Warm up! Write down 3 facts you know about Shakespeare on a separate sheet of paper.

Things we know about Shakespeare… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6FW_JzmU_M&feature=related

Shakespeare: His Life and Times Adapted from http://www.public.asu.edu/~muckerrm/English_321_S2005/Introduction.ppt

Early Life Born April 23, 1564—died 1616 In Stratford-upon-Avon Parents: John and Mary Arden Shakespeare Mary—daughter of wealthy landowner John—glovemaker, local politician

Location of Stratford-upon-Avon From: http://www.where-can-i-find.com/tourist-maps.html

Shakespeare’s Birthplace From: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/danielle.esposito/

Education Probably attended King’s New School in Stratford Children learned their letters from a “horn book”. These were made of leather covered wood with a sheet of paper. They were sometimes worn around the neck.

King’s New School From: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/danielle.esposito/

Gender Girls Boys Most girls stayed home to learn housekeeping skills. Boys might go to grammar school between the ages of 7 & 15. They studied Latin, math, and sometimes Greek

Married Life Married in 1582 to Anne Hathaway (26), who was pregnant at the time with their first daughter (Susanna) He was 18! Had twins in 1585 (Hamnet & Judith) Sometime between 1585-1592, he moved to London and began working in theatre.

Anne Hathaway’s Cottage From: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/danielle.esposito/

Conditions in London-BAD! Thames River was polluted with raw sewage (eww) Lots of poverty

Personal Hygiene/Disease Bathing considered dangerous (most people only bathed once a year!) Body odor strong – people believed diseases were spread through bad smells, so they carried flowers with them or wore heavy perfume. There were many childhood diseases & children often died before 5 years  Small Pox Bubonic Plague

Living Conditions No running water Chamber Pots Open Sewers Crowded                   

Clothes One set was used all year long, rarely washed Underclothing was slept in, and infrequently changed

Theater Career Early actors performed in courtyards of inns First public theater was built in 1576 Daytime/open air Limited set design Relied on music, sound, costumes, props and great description

Theatre The Globe Theater was built in 1599 by the Lord Chamberlain’s Men theatre group with Shakespeare as primary investor. It was a 20-sided, three-story high open roofed theater It was built to hold up to 2,000, but often the number went as high as 3,000!! The stage was 49’ across and 27’ deep!! In 1613, during a performance of Henry VIII, a misfired canon ball set the Globe's thatched roof on fire and the whole theatre was consumed.

What you’d What’s find at the Globe Missing Open air roof Extra large stage Balcony Trap door Elaborate costumes Actresses Scenery Props Lighting Restrooms intermission

The Globe Theater

The Rebuilt Globe Theater, London

The Globe Theater

Actors All men Female parts played by young boys No actual kissing or hugging on stage

Groundlings/ Mosh Pit Poor audience members Stood around stage in “the pit”/the “yard” (around 1,000 people) Referred to as the Stinkards Threw rotten vegetables at bad performances If it rained, you got wet Refreshments available: hazelnuts, apples & ale (beer)

The cost of attending a show 1 shilling to stand (an entire day’s wage for a typical groundling) 2 shillings to sit on the stairs 6 shillings for a cushion, a roof covering, and the best view

The Plays Shakespeare wrote 38 plays Collaborated on several others

Comedies Usually have a happy ending Involve marriages Not necessarily funny White flag

Tragedies Most famous and popular plays Noble protagonist (TRAGIC HERO) Flawed in some way Placed in a stressful situation Ends with death (or many deaths…) Black flag Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth

Shakespeare’s death The cause of Shakespeare's death is a mystery, but an entry in the diary of John Ward, the vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford (where Shakespeare is buried), tells us that "Shakespeare, Drayton, and Ben Jonson had a merry meeting and it seems drank too hard, for Shakespeare died of a fever there contracted." He was 52. He is buried at Holy Trinity Church in his birthplace of Stratford.

What is the English that Shakespeare used?? It makes no sense…

Shakespeare’s Language Shakespeare did NOT write in “Old English.” Old English is the language of Beowulf: Hwaet! We Gardena in geardagum Þeodcyninga Þrym gefrunon Hu ða æÞelingas ellen fremedon! (Hey! We have heard of the glory of the Spear-Danes in the old days, the kings of tribes, how noble princes showed great courage!)

Shakespeare’s Language Shakespeare did not write in “Middle English.” Middle English is the language of Chaucer, the author of The Canterbury Tales: Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote The droghte of March hath perced to the roote And bathed every veyne in swich licour, Of which vertu engendred is the flour;

The General Prologue Original Middle English: Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote The droghte of March hath perced to the roote And bathed every veyne in swich licour, Of which vertu engendred is the flour; Modern Translation When fair April with his showers sweet, Has pierced the drought of March to the root's feet And bathed each vein in liquid of such power, Its strength creates the newly springing flower; http://www.breme.demon.co.uk/chaucer.htm

Shakespeare’s Language Shakespeare wrote in “Early Modern English.” EME was not too different from “Modern English,” except that it used some pieces of Middle English.

A few examples of Shakespearean omissions/contractions follow: 'tis ~ o'er ~ gi' ~ ne'er ~ i' ~ e'er ~ oft ~ e'en ~

Reading Shakespeare: A Review Unlocking Shakespeare's Language, by Randal Robinson Unusual Word Arrangements I ate the sandwich. I the sandwich ate. Ate the sandwich I. Ate I the sandwich. The sandwich I ate. The sandwich ate I. Robinson shows us that these four words can create six unique sentences which carry the same meaning.  Locate the subject, verb, and the object of the sentence.  Notice that the object of the sentence is often placed at the beginning (the sandwich) in front of the verb (ate) and subject (I).  Rearrange the words in the order that makes the most sense to you (I ate the sandwich). 

Shakespeare’s Poetry We speak in prose (language without metrical structure).  Shakespeare wrote both prose and poetry (verse).  To understand his poetry , we need to understand these terms:

Iambic Pentameter: 5 iambs to a line Iamb: unstressed/stressed pattern of 2 syllables Ex. Your heartbeat (lub DUB) Penta: 5 Lub DUB/ lub DUB/ lub DUB/ lub DUB/ lub DUB = iambic pentameter Iambic Pentameter: 5 iambs to a line