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Introduction to Shakespeare

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Introduction to Shakespeare

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Contents

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Shakespeare’s life

Shakespeare’s times

Shakespeare’s theatre

Shakespeare quiz

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Youth and childhood

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564. His father, who ran a glove-making and wool-dying business, was a fairly wealthy man. From the age of seven to fourteen the young William Shakespeare probably attended the local grammar school, where he would have been force-fed a diet of Greek and Latin, geometry and arithmetic.

…the whining schoolboy, with his satchelAnd shining morning face, creeping like snailUnwillingly to school.

From As You Like It, Act Two, Scene Seven

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Making his mark

At eighteen Shakespeare married a local woman, Anne Hathaway, who was already three months pregnant with his child. The couple had three children in all – an unusually small family by the standards of the day. Their only son, Hamnet, died at the age of eleven.

Not a lot is known about what Shakespeare did during his early manhood. What we do know, however, is that by 1590 he had moved to London (probably leaving his wife and children behind in Stratford) and was working as an actor and playwright. His works were well received and he went on to write almost forty plays over the next twenty years. He also attracted wealthy patrons from the courts of Elizabeth I and James I.

Which of Shakespeare’s plays can you name?

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Global empire

In the second half of his career, Shakespeare also became a theatrical manager. In 1599 his troop (the Lord Chamberlain’s Men) built their own theatre, the Globe.

In 1613 the theatre burned to the ground when the wadding for the cannon used to create special sound effects caught fire. It was, however, rebuilt with a tile roof the following year.

What else can you find out about the Globe?

A reconstruction of the Globe, built near its original site, opened in 1997.

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Death

Shakespeare died in Stratford at the age of 52. He penned the following lines for his tombstone:

Can you explain what this curse means?

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William Shakespeare

What else can you find out about Shakespeare?

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