William Shakespeare  Born 1564, Stratford-upon-avon, England  Attended a free grammar school, did not attend university  Married a Pregnant Anne Hathaway, eight years his elder, in 1582  2 Daughters; younger, Hamnet, died of unknown causes

Shakespeare’s theatre  Moved to London 1588  Became actor and playwright for Lord Chamberlain’s Men theatre company  In 1599 became part owner of the Globe Theater  Queen Elizabeth I, queen of England, greatly enjoyed the theatre and Shakespeare’s troupe would perform for her often.

The Globe Theatre  A three-story wooden building that held up to 3000 theatergoers  The center was an open courtyard with a platform stage  us/virtual-tour us/virtual-tour

Shakespeare’s Legacy  Throughout his life, Shakespeare is credited for having written 154 sonnets, 10 tragedies, 10 histories, and 17 comedies.  Many claim that Shakespeare copied much of his work, though it has never been proven.

3 Play Types  Tragedy --a play that traces the main character’s downfall  Comedy- -a play that ends happily and that usually contains many humorous elements  History --a play that chronicles the life of an English monarch

the tragic hero  Protagonist, usually of importance or high rank  Displays a tragic flaw  Flaw leads to downfall

Shakespeare’s Style  Play dialogue is mostly poetry  Generally written in blank verse, or unrhymed lines of iambic pentameter  Iambic pentameter: fixed pattern of rhythm, or meter, in which most lines contain five unstressed syllables each followed by a stressed syllable

Iambic pentameter example From Julius Caesar Act I, Scene ii u / u / u / u / u / Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look; u / u / u / u / u / He thinks too much, such men are dangerous.

Soliloquy/aside  Soliloquy : a long speech given by a character while alone on stage to reveal his or her private thoughts or intentions  Aside : a character’s quiet remark to the audience or another character that no one else on stage is supposed to hear

life  Born 100/102 BCE  According to legend, Caesar was born by caesarean section--thus that is the origin of that term  Child of Aurelia & Gaius Caesar-- neither rich nor influential during this period, but had noble roots

The General  Roman general and politician who conquered most of gaul--a land that covered most of present day France and Belgium  Eloquent, arrogant leader, known for military bravery and ruthlessness  Ambitious; senate became increasingly nervous of his power

Caesar’s Rise to Power

Civil War  While in Rome, Caesar fought a civil war against his former friend and ally, Pompey.  The battles spread as far as Egypt, ending with Caesar’s victory in 46 BC.

The Downfall of Julius Caesar Caesar was very self-centered. Some say he tried to make himself a living god. coins with his picture on them held many celebrations for his victories allowed his statues to be decorated like those of the gods wore the laurel headpiece and purple toga

Caesar’s death  On March 15, 44 BC, Caesar attended his last senate meeting  60 conspirators led by Marcus Brutus, and Gaius Cassius came with daggers concealed in their togas  The men struck Caesar at least 23 times as he stood at the base of pompey’s statue.

And so it begins…  Opens in 44 BC with Caesar a general and ruler of the roman republic  Celebration of his military victory over Pompey  leaders are troubled by his power and the possibility of his dictatorship

Key Characters  Julius Caesar – great, power-hungry Roman general and senator seduced by people’s idolization of him  Brutus - Loves Caesar, but fears his rise in power for sake of Rome  Cassius – shrewd, sly general who dislikes that Caesar has become godlike in eyes of public  Casca – public figure opposed to Caesar’s rise in power  Antony – friend of Caesar; masterful orator; stirs crowd to revolt against conspirators  Octavius – Caesar’s adopted son and successor  Calpurnia – Caesar’s superstitious wife  Portia – Brutus’ wife and confidante