By Dana Levin

Family Background Education The Lost Years His Works His Legacy Questions for discussion

Born William Shakespeare around April 23, 1564 Third child of John and Mary Shakespeare 7 brothers and sisters Two older sisters, Joan and Margaret, died as infants of the Bubonic Plague William’s mother was from a wealthy family His father was vendor of farm produce They earned a comfortable living

William attended a “Petty School” from ages 5 to 7. He attended King Edward IV Grammar School from ages 7 to 14. In 1578, at the age of 14, William left school due to his family’s financial problems. He never went on to a formal University, as most boys would at that time.

Very few documentation from Shakespeare’s life from this time In 1582, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway In 1583, their first child, Susanna was born In 1585, their twins, Hamnet and Judith, were born In the mid-to-late 1580s, he left his family and moved to London to pursue a career in acting

Shakespeare began acting and by 1592 was well known enough to be attacked in print by playwright Robert Green in Groats-Worth of Wits From 1594, all of Shakespeare’s plays were performed by Lord Chamberlain’s Men, which became the leading theatre company in London. In 1599, members of the Company built the Globe Theatre, where many of Shakespeare’s greatest plays were performed. Queen Elizabeth I attended many performances of his works. Shakespeare died on April 23, 1616; his 52 nd birthday

In 1593, His first play, Henry VI Part 1 was produced by the Acting Troupe, Lord Strange's Men, at the Rose Theatre. Poems include Venus and Adonis, A Lover’s Complaint, The Phoenix and the Turtle, and The Rape of Lucrece. 154 sonnets including “Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer’s Day?” and “My Mistress’ Eyes”

38 plays divided into 3 categories Comedies As You Like It A Midsummer Night’s Dream The Taming of the Shrew Tragedies Hamlet Macbeth Romeo and Juliet Histories Richard III King Henry VI King Henry VIII

William Shakespeare is the most widely read of all authors His work’s popularity in English speaking countries is second only to the Bible His works have been translated into every known language He introduced new vocabulary and phrases: Brave new world (The Tempest) Wild-goose chase (Romeo and Juliet) Cruel to be kind (Hamlet)

Shakespeare created new words and usages for words by changing their parts of speech and combining word parts. He is credited with inventing nearly 1700 new words, among them: Assassination Lackluster Embrace Softhearted

Suspicion has arisen as to the authenticity of Shakespeare as an author. Suspected authors include Francis Bacon William Stanley, the 6 th Earl of Derby Christopher Marlowe Edward De Vere, the 17 th Earl of Oxford Oxfordian Theory vs. Scholars Subjective vs. historical methods

What is your favorite Shakespearian work? Why? There is question as to Shakespeare’s authorship of his works. What are your feelings about this? Should today’s students be reading Shakespeare? Or should instructors today adhere to a curriculum that focuses on more modern writing? Plainly speaking, is Shakespeare outdated?

"WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE BIOGRAPHY." WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE. Web. 29 Oct "William Shakespeare Facts at AbsoluteShakespeare.com." Absolute Shakespeare - Plays, Quotes, Summaries, Essays... Web. 29 Oct Wise, Jennifer, and Craig Stewart Walker. The Broadview Anthology of Drama: Plays from the Western Theatre. Vol. 1. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview, Print.