1. An Interview with Shakespeare
Study Guide Review

2. Check Your Work!
1. What did Shakespeare consider his main profession to be? (Bloom: Knowledge)
He considered himself to be more of an actor than a writer.
2. Explain why Shakespeare might find it unusual for people to study his plays as examples of great literature. (Bloom: Comprehension)
His plays were meant to be acted out and watched instead of read.
3. What kind of play is Romeo and Juliet? (Bloom: Knowledge)
It is a tragedy.

3. Check Your Work!
4. How would you describe Shakespeare’s family life? How did it change as he grew older? Support your conclusion using examples from the interview. (Bloom: Analysis)
He can from a large, wealthy family. When he was only 18 he married Anne Hathaway and had three children. His son Hamnet died when he was only 11. Unlike his childhood family, his family with Anne was small. He left them to become an actor in London, so he didn’t have much of a family life as he grew older.

4. He moved to London to become an actor.
5. What event do we know occurred during the “lost years”? (Bloom: Knowledge)
He moved to London to become an actor.

5. 6. What is the name of Shakespeare’s theatre company
6. What is the name of Shakespeare’s theatre company? (Bloom: Knowledge) Why was it called that? (Bloom: Comprehension)
They were the Lord Chamberlain’s Men because Lord Chamberlain was their patron and only men were allowed to act.

6. 7. List three things that Shakespeare might have done during a regular day as an actor/playwright. (Bloom: Knowledge)
Eat breakfast at the Mermaid Tavern to discuss business. Rehearse and get the theatre and costumes ready for the show. Perform a play. Eat dinner at the Mermaid Tavern to count their money and discuss tomorrow’s show. Introduce a new play. Continue to write at night.

7. Check your work!
8. Who was Aemilia Lanier? (Bloom: Knowledge) She was a Venetian musician and poet who may have been Shakespeare’s Dark Lady.
9. What was the name of the theatre that Shakespeare helped build? (Bloom: Knowledge) The Globe

8. Puritans were also worried about the content of the plays.
10. Why do you think the Puritans, a strict religious group, wanted to close down the theatre? Why was the bubonic plague such a threat to Shakespeare’s profession? (Bloom: Analysis)
The plays attracted a rough crowd including prostitutes and pick-pockets.
Puritans were also worried about the content of the plays.
The bubonic plague was easily spread through large crowds, so theatres had to be shut down during an outbreak.

9. He left her his second-best bed.
11. What did Shakespeare leave his wife, Anne, in his will? (Bloom: Knowledge) How do you think she reacted? (Bloom: Analysis)
He left her his second-best bed.
She probably was not very happy, and her feelings may have been hurt.

10. 12. Based on what you know, how would you compare Shakespeare’s relationship with theatre to that of his relationship with his wife? (Bloom: Evaluation)
Shakespeare spent most of his marriage away from home because of the theatre.
I think he probably loved the theatre more than his wife because of how he chose to spend his time. I also think they might not have had a great relationship because of the age difference and because of what he left her in his will.

11. If you could interview Shakespeare, what would you ask
If you could interview Shakespeare, what would you ask? Write down at least one question that you still have about the life and/or times of Shakespeare.
(Bloom: Application)
Submit your final work!