Download William Shakespeare

Elizabethan Age
1558 – 1603
“Golden Age of English History”
Elizabethan Age Facts
• 1558-1603
• Queen Elizabeth I under rule
• Relatively peaceful era
– Catholic Church and Protestants had become civil
with one another
– Battles between the monarchy & parliament had
come to an end before this era
• Birth of the English Renaissance
– Cultural & artistic movement in literature
– Produced many writers such as Shakespeare
Common Beliefs
• Believed the earth was the center of the
universe and fixed firmly in place
• Believed the planets provided influence which
affected humans
• Astrologers believed they could predict future
events based on the pattern of the stars
– Also believed they could plan the course of one’s
life based on the placement of the stars on one’s
birthday
Marriage Customs
• Arranged marriages
– Arranged by the fathers of the bride and groom in
order for both sides of the family benefit
– Arranged for wealth & reputation
– The choice of bride weighed heavily on the dowry the
bride & bride’s family would give for the groom
• A dowry was an amount of money, goods, and property
the bride would bring to the wedding ceremony
– Women had very little choice in who her husband
would be
– Brides & grooms many times met for the 1st time on
their wedding day
Marriage Customs
• The Age of Consent
– With parental permission
• Legal for boys to marry at 14
• Legal for girls to marry at 12
– Without permission, legal age was 21
• Wedding Arrangements
– With the local church
– Always religious ceremony
– Conducted by a minister
Marriage Customs
• Wedding Announcement
– 1st Stage = Crying the Banns
• Announcement of a couple’s intent to marry
• Still practiced today
• Had to be announced in the church 3 times on 3
consecutive Sundays or Holy days
• Marriage not announced beforehand were considered
to be conducted in secrecy & illegal
• Marriage & Wedding Bonds
– Fast track legal marriage
– Occurred when a couple married in haste
Marriage Customs
• Marriage & Wedding Bonds (cont’d)
– Acted as a contract, security, and proof to a
bishop that the issue of a marriage license was
lawful
– Accompanied by a sworn statement
– Required only one reading of the Banns
William Shakespeare
Life of William Shakespeare
• Known as “The Bard of Avon”
• World’s most performed & admired playwright
• World’s greatest & most famous poet &
playwright
• Born approximately on April 23, 1564 in Stratfordupon-Avon, England
Shakespeare’s Birth Place
Stratford-upon-Avon, England
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Father: John Shakespeare
– Whittawer: maker, worker and seller of leather
goods such as purses, belts & gloves
– Also was a dealer of agricultural commodities such
as wool, grain, malt and other farm produce
– Active in Stratford-upon-Avon government until
financial difficulties began
– Illiterate
– Died 1601 (60 years old)
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Mother: Mary Arden
– Married John Shakespeare in 1557
– Had eight children
• William was the 3rd child and first son
– Her role in the family was to bring up the
Shakespeare family
– Died September 9th, 1608 of unknown causes (68
years old)
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• 7 Brothers & Sisters
– Joan & Margaret : Died in infancy
– Gilbert, Joan, Anna : Died at 8 years old (Plague)
– Richard & Edmund : surviving siblings
Shakespeare’s Family Tree
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Education
– Attended the “Free School” Elementary School
• Motivation = Parents’ Illiteracy
• No proof of enrollment
• Learned how to read & write
– Learned how to read from a “hornbook”
» Hornbook = a single sheet of paper mounted on
a board and protected by a thin transparent
layer of horn
» Normally had alphabet and Lord’s Prayer
printed on it
Example of Hornbook
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Education (cont’d)
– At age 7, Shakespeare began Grammar School
• Studied Latin, Latin Grammar, ancient writers, and
mythology
• Learned to write and recite Latin
– At age 13 or 14, Shakespeare was withdrawn
from school by his father so that he could help
father run his business
– Also received education from his mandatory
attendance at church, where he was influenced
by the Bible, The Book of Common Prayer, &
Foxe’s Acts & Monuments
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Married Anne Hathaway
– November 28, 1582
– William was 18; Anne was 26
– Anne 3 months pregnant when they married
– Marriage done in haste
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Children
– 1st child: Susanna
• Born 6 months after William & Anne married
• May 26, 1583
– 1585:
• Twins born: Hamnet & Judith
–Hamnet died @ age 11 for unknown causes
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• The “Lost” Years
– 1586 to 1592
– Shakespeare moved to London
• Believed that Shakespeare moved to London to avoid
prosecution for poaching deer
• Leaves wife and children in Stratford
– Became involved in the theatre
• Strange’s Men
• Lord Chamberlain’s Men
