1. By: William Shakespeare

2.  For all his fame and celebration, William Shakespeare remains a mysterious figure with regards to personal history.  William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, allegedly on April 23, 1564. He died on his birthday.  It is estimated that Shakespeare arrived in London around 1588 and began to establish himself as an actor and playwright.  His company was the most successful in London in his day. He had plays published and sold in "penny-copies" to the more literate of his audiences.  Never before had a playwright enjoyed sufficient acclaim to see his works published and sold as popular literature in the midst of his career. In addition, Shakespeare's ownership share in both the theatrical company and the Globe itself made him as much an entrepreneur as artist.  William Shakespeare's legacy is a body of work that will never again be equaled in Western civilization. His words have endured for 400 years, and still reach across the centuries as powerfully as ever.

3.  In medieval and Tudor, England, the Twelfth Night marked the end of the winter festival.  January 6th is the twelfth night after Christmas. It is the official end of the Christmas season.  On Twelfth Night, the Lord of Misrule is chosen and symbolizes the world turning upside down.  On this day the King and all those who were the socially elite would become the peasants and vice versa.  At the beginning of the Twelfth Night festival, a cake that contained a bean was eaten. The person who found the bean would rule the feast.  Midnight signaled the end of his rule and the world would return to normal.  The common theme was that the normal order of things was reversed.

4.  Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night was written to be performed as Twelfth Night entertainment.  The earliest known performance took place at Middle Temple Hall, February 2, 1602.  The play has many elements that are reversed, in the tradition of Twelfth Night.

5.  Daily grades  Participation in scenes and reading  Classroom activities and assignments  Quizzes  Writing summaries and identifying the significance of the scenes and/or major events  Identification and definition of unfamiliar words  Writing personal thoughts about and making connections between the scenes  Choosing and discussing memorable lines

6.  Summative (test grades)  You already have 2 for this six weeks-they will be put in the grade book over the break.  Your final summative grade will be discussed when we get back from break.

7.  Peevishly – irritably; rudely  Stooping – bending down  Churlish – peasant-like  Pregnant – significant  Proper-false – good looking but deceitful  Waxen – made of wax  Fadge – succeed; turn out well  Soliloquy – when the actor is on stage alone and reveals his inner most thoughts to the audience