The World of Shakespeare

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The World of Shakespeare

• English IV

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Shakespeares Life

• William Shakespeare was an English playwright
  from the 16th Century.
• He was born 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon.
• He died on April 23, 1616.

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• At the age of 18, he married an older woman, Anne
  Hathaway.
• He had 3 children- Susanna and twins, Hamnet and
  Judith.
• He left them in Stratford to go be an actor and
  playwright in London

Shakespeares wife probably didnt look like
this.
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Elizabethan Theatre

• When Shakespeare was in London, Elizabeth I was
  the queen (1558-1603). This was called the
  Elizabethan Era.
• There was an explosion of literature and theater
  during this era. It is also called the English
  Renaissance because so much great art and culture
  developed during this time.

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• Shakespeare first entered the theater as an actor
  traveling with different acting companies.
• At the age of 27, he decided to try writing
  plays.
• His plays were popular when he was alive but
  nowhere close to how popular they are today.
• He wrote 38 plays in total, although his
  authorship is questioned (what does that mean?)

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Shakespeares Plays

• Shakespeare looked for pre-existing stories for
  inspiration. He changed many details, but he
  never started from scratch when writing plays. He
  was a famous borrower of other peoples ideas.
• His works can be traced back to various literary
  sources and incidents in his life and the world
  around him. His writing was influenced by Roman
  and Italian authors.

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• Shakespeare wrote 4 types of plays
• Comedies
• Humorous (Obviously)
• Tragedies
• Have fatal endings
• Histories
• Chronicle the lives of royalty
• Romances
• Weird hybrid plays (not exactly comedy or
  tragedy)
• He also wrote 154 sonnets, 3 long narrative
  poems, Several other poems

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Theater in the Elizabethan Age

• Elizabethans wanted plays with lots of
  excitement, romance, dirty jokes, ghosts,
  stabbings and sword fights.
• If they were not pleased, the audience would
  throw rotten eggs and vegetables at the actors.

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• Women were not allowed to act, so men had to play
  all parts. Young boys would often play the parts
  of women.

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The Original Globe Theater

• The original theater was built in 1599 by the
  acting company, Lord Chamberlains Men. Most of
  Shakespeares plays were performed here.

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• The Globe was 3 stories high, octagon-shaped and
  had an open air court in the middle. The stage
  reached into the middle area and was surrounded
  by tiers of seats that had a roof over them.
• The upper- and middle- class sat in the seats.
• The poor people (called groundlings) paid a
  penny to stand in the center.

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Acting in The Globe
There were no electric lights, sound effects, or
big sets in The Globe. All performances took
place during the day when there was light for the
audience to see.
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• Because all the plays took place on a bare stage
  in the daytime, Shakespeare had to use language
  to convey time of day, weather, and mood.
  Characters who talk about how dark it is are
  setting the stage for the audience.

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Hamlet

• The most famous work in the English language
• Hamlet has been performed more times than any
  play ever written. There are dozens of film
  versions as well.

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Interesting Facts

• Shakespeares son was named Hamnet. Shakespeare
  wrote this play shortly after his son died.
• The Ghost of Old Hamlet and his brother Claudius
  are often played by the same actor.
• Hamlet is often called the Gloomy Dane because
  he is so depressed.

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Theatrical Devices

• Tragedy- the main character is brought to ruin or
  suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a
  consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or
  inability to handle bad circumstances.
• Soliloquy-

a long conversation by a person who is talking to
him or herself. It is intended to tell the
characters innermost thoughts. The character is
usually on stage alone.
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The End

• ENJOY!