1. Shakespeare’s Life and Times/ Romeo and Juliet
Background Information

2. William Shakespeare
Perhaps the most famous playwright/ author in the world to this day
Born (April 23rd is celebrated as his birthday)
Born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England (100 miles west of London)
Agricultural center, market town
Married Anne Hathaway of Stratford in 1582
Had three children with her
“lost years” – not much is known about him.

3. William Shakespeare
Theatres were closed due to outbreak of the plague
During this time, it is believed that Shakespeare made social connections with others.
.1594
Theatres reopened.
Shakespeare is listed as treasurer of the Queens Chamber (an acting guild)

4. William Shakespeare Between 1594 and 1599
Shakespeare wrote a lot
Principle actor and manager for Chamberlain's men
Prospered financially, made investments
1599 – became part owner of the Globe Theater
1603 – James I becomes king of England –
Shakespeare’s company performed for him 11 times.
Around 1608 – stopped writing plays
Died in 1616 at the age of 52.
Credited with writing 37 plays and 154 sonnets

5. Shakespeare’s Works Four Main “types” of writing
Comedies
Histories
Poems/Sonnets
Tragedies
Also other works attributed to him called “Aprocrypha”

6. Shakespeare’s Works Comedies Histories
Has a happy ending – usually involves marriages
Light-hearted tone
Emphasis on situations, multiple plots
Clever servants
Examples – The Comedy of Errors, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, Taming of the Shrew
Histories
Mostly based on the lives of English kings
Used other people’s writings of English and Roman history to write these plays
Often viewed as Tudor propaganda
Examples: King John, Richard II, Henry V, Henry VIII

7. Shakespeare’s Works Sonnets About 154 poems
Themes of love, time, beauty, mortality
Structure:
14 lines total
Three four-line stanzas (called quatrains)
Final couplet (2 lines) in iambic pentameter
Rhyme Scheme (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG)

8. Shakespeare’s Works Tragedies
Linked to Aristotle’s ideas about tragedy:
Noble/Admirable Protagonist - Audience must like, understand, and sympathize with main character
Protagonist has a tragic flaw –
Hamartia – character flaw
Hubris - pride
Catastrophe/ Fall ending in death
Fate/Fortune
Catharsis – emotional purging – fall evokes pity and terror in audience (ie. The audience feels bad for the main character)

9. Shakespeare’s Works Tragedies ALSO influenced by Roman Tragedies
Revenge plays a big role
Tyranny – main leader with a lot of power over others
Excessive violence/bloody horror (everyone dies)
Further influenced by the world he lived in
Hierarchy of people (kings, nobles, serfs, etc.)
Order is given by God
Order is disrupted in tragedy
Internal forces – human weakness
External forces – bad luck/fortune
Order is restored through an authority figure

10. Shakespeare’s Works Tragedies - Characteristics
Noble but flawed characters
Motivated by – spiritual virtues, feelings, sincerity, glory/failure
Plot - Key features -
Cause and effect
“tragic destiny” or fate
Protagonist has an inner struggle
Always ends in death.
At the very end, might leave audience with some sort of “hope”.
Examples: Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, Macbeth, Hamlet, Othello, and many more

11. The Theatre during Shakespeare’s Time
No women actors – women’s roles were usually played by younger boys
The plays were usually written by actors, people kept in mind certain people to play certain roles
Audience –
close packed
no reserved seats for commoners
Would throw food/hiss/boo
No scenery - words describe what is supposed to be “seen”
Costumes were elaborate

14. Romeo and Juliet Based on existing material – old poems and plays
First published in 1597
Genre: tragedy
Setting: Italian city of Verona (mostly)
14th century
Protagonists: Romeo and Juliet

15. Romeo and Juliet Themes – a theme is a universal idea
Hastiness
Infatuation
Selfishness
Forcefulness of love
Individual vs. Society
Inevitability of fate
Motifs – help explore themes
Light/dark
Opposite points of view

16. Romeo and Juliet “comic relief” in the form of lesser characters
Specifically the nurse
“fights” to get audience excited about the play
“thumb-biting” – like giving the middle finger
Shakespeare uses “puns” or plays on words to keep audience interested/entertained
Characters divided into two “sides” – kind of like two gangs.
Capulets vs. Montagues

17. Terms you should be familiar with
Theme, Motif, symbol , metaphor, simile, pun, allusion, analogy, aside, iambic pentameter, blank verse, characterization, irony, dramatic irony, monologue, oxymoron
(you already defined these in web activity)

18. Terms you should be familiar with
Protagonist – “good guy” / who story is about
Antagonist – “bad guy” works against the main character
Dramatic structure – structure of the play
Conflict – struggle between characters or forces
Figurative language – language that is NOT meant to be taken literally.
Foreshadowing – hints or clues about what is coming up.

19. Terms you should be familiar with
Imagery – language that appeals to senses
Motivation – why a character does something
Personification – figure of speech in which something non-human is described as human and/or given a personality
Suspense – makes audience uncertain about what’s going to happen next
Soliloquy – speech in which a character is alone on stage and expresses thoughts aloud

20. Irony – three types
Irony – portrays differences between appearance and reality
1. dramatic irony – contrast between what the audience sees and what the character does not know
2. situational irony – contrast between what is EXPECTED and what actually happens
3. verbal irony – contrast between what is SAID and what is meant (most common)