Transcript Shakespeare PowerPoint

Shakespeare: His Life and Times
Adapted from
http://www.public.asu.edu/~muckerrm/English_321_S2005/Introduction.ppt
Early Life
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(Probably) Born April 23, 1564
Died April 23, 1616
Lived in Stratford-upon-Avon, England
He was the 3rd born of 8 children
Parents:
• Mary—daughter of wealthy landowner
• John—glovemaker, local politician
Location of Stratford-upon-Avon
From: http://www.where-can-i-find.com/tourist-maps.html
Stratford-upon-Avon in Shakespeare’s Time
As reproduced in William Rolfe, Shakespeare the Boy (1896).
Stratford-upon-Avon Today
From Stratford’s web site: http://www.stratford-upon-avon.co.uk/index.htm
Shakespeare’s Birthplace
From: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/danielle.esposito/
Education
• Thought to have attended King’s New School in
Stratford
• Left school at age 15
• Educated in:
• Rhetoric
• Logic
• History
• Latin
King’s New School
From: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/danielle.esposito/
Married Life
• At 18, he married 26 year-old Anne
Hathaway, who was pregnant at the time
with their first daughter
• First daughter was born in 1582
• They had twins in 1585
• Around 1587, they moved to London and
William began working in theatre.
Anne Hathaway’s Cottage
From: http://perso.wanadoo.fr/danielle.esposito/
The Poet
• He was first a successful poet, and
published poetry in 1593
• Two major poems:
• Venus and Adonis
• Rape of Lucrece
• 154 Sonnets
• Nickname: The Bard of Avon
The Actor
• Member and later part-owner of an acting group
called the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, later called
the King’s Men
• This successful group eventually decided to
build a theatre that would bring together the
social elite as well as common peasants…
THE GLOBE THEATRE!
The Playwright
• 38 plays firmly attributed to Shakespeare:
• 14 comedies
• 10 histories
• 10 tragedies
• 4 romances
• Collaborated on several others
• Many of his plays were performed at the
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre
• Built in 1598 by Lord Chamberlain’s Men,
with Shakespeare as primary investor
• Open-air, octagonal amphitheater that could
seat up to 3000
• In 1613, the Globe burned down during a
canon fire during Henry VII
• It was rebuilt, only to be shut down by the
Puritans in 1642
• The new and improved Globe Theatre
opened in May 1997 thanks to Queen
Elizabeth II!
The Rebuilt Globe Theater, London
Shakespeare’s Language
• Shakespeare did NOT write in “Old English.”
• Old English is the language of Beowulf
(written in the 8th century):
“Hwaet! We Gardena in geardagum
Þeodcyninga Þrym gefrunon
Hu ða æÞelingas ellen fremedon!”
(Hey! We have heard of the glory of the Spear-Danes
in the old days, the kings of tribes, how noble princes
showed great courage!)
Shakespeare’s Language
• Shakespeare did NOT write in “Middle English.”
• Middle English is the language of Chaucer, the
Gawain-poet, and Malory (14th century):
We redeth oft and findeth y-write—
And this clerkes wele it wite—
Layes that ben in harping
Ben y-founde of ferli thing…
(Sir Orfeo)
Shakespeare’s Language
• Shakespeare wrote in
“Early Modern English.”
• Shakespeare wrote most of his
works in the late 16th century and
into the early 17th century!
• EME wasn’t very different from
“Modern English,” and Shakespeare
helped standardize the style of
today’s language.
Shakespeare’s Language
• Shakespeare coined many words we still use
today:
• Critical
• Majestic
• Dwindle
• And quite a few phrases as well:
• One fell swoop
• Flesh and blood
• Vanish into thin air
• With bated breath
See http://www.wordorigins.org/histeng.htm
Historical Context
• The Renaissance
-Cultural rebirth of Europe: music, art, lit
-14th - 17th centuries
• Elizabethan Age
-Named after Queen Elizabeth I
-Ruled from 1558 - 1603
-Her love and interest in the arts
influenced the time period
Elizabethan
Theatrical
Conventions
 No electricity =
daytime only shows
 Women forbidden
to act on stage
 No scene changes
 Minimal props & costume
These
factors
influenced
the
performance.
 Soliloquy
 Aside
 Monologue
Types of
speech
 Dialogue
 Blood and gore
 Use of supernatural
Scare tactics
 Use of disguises /
mistaken identity
 Last speaker—highest in
rank (in tragedies)
 Multiple murders
(in tragedies)
 Multiple marriages
(in comedies)
Ultimately, Shakespeare
delivered what would keep the
audience intrigued:
 Controversial Topics
 Humor
 Sex / Sexuality
 Parties & Celebrations
 Deaths & Action