By Sophia, Hannah and Elena Shakespeare’s Life By Sophia, Hannah and Elena

Question 1: Write a brief biography of Shakespeare, outlining significant dates in his life and career?

1564. William Shakespeare was born in Stratford 1564. William Shakespeare was born in Stratford. John and Mary Shakespeare were his parents. His actual birthday is unknown but assumed and celebrated today on April the 23rd, his baptism was recorded on April the 26th in Holy Trinity Church. 1582. Shakespeare was in love. At age 18, he marries Anne Hathaway (26 years old) 1585-1592. Shakespeare was believed to have left to join a group of actors as both playwright and performer, starting his career in theatre. + 1585. Shakespeare’s twins, Judith and Hamnet were born. = 1589- 1591. Shakespeare was believed to have written Henry VI 1592-93. Shakespeare was thought to have written the poem Venus and Adonis and the plays Richard III and The Two Gentlemen of Verona.

1599. Julius Caesar is performed at the Globe Theatre. = + Play 1605. The Merchant of Venice is performed twice at King James’ Court 1607. Hamlet and Richard III are performed aboard the British ship 1611. The Tempest was written. = 1613. The Globe Theatre burned to the ground. 1614. The Globe Theatre reopens. = 1616. William died on April 23rd, his burial being recorded in the Stratford Holy Church Register two days later. 1619. Hamlet was performed as part of Christmas celebrations at court. = + Christmas Play

Question 2 What sort of education did Shakespeare have and how might this have influenced his plays?

The Education of William Shakespeare

The Education Of William Shakespeare There are no specific records relating to the education of William Shakespeare or his attendance at school but reasonable assumptions can be made based on the information that is available William Shakespeare would have attended King Edward IV Grammar School in Stratford-upon-Avon from the age of 7 in 1571 and left school and formal education when he was fourteen in 1578

The Petty School Elizabethan boys were at first sent to a 'Petty School' between the ages of 5 and 7 years old to start their education Petty School education would have consisted of being taught lessons in behaviour (e.g. table manners) and to learn the catechism.

Shakespeare At Grammar School The Grammar School education of William Shakespeare would have included Latin and probably Greek though it is not clear if Shakespeare was taught Greek at King Edward IV Grammar School The education of William Shakespeare continued by studying the works of the great classical authors and dramatists such as Ovid, Plautus, Horace, Virgil, Cicero and Seneca The teachers of William Shakespeare were predominantly Catholic so William's education would have been influenced by their beliefs (One of his teachers, Robert Dibdale was ordained a Catholic priest, and was martyred in 1586)

LIFE AT GRAMMAR SCHOOL Life at the Grammar school would have been very strict Education for William Shakespeare consisted of more than double of the current school hours (summer: 6 am –5pm; winter: 7am –4pm; 5 full and one half day) Lessons were based on constant repetition of subjects and there were continuous examinations William Shakespeare would have been expected to talk in Latin all the time in order to improve his fluency in the language - any boy caught speaking English at school was punished (The Punishments were e.g. fifty strokes of the cane) William Shakespeare may well have been involved in performing some Greek and Latin classical drama as entertainment at the end of term – this might have been where he began to be interested in acting

William Shakespeare Finishes His Eductaton At The Age Of 14 Due to his father's financial problems, William Shakespeare was withdrawn from education in 1577 at the age of fourteen Therefore, he missed any form of higher education where he would have had access to subjects such as Arts, Philosophy, Rhetoric, Poetry, and many others.

Question 3: What type of character did Shakespeare usually act out on stage?

Few people realize that aside from writing 37 plays and composing 154 sonnets, William was also an actor who performed many of his own plays as well as those of other playwrights (e.g. from Ben Jonson).

It is not known exactly how many roles Shakespeare played himself, but we do know that Shakespeare had began his career on the stage by 1592, because there is reference to this in Robert Greene's “Groatsworth of Wit”.

So, what type of character did Shakespeare usually act out on stage? References after Shakespeare's death suggest that he usually acted out the parts of older men. Adam in “As You Like It” Kings in plays like “Henry the Fourth”, Part One, the Ghost in Hamlet, and so on.

Here is a list of the plays and the parts he probably played: All's Well That Ends Well: The King As You Like It: Adam and Corin The Comedy of Errors: Egeon Coriolanus: Menenius Hamlet: The Ghost Henry the Fifth: The Chorus and Mountjoy Henry the Fourth, Part One: King Henry Henry the Fourth, Part Two: King Henry and Rumour Henry the Sixth, Part One: Bedford Henry the Sixth, Part Two: Suffolk Julius Caesar: Flavius King John: King Philip A Midsummer Night's Dream: Theseus The Merchant of Venice: Morocco, Messenger, and the Duke Much Ado About Nothing: The Messenger and the Friar Othello: Brabantio Pericles: Gower Richard the Second: Gaunt and the Gardener The Taming of the Shrew: The Lord (Induction) Timon of Athens: The Poet