The life and times of William Shakespeare

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The life and times of William Shakespeare 1564-161
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• Contents
• Shakespeare's Biography
• Elizabeth 1
• James 1
• Elizabethan Society
• Superstition
• Fate
• Romeo and Juliet

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William Shakespeare
1564 Shakespeare born 1582 Shakespeare
marries 1583 Birth of daughter Susanna
The Queens Company is formed in London 1585
Birth of twins, Judith and Hamnet 1587-92
Departure from Stratford Establishment in London
as an actor/playwright

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Works The comedy of errors
Titus Andronicus The taming
of the shrew Henry V!, !,2,3
Richard 111 1593 Popularity sought
through aristocratic connections Works -
Begins writing the Sonnets
Two Gentlemen of Verona Venus
and Adonis Loves Labour's
Lost
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1594 Founding member of the Lord Chamberlain's
men Works - The Rape of
Lucrece 1594-96 The Lyrical masterpieces
Recognition as the leading London Playwright
Hamnet Shakespeare dies aged just 11
Works -Midsummer Nights Dream
Romeo and Juliet
Richard 11
Merchant of Venice


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1597-99 Artistic Maturity Purchases
New home along with other significant
investments The Globe Theatre is
built using the wood from The Theatre on the
bankside. Shakespeare is a shareholder and
receives 10 of the profits.
Works - Henry IV 1,2
The Merry Wives of Windsor
As You Like It
Much Ado About Nothing
Henry V
Julius Caesar
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1600-08 The period of great Tragedies and
Problem Plays The Fortune Theatre
opens Shakespeare's father dies
The Lord Chamberlains Men become
The Kings Men and perform at court more than
any other company Susanna
Shakespeare marries The Kings
Men begin playing at the Blackfriars
Shakespeares mother dies
Works- Twelfth Night
Hamlet
Macbeth
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Troilus and Cressida
Alls Well That Ends
Well Measure For
Measure
Othello King
Lear Antony and
Cleopatra
Coriolanus
Timon of Athens

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1609-11 Publication of Sonnets
Period of the Romances Works
-Pericles Prince of Tyre
Cymbeline The
Tempest The Winters
Tale
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1612-16 Shakespeare retires from London to
Stratford Works on collaborations with
John Fletcher Judith Shakespeare
marries Shakespeare is ill and revises
his will Shakespeare dies and is
buried at Holy Trinity Church, Stratford
Works - Henry V111
The Two Noble Kinsmen
Cardenio
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Elizabeth 1

• Born - September,7, 1533
• Died - March,24, 1603
• Queen of England (1558-1603)
• Enforced the Protestant religion by law but was
  not initially harsh to Roman Catholics
• The arts flourished during Elizabeths reign
• Elizabeth never married

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• She attended the first ever performance of
  Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights Dream
• Her reign was in danger as many Catholics began
  to plot against her
• Therefore she set harsh new laws against the
  Catholics when the plots were discovered

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James 1

• Born - June 19, 1566
• Died - March 27, 1625
• During his reign reading and learning flourished
  in the kingdom
• The King himself wrote well and extensively
• One of the most learned monarchs to ever sit on
  any throne
• He was therefore known as Britain's King Solomon

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• Shakespeare was the Kings most famous subject
• King James was a patron to Shakespeares reformed
  outfit The Kings Men
• He was very friendly with Shakespeare and lent
  the group money
• King James had a rich family background and
  Shakespeare derived inspiration from this for the
  play Macbeth
• Macbeth touches on King Jamess belief in the
  Divine Right of Kings but it is not a biography
  

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Elizabethan Society
Role of Women Females at this time were seen as
passive and submissive. They were not allowed a
proper opinion on things. Men were seen as the
dominant gender and were always more important
and aggressive than women. To contrast the
similarities and differences between men and
women Queen Elizabeth spoke out about the
difficulties of being in the most masculine role
possible for a women.As Queen of England she had
to learn to carry the power and responsibility of
her role. She had to make hugely important
decisions regarding the state of affairs in her
country. She was a politician and a woman and
because of her gender she was generally trusted
but some still had doubts. In fact in her own
words she states that she is a woman in a mans
job. For example in Elizabethan theatre, women
were prohibited from acting so men and boys had
to dress up and act out the part of being a
woman. Many of the boys were recruited from the
choirs of London churches and they acted their
parts very well and were totally accepted by
Elizabethan audiences. The first women actors did
not appear on the English stage until 1660.
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Role of the church Politics and religion were so
similar in the Elizabethan period that it was
difficult to determine one from the other. In
1581 an act was passed that made it treason to
withdraw English subjects from allegiance to the
Queen or her church, and fines for not going to
church were increased to twenty pounds (a
phenomenal amount at this time). The church was
very strict and dominated politics. Role of
politics Assumptions about politics are one of
the ways we differ most radically from people in
the Elizabethan Era. Most believed that something
approaching absolute monarchy was the natural
form of government. There may have been secret
revolutionaries, but they had little chance of
leaving us any evidence of their ideas. It would
not be surprising if most Elizabethans thought
that democracy was an unstable form of government
and monarchy was preferable. Shakespeare's
historical plays represent rebellion against a
rightful monarch as both a dreadful sin and an
appalling crime, which will certainly be punished
by God.
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Role of Sectarianism When Elizabeth became Queen
it was widely believed that she would restore the
Protestant faith in England. Marys persecution
of Protestants caused a lot of damage to
Catholicism in England, and the number of
Protestants were increasing steadily. Elizabeth
was a Protestant and although she was very
committed to her faith she believed in religious
toleration, however after years of religious
persecution Elizabethan Society showed
sectarianism rather than tolerance.
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Superstition
Elizabethans were very superstitious. They held
irrational beliefs concerning methods of warding
off ill or bringing good, foretelling the future
and healing or preventing sickness. Superstitions
were deeply influential. We can see evidence of
this in Shakespeare's characters. For example in
Macbeth Lady Macbeth believed her hands were
physically stained with her husbands blood
because of her murderous acts.
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Fate
As Shakespeare entered his period of tragedy
plays the audiences met the tragic heroes. Fate
was at the core of these tragedies. Destructive
forces combined with inner evils of the
characters which caused their downfall. The
tragic heroes were powerless against the forces
of fate. For example Brutus was the tragic hero
in Julius Caesar as he betrayed Caesar
resulting in his own downfall.
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Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet was written during a period when
Shakespeare had found the strength of his
writing. He would have been about 26years old
when he wrote it. Over the years it still stands
as one of the greatest and most popular plays
ever written. The story combines swordfighting,
disguise, misunderstanding, tragedy, humour, and
some of the most romantic scenes found in
literature, all in the name of true love.
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The Montagues and Capulates are the two chief
families of Verona. For years, they have been
enemies in a bitter feud. Their teenage children,
Romeo, a Montague and Juliet, a Capulate, meet by
accident at a grand party and fall instantly in
love. They secretly marry, but cannot escape the
consequences of their families savage quarrel.
Romeos best friend Mercuito is killed by Tybalt
of the Capulates. In revenge, Romeo kills Tybalt
and is banished from Verona. Friar Lawrence
devises dangerous plans to help Romeo and Juliet
be together in happiness, but his schemes go
terribly wrong. Romeo believing Juliet is dead
kills himself to join her in death. Juliet
finding Romeo dead, also kills herself, not
wishing to live without him. Their deaths end the
quarrel between the Montagues and Capulates.
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The End