were act!all$ 15 seats, b!t man$

co!ld not afford them, so most paid a penn$

and attended as gro!ndlings, who stood for

the entire pla$&

The lobe


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+arts of the lobe

0he (it Sometimes referred to as =0he Mard>

where the gro!ndlings watched the pla$ for

their onepenn$ admission&0he Stage #a;or pla$ing area ;!tted into the

(it, creating a sense of intimac$ with the

a!dience& 'angings c!rtained off space beneath&

#ain entrance 'ere the doorkeeper greeted

pla$goers and collected one penn$ from

e"er$one&


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+arts of the lobe

.ords Hooms pri"ate galleriesO si pennies let

a "iewer sit here, or sometimes e"en on the

stage itselfiddle /aller$ called =twopenn$ rooms>

beca!se the seats here were higher priced&

Inner Stage A recessed pla$ing area oftenc!rtained off, then opened for appropriate

scenes&


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+arts of the lobe

'!t a storage area that also held a wench

s$stem for lowering enthroned gods or other

characters to the stage&0iring'o!se 0he important backstage area

which pro"ided space for storage and b!siness

offices&


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+arts of the lobe

0rap ?oor .eading down to the 'ell area

where eG!ipment incl!ded the winch ele"ator

that raised and lowered actors or properties&0here was another trap door in the ceiling

referred to as =the hea"ens&>

'ell 0he area !nder the stage, !sed for ghostl$

comings and goings or for more m!ndane

storage of properties&


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Eliabethan England-!eenEliabeth I r!led England

d!ring the time that Shakespearewrote man$ of his pla$s&


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-!een Eliabeth I

She r!led England for nearl$

5 $ears, and was "er$ pop!lar

H!led 155163

She was s!ch a strong r!ler that the time is calledthe Eliabethan Age or Englands /olden Age&

Eliabeth ne"er married altho!gh she had man$s!itors d!ring her lifetime&

L!een Eliabeth had red hair and green e$es andwas known for her lo"e of fashionO she had o"er2, dresses& Some of her more elaborate gownsweighed o"er 2 po!nds each&


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L!eenEliabeth I contin!ed

.!ring the 16s, .ondon was a b!s$,b!stling, walled cit$& It was ha"ing a

Henaissance *rebirth+ of arts and sciences !nder

two monarchs who lo"ed the theater&

-!eenEliabeth, the da!ghter of 'enr$FIII and Anne )ole$n, was a liberalminded

monarch who en;o$ed the theater and wrotepla$s for special performances& Shakespeare

ga"e 32 performances at her co!rt d!ring her

reign&


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EliabethanTheater?!ring this time, theater was not the

onl$ form of entertainment& (eople also

en;o$ed m!sic and dancing&

Jo women were allowed to act in the pla$s& Mo!ngbo$s acted the female parts&

Actors wore clothes from their own time period,regardless of the pla$s setting& 0he cost!mes wereoften "er$ fanc$&

A!diences were "er$ rowd$& 0he$ talked d!ring thepla$s, and if the$ did not like one, the$ wo!ld throw

garbage at the actors&


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Eliabethan EnglandEngland was "er$ dirt$

#ost people bathed onl$ once a $ear

?octors worried abo!t the L!een

beca!se she took a bath once a month

(eople d!mped garbage into the cit$ streets

School

)o$s went to school from age @ to abo!t 15, where

the$ learned math, .atin, and /reek

/irls were !s!all$ ed!cated at home


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Mens ,lothing


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Womens ,lothing

King $ames I


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King$ames I*Eliabeths S!ccessor+


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King$ames I

King$amesI, the son of #ar$ L!een ofScots, reigned from 163 to 1625& 'e also

s!pported the theatre and wrote man$ poems andpla$s& At least half of the pla$s that he saw

performed had been written b$ Shakespeare&


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During the reign of Queen Elizabeth and later

King James, there were many famous

Elizabethan Theaters !ome of these were

"The Theatre# "The !wan#"The $lobe# "The %ose#

"The &lac'friars# "The (ortune#

"The )hitehall# "The *urtain#

These theatres were usually located outside the

+ondon walls on the Thames

Elizabethan Theaters


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The Inside =Scoop>


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SHAKESPEARE A RIP-OFF


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SHAKESPEARE A RIP-OFFARTIST ??

