The Life and Work of William Shakespeare

Mr. SweeneySouthwest High School

The Life and Work of William Shakespeare

Shakespeare has been variously called:The greatest dramatist

who ever livedThe greatest writer of any

kind in the history of the English language

The Bard of Stratford

Early LifeBorn in Stratford-on-Avon in

1564First child of John and Mary

Shakespeare to surviveJohn was a glover and

prominent Stratford citizen who would eventually fall on hard times

William received a basic education in Stratford

London

Stratford

Stratford-on-Avon

William married Anne Hathaway in 1582 – he was 18 and she was 26 and pregnant with their first child

They would have three children: Susanna, Judith, and Hamnet (who died in 1596 at age 11)

William and Anne spent most of their married life apart

Early Life

Sometime between 1585 and 1590, Shakespeare joined an acting troupe based in London

He became a writer and eventually a part-owner in the troupe

His first plays were performed around 1590

Theatrical Career

Shakespeare’s plays were very successful, and he invested his earnings wisely

He returned home to Stratford for good around 1610

He died on his birthday in 1616 and was buried in Stratford, in the same church where he was baptized

Later Life

Acting was not a respected profession during Shakespeare’s day, so acting troupes needed the patronage (support) of a powerful noble to operateShakespeare’s troupe was called the Lord

Chamberlain’s Men, then later the King’s Men

Elizabethan Theater

Women were legally barred from acting, so boys in makeup played the female roles

Most acting troupes traveled regularly, so they had to keep productions simplePlays had no sets; actors described the setting

of each sceneCostumes were minimal

By Shakespeare’s day, some troupes had started building their own theaters

Elizabethan Theater

Shakespeare’s troupe built the Globe Theater in 1599; most of his plays were first performed there

It burned down only 14 years later, but a rebuilt Globe now stands near the original’s spot

Shakespeare’s Theater

Shakespeare’s Theater

Shakespeare’s TimeWe refer to this period as the

Elizabethan Age because of the queen who ruled England from 1565-1603

It was a time of great social and religious upheavalThe Renaissance had finally

reached England, bringing radical new ideas on all topics

Protestants and Catholics competed for control of the country

The Tragedy of MacbethShakespeare wrote The Tragedy of

Macbeth in 1605 or 1606It was performed for the new king,

James IWe believe Shakespeare wrote it

with James in mind:1. James liked short plays and it is

Shakespeare’s shortest tragedy2. James was Scottish by birth, and it

takes place in Scotland3. One of James’s ancestors is a

prominent character in the play4. The play reflects James’s views on

witchcraft