1. An Introduction to the Playwright and his Play, Julius Caesar
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
An Introduction to the Playwright and his Play, Julius Caesar
Click on me

2. Biographical Information
Born: Stratford-Upon Avon, England April 23, We know this from the earliest record: his baptism which happened on Wednesday, April the 26th, 1564.
The parish Register for Stratford records William's baptism on 26 April 1564 (here reproduced from a facsimile of the nineteenth century):
Click on me
Shakespeare’s Birthplace

3. Biographical Information
Third child of John and Mary Shakespeare
Seven siblings
John was also a prominent man Stratford.
William's mother was Mary Arden who married John Shakespeare in 1557.
Biographical Information
Schooling begun at age four or five in the petty school
attending from six or seven o'clock in the morning until five or six o'clock in the evening, six days a week.
learned to read and write and would perhaps have been introduced to some elementary arithmetic
Married: May 26,
1583
Feb. 2, 1585
Twins: Hamnet,
and Judith
April 23, 1616
An Upstart is characteristic of someone who has risen economically or socially but lacks the social skills appropriate for this new position - To crow is to boast and a crow is a scavenger who steals from others - Greene clearly dislikes the 'Upstart Crow'!
April 23,
1564
The Lost Years: to London
Back to Stratford
The first reference to Shakespeare as an actor / playwright was in He was attacked in a pamphlet, written by a a well-known poet and playwright called Robert Greene
An Upstart is characteristic of someone who has risen economically or socially but lacks the social skills appropriate for this new position - To crow is to boast and a crow is a scavenger who steals from others - Greene clearly dislikes the 'Upstart Crow'!
The years from are considered the "Lost Years" because there are no public documents regarding Shakespeare's whereabouts.
Nov. 27, 1582,
His success was immense. Shakespeare is known to have written 154 sonnets and 37 plays.
April 23,
1564
a marriage license was granted to "Wm Shaxpere [and] Anne Hathaway
The first reference to Shakespeare as an actor / playwright was in 1592Robert Greene
"upstart crow"

4. Shakespeare’s Theatre
Click on me
“The Globe Theatre, also known as the Shakespeare Globe Theatre, was not only one of most famous playhouses of all time, but the play house where Shakespeare performed many of his greatest plays.

5. Shakespeare’s Theatre
Built from oak, deal, and stolen playhouse frames, the 3 story, 3000 capacity Globe Theatre, co-owned by William Shakespeare has become almost as famous as the playwright himself.”
( Absolute Shakespeare)

6. Shakespeare’s Theatre
1596, a Dutch student by the name of Johannes de Witt attended a play in London at the Swan Theatre.
While there, de Witt made a drawing of the theatre's interior.

7. The Globe Theater constructed in 1599.
was three-stories high and had no roof.
could together hold more than 1,500 people.
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.

9. The Globe Theater
The first play we know of that was performed at Shakespeare's famous playhouse was Julius Caesar in 1599.
Click on me

10. The Stage In Shakespeare’s Time
A show lasted about 2 ½ hours, usually in open air theatres during the afternoon.
There were no acts, but frequent intermissions.

11. The Stage In Shakespeare’s Time
There was no scenery, but elaborate props and costumes to give reality.
Devices such as trap doors and scaffolds were used to make gods, witches, etc. disappear.

12. The Stage In Shakespeare’s Time (continued)
There were no actresses. All parts were played by men or boys.
There were no programs.
In front of stage was a big open area where the "penny-public" stood to watch as they could not afford seats.

13. The Stage In Shakespeare’s Time (continued)
Cost to attend:
1 Penny
2 Pennies
3 Pennies
wage roughly 10 % of a worker’s daily
Globe audiences had to put one penny in a box by the door which would pay for a view of the play by standing on the ground, in front of the stage. To sit on the first gallery would cost another penny in the box which was held by a collector on the front of the stairs. To sit on the second gallery, you put another penny in the box held by the man at the second flight of stairs.

14. Points of Shakespeare's Style:
Use of metaphors– comparing something in terms of something else, i.e. "That lowliness is young ambition’s ladder".
Use of soliloquies– usually longer speeches given by characters when alone on stage– e.g. a person talking to himself out loud.
Use of asides– when a character says something to the audience, but the other characters on stage cannot hear it, e.g. like muttering to himself.
Click on me

15. Points of Shakespeare’s Style: (continued)
Use of sonnets– a very rigid poetic style of writing. Fourteen lines consisting of three sets of four line quatrains and a two line rhyming couplet at the end. Rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG, e.g.
Use of puns– humourous plays on words indicating different meanings.
i.e. the Cobbler says, "A trade, sir, that I hope I may use with a safe conscience, which is indeed a mender of bad soles.” A cobbler is a mender of shoes or a bungler.

16. On the road to Rome
Julius Caesar first performance. First printed 1623 William Shakespeare never published any of his plays and therefore none of the original manuscripts have survived. Eighteen unauthorised versions of his plays were, however, published during his lifetime in quarto editions by unscrupulous publishers (there were no copyright laws protecting Shakespeare and his works during the Elizabethan era

17. On the road to Rome
A collection of his works did not appear until 1623 (a full seven years after Shakespeare's death on April 23, 1616) when two of his fellow actors, John Hemminges and Henry Condell, posthumously recorded his work and published 36 of William’s plays in the First Folio.

18. On the road to Rome
History of the drama Julius Caesar is a dramatization of actual events. He was assassinated in 44 B.C. It is believed that his mother endured agonizing surgery in order to extract him at birth. This belief gave rise to the term "Caesarean birth"  William Shakespeare's Main Source for the work Shakespeare found the story in Caesar, Parallel Lives, by Plutarch. He may have also referred to Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales (The Monk's Tale).