Bard Not Originator of R & J Story

0he$ were right when the$ said thereCs no s!ch thing as an

original stor$& Some critics complained the famo!s 161

mo"ie D:est Side Stor$D stole its plot from DHomeo and

%!liet&D )!t DborrowingD stories is nothing new&Shakespeare based DHomeo and %!lietD on a long, boring

poem b$ Arth!r )rooke called D0he 0ragical 'istorie of

Home!s and %!liet&D )!t )rookeCs poem was based on a

rench stor$ b$ (ierre )oaistra!, and this stor$ was takenfrom Italian writer #atteo )andellom, whose stor$ is

s!pposedl$ a tr!e acco!nt from the 11th cent!r$& And this

chain contin!es back all the wa$ to a /reek stor$ from

aro!nd the $ear 4 A&?&

// Eli0a&ethan Times

Sex-Crossed Lovers!


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Sex-Crossed Lovers!Insiders Reveal Juliet Is Really A Boy! Starts

"Crying ae" radition

0he theatre in ShakespeareCs da$ was "er$ different from

the theatre we know toda$& 0he greatest difference was it

had no actresses& All of the womenCs roles were pla$ed b$

bo$s sometimes recr!ited from the choirs of .ondonch!rches& #an$ of these bo$s acted their parts "er$ well

and all were totall$ accepted b$ Eliabethan a!diences& 0he

first women actors did not appear on the English stage !ntil

166// Eli0a&ethan Times

JULIET DISSES ROMEO!


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JULIET DISSES ROMEO!

She Can#t $ecide% Ro Or No

ew people know that %!liet originated one of the earliest

D?issD lists& :hen she learns that Homeo has killed her

co!sin 0$balt, she Dsnaps onD 16th cent!r$ st$le b$ calling

her lo"er Da bea!tif!l t$rant, fiend angelical, do"e

feathered ra"en, wolfish lamb, damned saint, and honorable"illain&D (olite b$ toda$Cs standard, b!t ;!st as effecti"e// Eli0a&ethan Times

YOU MAKE THE CALL!


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YOU MAKE THE CALL!

'irst Interactive heatre!

At one point, two "ersions of DHomeo P %!liet,D one with atragic ending and one with a happ$ ending, pla$ed on

alternate nights and the a!dience wo!ld choose whiche"er

ending s!ited their mood at the time// Eli0a&ethan Times


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%omeo Juliet was written during a -eriod when

!ha'es-eare had found the strength of his writing .e

would ha/e been about 01 years old when he wrote it It

stands as a great -lay in its own right

%omeo Juliet is belie/ed to ha/e been written around

2343 The 5urse in the -lay refers to 6an earth7ua'e

ele/en years -ast 89ct II, scene 0, line :0; +ondon

e


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Romeo 2 $uliet

3456

R 2 $ li t


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Romeo 2 $uliet

3445


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The story is, of course, about a -air of

star>crossed lo/ers Two teenagers -ursue their

lo/e for each other des-ite the fact that their

families ha/e been at odds with each other for

decades The story combines swordfighting,

disguise, misunderstanding, tragedy, humor,

and some of the most romantic language foundin literature all in the name of true lo/e

The Tra'ed*


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The!e!d7Let%s et Read* to Rum&le8889

,ap!letsvs(

Montag!es


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InThe Red ,orner-The ,ap!lets

Lord Ca-ulet

Lady Ca-ulet

Juliet, da!ghter of 8ap!let

Tybalt, nephew of .ad$ 8ap!let

Nurseto %!liet

eter, ser"ant to the J!rse

Sam-son, ser"ant of 8ap!let

Gregory, ser"ant of 8ap!let

An !ld "anof the 8ap!let famil$


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And InThe Bl!e ,orner-The Montag!es

Lord "ontague

Lady "ontague

Romeo, son of #ontag!e

#en/olio, nephew of #ontag!e and friend of Homeo

#althasar, ser"ant of Homeo

Abram, ser"ant of #ontag!e

Th f N ith R d N #l


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Those of Neither RedNor #lue

+rince Escal!s, r!ler of Ferona

Merc!tio, a relati"e of the (rince and friend of Homeo

!riar La!rence, a ranciscan priest

!riar$ohn, another ranciscan priest

,o!nt +aris, a $o!ng nobleman, a relati"e of the (rinceAn Apothecar$* a dr!ggist +

+ageto (aris

,hief Watchman

Three M!sicians

An :fficer

,itiensof Ferona,Relati"esof both families

#askers, /!ards, :atchmen and Attendants

Ho) .o I Love Thee


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Ho) .o I Love Thee

Eli0a&eth Barrett Bro)nin'

