William Shakespeare Life and Times

Birth William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England on April 23, The only record we have of this evidence is the baptism records of the local church. According to tradition, a baby was always baptized three days after birth. The records show that Shakespeare was baptized on April 26.

Meet the Shakespeares William Shakespeare was the third out of eighth children born to John and Mary Shakespeare. His father John was a glove maker and served on the town’s city council. During Shakespeare’s youth, the family did well financially, but had troubles later on when John Shakespeare received many fines for not attending church.

Elizabethan England The time in which Shakespeare lived is called Elizabethan England. It is called this because of Queen Elizabeth I, who was on the throne at the time.

Elizabeth England: Facts This is a time very different from our own. Here are a few facts about this era. – The life expectancy was 47 years of age – Half of women died in childbirth – The average marriage age was 16 for women and 17/18 for men – Hygiene was an unheard of concept; most of the deaths were a result of disease or infection

Facts Part II – Only wealthy male children were educated and knew how to read – Female children who were not wealthy learned domestic tasks such as taking care of the home, children and leaning how to cook – Wealthy female children learned how to organize the duties for the many servants keep the household in order

Facts Part III – Wealthy or not, the main job of the male was to provide for his wife, children and any helpless relatives living in his home – It was the duty of women to marry and provide heirs for the family. This was particularly important for wealthy families because they needed to keep the money in the family.

Background Information During Shakespeare’s time, the two religions, Protestant and Catholic had many disagreements with each other. It is difficult to understand Shakespeare understanding the religious world in which he lived. Although the queen was a Protestant, there were many people who disagreed with her and refused to follow her religion

Henry VIII Queen Elizabeth’s father, Henry VIII brought the Protestant Reformation to England; however, he did not do so for religious purposes. Henry VIII wanted to divorce his wife, and when the Pope refused to allow this to happen, he left the Catholic Church and began his own church in England.

Henry VIII continued This split from the Catholic Church left many people upset, and they refused to change their religion. They felt that they should not have to change their religion because their king could not get the divorce he wanted. Because of this, many civil wars occurred, which resulted in the deaths of many people on both sides.

Elizabeth I By the time Henry’s daughter, Elizabeth, inherited the throne, the country had been torn apart from all the religious wars. To unite her country, Elizabeth insisted that everyone followed the same religion. She argued that if the country did not stay united, they could fall to foreign powers. Therefore, everyone had to follow the Protestant religion and were fined for not doing so.

Protestant Education According to Elizabeth’s laws, everyone had to follow the Protestant religion and all the schools had to teach the same religious texts. It is through this religious environment and Protestant textbooks that Shakespeare learned his lessons as a small boy. Many historians believe that John Shakespeare was fined for skipping church because he was secretly a Catholic. Those who were Catholic were accused of being spies for foreign countries, mainly Spain.

Anne Hathaway (not the actress) When he was 18 years old, William Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who was 26 at the time. Shakespeare had to get a special license to get married because one was not allowed to get married during Lent. Six months later, their first child Susanna was born followed by twins, Hamnet and Judith twenty months later.

The Lost Years From , there is no record of Shakespeare’s activities. For this reason, these years are known as the “lost years”. The only information we have is that Shakespeare left Stratford sometime after 1585 and ended up in London in Many historians have different ideas about what happened to Shakespeare during his time, but no one knows for sure.

Elizabethan Theater During the Elizabethan era, people had different ideas about the theater. Some religious groups felt that acting was a sin and that all who participated in the theater were going straight to hell. These religious groups (who later formed into the Puritans) felt that it was their duty to save the actors, writers and other theater workers from a life of sin.

The Theater Continued… However, those groups were in the minority. Most Elizabethans loved the theater and would go to see a play whenever they could afford to do so. The theater was the main source of entertainment; part of the reason for this is that Queen Elizabeth herself was a very eager fan of the theater. She went to many plays and funded theaters, acting groups and other sources of entertainment.

The Globe The most famous theater during this time was the Globe Theater. This was the theater in which Shakespeare worked during the first half of his career.

The Globe Continued… Unlike today’s theater, the most expensive seats were in the back. The middle class would sit on wooden benches below the balconies. The lower classes would stand on the ground in front of the stage. They were called the “groundlings.”

Women in the Theater Women were strictly prohibited from acting or participating in any way on stage. It was considered very improper for a woman to act on stage. The female roles were played by men as well, particularly, boys whose voices had not changed yet.

Shakespeare’s Death Throughout his career, Shakespeare wrote 138 plays, 154 sonnets and 2 narrative poems. Shakespeare retired from the theater business in 1613 and moved back home to Stratford. He died on April 23, His fortune was left to his wife and daughters (his son had died at the age of eleven) One unusual item he left for his wife in his will was his second best bed.

Shakespeare’s Grave GOOD FRIEND FOR JESUS’ SAKE FORBEARE, TO DIGG THE DUST ENCLOASED HEARE. BLESE BE THE MAN THAT SPARES THES STONES, AND CURST BE HE THAT MOVES MY BONES. Because of limited spacing, graves were usually dug up a few years after the person died to make room for the newly deceased. In order to avoid this happening to his grave, Shakespeare put a “curse” on his tombstone.

Aristotle Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher who is known to the be father of drama (theatre, not the girls’ bathroom). In his writing, Poetics, he documents the criteria for both comedies and tragedies, the formulas for which are still followed to this day. Shakespeare adheres to Aristotle’s formulas, but adds a Christian perspective to them.

Key Points of a Tragedy As documented in Poetics, the elements of a tragedy are thus stated: The hero (protagonist) must have a flaw which leads to his downfall There is a reversal of fortune His fate is brought about by the gods (or in Shakespeare’s case, God); he has no control over it

Key Points of a Comedy According to Aristotle, a comedy must have the following criteria: The main characters involved must be nobility There must be a threat of death The conflict must be resolved from an unlikely source The story must end in a marriage (promise of children)