Humanities & Classics 1002
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Renaissance Forum
Humanities & Classics 1002 |
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Brief History of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare as born in April, 1564 to John and Mary Shakespeare. According to the records of Stratford's Holy Trinity Church, he was baptized on April 26. Since it was customary to baptize infants within days of birth, and since Shakespeare died 52 years later on April 23, and - most significantly - since April 23 is St. George's day, the patron saint of England, it has become traditional to assign the birthday of England's most famous poet to April 23.
William's father, John Shakespeare, was a glover and a whittawer (a maker, worker, and seller of leather goods). John Shakespeare also held many public official positions: mayor, town councilman, and justice of peace.
William's mother was Mary Arden. She came from a wealthy family who paid a handsome dowry to marry her off. She bore John eight children, of which, William was the third born and the first son.
William received all of his education at the Stratford Grammar School. He studied classics written in Greek and Latin. His education was said to have ended there.
On November 28, 1582 the Bishop of Worchester issued the marriage bond for "William Shagsere" and "Ann Hathwey of Stratford." The banns were asked only once in church, rather than the customary three times. This was because Ann was three months pregnant at the time. Anne was also eight years older than her new husband William.
On May 26, 1583 their first daughter, Susanna, was baptized. Two years later, twins were born to them, Hamnet and Judith. Hamnet died at the age of eleven in 1596. No evidence was found of Shakespeare between the years of 1585 - 1593. These years of Shakespeare's life were called "The Lost Years."
In London, Shakespeare established himself as an actor who began to write many plays. In 1593, he found a patron, Henry Wrothsley, to sponcer him. During this time, he wrote two long poems. His first long poem, "Venus and Adonis", was written in 1593. In 1594, he wrote his second, "Rape of Lucrece."
The theaters opened back up after the plague during this year also. Shakespeare worked for "Lord Chamberlain's Men" company who later became "The King's Men" in 1603 after King James I took over.
As an actor, writer, director, and a stockholder in "The King's Men" company, Shakespeare had multiple sources of income. He was becoming a very wealthy man. In 1597, Shakespeare bought New Place which was a very large house for his family to live in.
Shakespeare left London in 1611 and retired. On March 25, 1616, Shakespeare made a will. He died on April 23, 1616 at the age of fifty-two. The cause of his death was unknown. Many people believed that Shakespeare knew he was dying; however, he didn't want anyone to know that he was.
At Shakespeare's time, after the graveyard was full, they would dig one's corpse up and burn the person's bones in a huge fireplace. Some people would strip the corpse after burial. Shakespeare hated this type of treatment of the dead, so he wrote his own epitaph.
"Good Friends, for Jesus' sake forbear,
To dig the bones enclosed here!
Blest be the man that spares these stones,
And curst be he that moves my bones."
Due to the fact that the people of this time were superstitious, no one ever bothered his corpse. A while ago, a few people wanted to dig him up and check his bones to be sure that the person buried there was Shakespeare. However, the government would not allow it.
In 1623, Shakespeare's first folio was published. The Folio included: 154 sonnets, 37 plays, and 2 long poems. His friends compiled all of his works into this folio before anyone could reproduce his plays and claim as their own.
Plays, Sonnets, and Poems by William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare is often called the world's most renowned playwright and the greatest writer of all time. He has produced works continuing to be popular such as Hamlet, Othello, and Romeo and Juliet. No writer's living reputation can even compare with Shakespeares'. His plays, written in the late 16th century and the early 17th century are now preformed and read more often and in more countries than ever. Shakespeare produced 37 plays, 154 sonnets and many other poems throughout his writing career.
It can be (and has been) said that perhaps no other body of work, except maybe the Bible, has been studied or written about more than Shakespeare's works. No other writer has had more influence on the literary and social culture of Western Civilization. It is difficult to comprehend the huge impact Shakespeare's writing has had on our culture and language as we know it today.
A number of Shakespeare's plays were first printed in quarto versions. A quarto version consisted of a large paper folded into four sections and then used as a material Shakespeare sometimes wrote his plays on. The first quarto happens to be a bad quarto, probably a memorial reconstruction of Hamlet pieced together by a group of actors, some of whom probably played minor roles in a Globe Production. Despite much scholarly argument, it is often impossible to date a given play precisely and accurately. Shakespeare's plays have been dated as accurately as possible in the years past.
Shakespeare is astonishingly clever with words and images. He uses his mental energy and applies it to intelligible human situations making them convincing and imaginatively stimulating. The art forms in which his creative ideas went into were remote and bookish but involved vivid stage impersonations of human beings and therefore commanding sympathy and inviting outstanding audience participation. The audience members at Shakespeare's plays often felt they were personally involved with what was going on the stage which was a part of the excitement and popularity of his plays.
Shakespeare's sonnets often include, and sometimes mock, traditional themes such as blind devotion, the value of friendship, and the enslaving power of love. Some of his works include the typically Renaissance concern for immortality that is preserved through love and art. Along with his plays, Shakespeare's sonnets have had a huge effect on the development of what we know as modern English language.
Shakespeare based most of his plays on things in the world that interested him at the time he was writing. His historical plays show his interest in England's medieval past and its rise to power over the Tudors. His comedies display wit and exuberance never been seen in earlier forms of that genre. The tragedies were a result of his more mature career. The comedies are what really brought out his talent as a playwright and made him the commonly thought, greatest English playwright of all time. Shakespeare took situations in love, sex, jealousy, greed, ambition, and self-deception and examined these human experiences in his plays. It has been said that Shakespeare was the first in Western literature to examine the psychological forces that motivate human actions.
Shakespeare had a amazing writing career that could never be summarized in so short of a document. The extent of his writings has amazed many readers from the time it was written and still today. If you are interested in finding more out about Shakespeare's life and his writings, these links should be a helpful source for more information:
Shakespeare's Plays
Shakespeare's sonnets
Play summaries
Globe Theatre
Hamlet
Othello
Romeo and Juliet
Sources;
http://168.216.219.18/projects/shaksp/skakes.htm
http://daphne.palomar.edu/shakespeare/timeline/birth.htm