19. Early Rome Rome was established in 753 B.C.
For 200 years ruled by Tarquin kings who were tyrants
The Tarquins were overthrown by Lucius Junius Brutus in 510 B.C. – an ancestor of Brutus in the play.
A democratic republic was then established which lasted until the death of Julius Caesar.
The Romans were very proud of their democratic system and were repulsed by the thought of being ruled by a king.

20. Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar was born in 100 B.C.
Click on me
Gaius Julius Caesar was born in 100 B.C.
He gained power and wealth due to a series of successful campaigns in which he conquered what is now Britain, France, much of central and eastern Europe, and parts of North Africa.
The quote, “veni, vidi, vici” is aptly credited to Julius Caesar. I came. I saw. I conquered.

21. Julius Caesar
Shakespeare certainly had good reason to write about Julius Caesar.
This Roman emperor was well known in the Elizabethan public's mind - he was, after all, the one who led the first Roman ships to Britain's shores in 55 B.C. and paved the way for the Roman occupation of Britain.
When he became dictator, he was arguably the most powerful ruler the world had ever known.
He also died in spectacular fashion

22. What Did Caesar Do for Rome?
He built roads.
He developed irrigation systems.
He financed public parks and buildings.
He even made changes to the calendar.
Indeed, he was well liked and very powerful.

23. What Got Caesar into Trouble?
It appears he was much more interested in things other than military conquest.
After a series of civil wars that lasted until 48 B.C., Caesar declared himself Rome’s dictator for life.
Many people believed that Caesar wanted more than just power; he wanted a powerful title.

24. What Got Caesar into Trouble? (Continued)
Many Romans assumed that Caesar was ready to declare himself King of Rome and eliminate the five hundred year old republic of which the Romans were so proud.
In 60 B.C. Caesar came to power as part of a TRIUMVIRATE

25. What Got Caesar into Trouble? (Continued)
In 60 BC the first triumvirate (3-person governing body) was formed.
It consisted of Caesar, a famous general named Pompey, and a wealthy man named Crassus

26. What Got Caesar into Trouble? (Continued)
Remember the Tarquins, the tyrant kings who ruled over Rome for 243 years?
There was no way Romans were going to return to that style of government.
Someone had to put a stop to this pursuit of absolute power, and so enter the conspirators.

27. What Got Caesar into Trouble? (Continued)
Caesar returned to Rome and was accepted by the people for his military abilities. He was loved for all of the goods he brought back from his conquests, and he was elected Dictator for Life.
...Beware the Ides of March!

28. Caesar’s Coins
Caesar was the first Roman to have his face put on a coin while he was still alive
The Romans believed only ancestors (now semi-divine spirits) and gods could be pictured
Caesar was equating himself with gods and Eastern kings

29. The Message (maybe!) This coin was issued during the war with Pompey.
The snake probably represents Caesar (snakes were a symbol of health, luck, and rebirth)
The elephant represents Pompey, and identifies him with Hannibal, a would-be destroyer of Rome whose power had been based in Spain too.

30. The Aftermath
Caesar’s body is cremated in a massive public demonstration in the Forum. A temple is built to Divine Julius in that spot.
The temple of divine Julius
"Temple of Caesar." Roman Forum. Web. 9 Mar 2010.

31. The Aftermath The conspirators are forced to flee.
Civil war again breaks out, with Caesar’s right-hand-man, Marc Antony, and his heir, Octavian, conquering the armies of Brutus, Cassius, and the Senators.

32. Caesar’s Lasting Impact
His Commentaries are one of the great pieces of Latin literature.
He inspired one of Shakespeare’s most celebrated plays.
His reform of the calendar has been changed very little over the past two millenia.
The month July is named for him.

33. Play Versus The History
Therefore, there is much historically accurate information, but a story to entertain the audience must also unfold.
Yes! There is much to learn from the works of William Shakespeare.
As we study this play, remember Shakespeare wished not only to inform his audience about the history of Julius Caesar but also to entertain them.

34. Play Versus The History
Of course, Shakespeare had to gather historical details. He read one major work: Sir Thomas North's translation of the ancient historian Plutarch's Lives.
But Shakespeare's Julius Caesar is not a history book, nor was it his intention to write a piece of Roman history.

35. Play Versus The History
It is a play, based on the
a. Events of Caesar's murder
b. Pressures on the characters around him
c. for the conspirators and Rome in general.

36. Shakespeare’s Purpose
He is not so much interested in the facts but uses them to:
Present something from his own imagination that would entertain his audiences (the first thing to think about, obviously)
Make audiences think: challenge them to look beyond the story and look at the way human beings act towards each other.

37. Just for Fun July! Roads parks Irregation systems
"Fori Imperiali." A Guide to Rome and Small Town Lazio. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2012
Click on me
Irregation systems
Little Caesar's Pizza
Click me
"Fori Imperiali." A Guide to Rome and Small Town Lazio. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2012
pizza! pizza!

38. Works Cited
“Absolute Shakespeare”. Online. Internet. May 9, Available:
“Converse: The Literature Web Site”. Online. Internet. May 9, Available:
Goldberg, Neil Dr. “Rome Project: Maps of the Roman Empire”, Online. Internet. May 9, Available:
“Julius Caesar: The Last Dictator”, Online. Internet. May 9, Available:
“Roman Empire Map”, Online. Internet. May 9, Available:
Roy, Ken, ed. Julius Caesar. Toronto: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1987.
Saliani, Dom, Chris Ferguson, and Dr. Tim Scott, eds. Introducing Shakespeare. Toronto: International Thomson Publishing, 1997.
“Shakespeare’s Birthplace”. Online. Internet. May 9, Available:
“Shakespeare Online”. Online. Internet. May 9, Available:

39. Works Cited www.youtube.com www.teachertube.com