'ow do I lo"e thee7 .et me co!nt the wa$s

I lo"e thee to the depth and breadth and height

#$ so!l can reach, when feeling o!t of sight

or the ends of )eing and ideal /race&

I lo"e thee to the le"el of e"er$ da$s

#ost G!iet need, b$ s!n and candle light&I lo"e thee freel$, as men stri"e for HightO


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I lo"e thee p!rel$, as the$ t!rn from (raise&

I lo"e thee with the passion p!t to !se

In m$ old griefs, and with m$ childhoods faith&I lo"e thee with a lo"e I seemed to lose

:ith m$ lost saints I lo"e thee with the breath,

Smiles, tears, of all m$ life and, if /od choose,I shall b!t lo"e thee better after death&


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An*

-uestions;


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!un !acts


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Li#e in 3


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More Li#e in 3


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Shake" Shake" Shake ( ( (

'o!ses had thatched roofs thick straw

piled high, with no wood !nderneath& It was the

onl$ place for animals to get warm, so all the

dogs, cats and other small animals *mice, b!gs+li"ed in the roof& :hen it rained it became

slipper$ and sometimes the animals wo!ld slip

and fall off the roof hence the sa$ing, =Its

raining cats and dogs&>


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Shake *our ( ( (

0here was nothing to stop things from falling

into the ho!se& 0his posed a real problem in the

bedroom where b!gs and other droppings co!ld

reall$ mess !p $o!r nice clean bed& 'ence, a bed

with big posts and a sheet h!ng o"er the top

afforded some protection& 0hats how canop$ bedscame into eistence&


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Are )e havin' #un *et;

As one might think, the floor was dirt& 0he wealth$ had slate

floors that wo!ld get slipper$ in the winter whenwet, so the$ spread thresh *straw+ on the floor to

help keep their footing& As the winter wore on,

the$ kept adding more thresh !ntil when $o!

opened the door it wo!ld all start slipping o!tside&

A piece of wood was placed in the entrancewa$,

hence, a =thresh hold&>


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Let%s +art*8

In those old da$s, the$ cooked in the kitchen with a bigkettle that alwa$s h!ng o"er the fire& E"er$ da$ the$ lit the fire

and added things to the pot& 0he$ ate mostl$ "egetables and did

not get m!ch meat& 0he$ wo!ld eat the stew for dinner, lea"ing

lefto"ers in the pot to get cold o"ernight and then start o"er thenet da$& Sometimes the stew had food in it that had been there

for G!ite awhile& 'ence the rh$me, =peas porridge hot, peas

porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine da$s old&>

Sometimes the$ co!ld get pork, which made them feel G!ite

special& :hen "isitors came o"er, the$ wo!ld hang !p their

bacon to show off& It was a sign of wealth that a man =co!ld

bring home the bacon& 0he$ wo!ld c!t off a little to share with

g!ests and wo!ld all sit aro!nd and =chew the fat&>


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More !un ( ( (

0hose with mone$ had plates made of

pewter& ood with a high acid content ca!sed

some of the lead to leak onto the food, ca!sing

lead poisoning and death& 0his happened mostoften with tomatoes, so for the net 4 $ears or

so, tomatoes were considered poisono!s&

Are *ou still a)ake;


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.ead c!ps were !sed to drink ale or

whiske$& 0he combination wo!ld sometimes

knock them o!t for a co!ple of da$s& Someone

walking along the road wo!ld take them fordead and prepare them for b!rial& 0he$ were

laid o!t on the kitchen table for a co!ple of

da$s and the famil$ wo!ld gather aro!nd and

eat and drink and wait and see if the$ wo!ld

wake !p& 'ence the c!stom of holding a

=wake&>

Are *ou still a)ake;

E l d i ld d ll d th l l f lk


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England is old and small and the local folks

started r!nning o!t of places to b!r$ people, so the$

wo!ld dig !p coffins and take them to a =boneho!se>and re!se the gra"e& :hen reopening these coffins, 1

o!t of e"er$ 25 coffins were fo!nd to ha"e scratch marks

on the inside, and the$ realied that the$ had been

b!r$ing people ali"e& 0he$ decided the$ wo!ld tie astring on the wrist of the corpse, lead it thro!gh the

coffin and !p thro!gh the gro!nd and tie it to a bell&

Someone wo!ld ha"e to sit o!t in the gra"e$ard all night

*the =gra"e$ard shift>+ to listen for the bellO th!s,someone co!ld be =sa"ed b$ the bell> or was considered

a =dead ringer&>

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