Transcript Introduction to Shakespeare

Introduction to
Shakespeare
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
An Introduction to the Playwright and his
Play, Romeo & Juliet
Biographical Information

Born: Stratford-Upon Avon, England April 23,
1564
 Parents, John and Mary (Arden)
 Married Anne Hathaway, November, 1582
 Three children: Susanna, Hamnet, and Judith
Shakespeare’s Birthplace
William Shakespeare
Born 1564, died 1616
 Wrote 37 plays
 Wrote over 150 sonnets
 Actor, poet, playwright

The Bard
Playwright, Poet, Actor

Sometime in the 1580's William Shakespeare
left his family to pursue a career as a
playwright, poet, and actor in London.
 His success was immense. Shakespeare is
known to have written 154 sonnets and 37
plays.
 In fact, so prolific was Shakespeare as a writer
of sonnets, that a sonnet form has been named
for him. The Shakespearean sonnet is 14 lines
long with a rhyme scheme: abab, cdcd, efef,gg.
Types of Plays

Shakespeare wrote:

Comedies - light and amusing,
usually with a happy ending

Tragedies –serious dramas
with disastrous endings

Histories – involve events or
persons from history
Performing a Shakespearean Play
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Protestant Church, City officials opposed
theaters due to crime, bawdy subject
matter, fighting, drinking, and up to 3,000
people in one place to spread Bubonic Plague
Theaters also used for bear-baiting and gambling
1596 Plague caused London to ban all public plays and
Theatres within the City limits
All actors were men because theaters too disreputable for
women
Little emphasis on scenery, more attention on costumes,
though most were contemporary due to cost
Much of the audience watched from the ‘pit’ as groundlings
- poor workers who went for the entertainment of alcohol,
fights, prostitution, and lewd subject matter of the plays.
Often threw food at the actors onstage.
Shakespeare’s Theatre
• “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. 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)
The Theatre
•
The Globe
Theatre:
•
Open ceiling
•
Three stories high
•
No artificial
lighting
•
Plays were shown
during daylight
hours only
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.
 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.

The Stage
In Shakespeare’s Time (continued)
There were no actresses. All parts were
played by men or boys.
 There were no programs.
 The closeness of stage to the audience led
to use of "asides" and "soliloquies“.
 In front of stage was a big open area
where the "penny-public" stood to watch
as they could not afford seats.

Spectators

Wealthy people got
to sit on benches

The poor (called
“groundlings”) had
to stand and watch
from the courtyard
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There was much
more audience
participation than
today
Actors

Only men and boys

Young boys whose
voices had not
changed played the
women’s roles

It would have been
indecent for a woman
to appear on stage
Importance to English
Over 12,000 words entered English between
1500 - 1650
 Shakespeare’s plays show the first recorded
use of 2,035 new English words
 Macbeth, Hamlet, and King Lear have one
‘new’ word every 2.5 lines
 He created: “antipathy, critical, frugal,
dwindle, extract, horrid, vast, hereditary,
critical, excellent, eventful, assassination,
lonely, leapfrog, indistinguishable, well-read,
and countless others (including countless)”
(Bryson loc. 1396-1406).

Understanding Shakespearean
English
Read through the insults and compliments
and try some of your own
 What do you think some of them would
have looked like? Draw a picture of your
meanest insult or your nicest compliment
and explain what it is you’ve called your
friend (or enemy)
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Shakespeare’s English Continued
The following phrases were coined by Shakespeare. What do they mean
and how do we use them today. Choose at least four of them to use in
your own creative story:
A laughing stock (The Merry Wives of Windsor)
A sorry sight (Macbeth)
As dead as a doornail (Henry VI)
Eaten out of house and home (Henry V, Part 2)
Fair play (The Tempest)
I will wear my heart upon my sleeve (Othello)
In a pickle (The Tempest)
In stitches (Twelfth Night)
In the twinkling of an eye (The Merchant Of Venice)
Mum's the word (Henry VI, Part 2)
Neither here nor there (Othello)
Send him packing (Henry IV)
Set your teeth on edge (Henry IV)
There's method in my madness (Hamlet)
Too much of a good thing (As You Like It)
Vanish into thin air (Othello)
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.
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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.
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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.
Romeo and Juliet
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Considered a tragedy
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Tells the story of two
teenagers who risk
everything for love

Shakespeare is
exploring which is
stronger: love or hate
The Montagues
Lord Montague – father of Romeo
Lady Montague – mother of Romeo
Romeo Montague – in love with Juliet
Benvolio – nephew of Montague and friend of Romeo
Balthasar – servant to Romeo
Abram – servant to Montague
The Capulets
Lord Capulet – father of Juliet
Lady Capulet – mother of Juliet
Juliet Capulet – in love with Romeo
Tybalt – nephew of Lady Capulet
Nurse – takes care of Juliet
Peter – servant to Juliet’s Nurse
Other Characters
Prince Escalus – ruler of Verona
Mercutio – kinsman of the Prince and friend of
Romeo
Friar Laurence – a Franciscan priest
Friar John – another Franciscan priest
Count Paris – a young nobleman
Things to think about…
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What would you do if your
parents did not approve of
someone you were dating?
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How important is the opinion of
your family in decisions that you
make?
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Does violence solve problems?