– Began writing poetry and plays
– No record of Shakespeare’s activities until 1592 when
Shakespeare is criticized by a rival playwright
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Career
– Gained fame about age 21
– 1594: Charter member of Lord Chamberlain’s Men
(later became known as King’s Men in 1603 when
King James I took reign)
– Was an actor for about 20 years, which is where
he earned most of his money (1585-1605)
– Wrote 37 plays
• Wrote for kings
• Was paid approximately $40 to write a play
– Wrote 154 sonnets & 2 book length narrative
poems
Life of William Shakespeare (cont’d)
• Shakespeare’s Friends
– Ben Johnson
• English Renaissance dramatist, poet, and actor
– Christopher (Kit) Marlowe
• English dramatist, poet and translator of
Elizabethan Era
• Foremost Elizabethan tragedist before Shakespeare
– Richard Burbage
• Star of William’s theatre company, the Lord Chamberlain’s
Men
Ben Johnson
Christopher Marlowe
Richard Burbage
Shakespeare’s Inspiration
• Most of his characters were REAL people-many
based on historical figures
• Got ideas from other plays and poems in lieu of
his own personal experiences or current events
from local material
• Romeo & Juliet was based on the long narrative
poem The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and
Juliet written by Arthur Brookein 1562
• 1599 Julius Caesar was written; it was inspired by
Plutarch’s Lives of noble Grecians and Romans
Shakespeare’s Works
• Shakespeare’s early works can be divided into
4 groups:
1. The Classical Plays (comedies & tragedies)
2. The History Plays
3. The Narrative Poems and Sonnets
4. Experiments in comedy
Shakespeare’s Works (cont’d)
• 4 Major Works
– Romeo & Juliet
– Julius Caesar
– Hamlet
– Macbeth
Shakespeare’s Plays
• Popular & pleased his audiences
• Published 7 years after his death
• 1623 – First Folio published
– Collection of the supposed “true original copies”
of Shakespeare’s plays
Shakespeare’s Genius
• Had an understanding of the people
• Skilled with words
• The English language and theater has never
been the same since Shakespeare
Shakespeare’s Retirement
• In 1610, William retired to his New Place
– William bought home in 1597
– 2nd largest house in Stratford
– Only house to be made of brick at the time
Shakespeare’s Death
• Died April 23, 1616
– 52 years old
– Died of unknown causes
– In will, left wife “second best” bed
• Wife inherited 1/3 of his income of the estate and to
remain in house
• Principal bequests were to his daughter, Judith
• Daughter, Susanna, received 2 houses, all other lands &
menial residue
Shakespeare left the following words on his tombstone:
Good friend for Jesus sake forebeare,
to digg the dust encloased heare,
Bleste be ye man yt spares thes stones,
And curst be he yt moves my bones.
•
Why Shakespeare?
• Used more words than any other writer
– 21,000 words
– Words he created:
• Critic, assassinate, bump, gloomy, suspicious, hurry
– Phrases he created
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
“It was Greek to me”
“A sorry sight”
“In a pickle”
“To be or not to be”
“All that glitters is not gold”
“elbow room”
“The long and short of it”
Why Shakespeare?
• Appeals to all kinds of people in all times,
nations, ages, and levels
• Serious, funny, angry, ironical…
– Described as quiet, polite, good-natured man, &
loyal friend
• Does not make moral judgments
• Captures in words and actions all the great
problems that have tormented human beings
throughout the ages. We take comfort in the
fact that the hero has flaws and is not perfect.
The Globe Theatre
Facts about the Globe Theatre
• Built in 1599
• Where most of Shakespeare’s plays were
performed
• Built from the wood of “The Theatre”
• London’s most magnificent theatre ever seen
• Located across the Thames River
• Shakespeare was co-owner of “The Globe
Theatre”
• Motto: “All the world’s a stage”
• Also known as the “Wooden O”
Location of “The Globe Theatre”
Facts about the Globe Theatre (cont’d)
•
•
•
•
June 1613 – Theatre burned to the ground
Rebuilt in 1613
1642 – Closed by the Puritans
1996 – Reconstructed as “The New Globe
Theatre”
Then & Now
1599
1996
Layout of “The Globe Theatre”
• Could hold approximately 3,000 people
• To advertise a play, a colored flag was flown
indicating the type of play that would be
performed
• Large, circular or octagonal design, 3 stories high
• At the base of the stage, was the “pit” for the
groundlings to stand and watch the play
– Cost to stand: one penny
• Around the base was 3 levels of seating
– First 2 levels = Two penny Rooms
– Third Level = Penny Gallery
Layout of “The Globe Theatre”
Facts about Performances
• Minimum scenery, natural lightning, words in
play gave time & day of play
• NO female actresses
• Minimum furniture props
• Pig bladders filled with blood were used in
death/stabbing scenes
• No curtains
Actors
• Had to be able to fence, tumble, dance, sing,
and play two roles in one play
• Had to have strong voices with good elocution
(no microphones)
• Lord Chamberlain’s Men
– Acting company of “The Globe Theatre”
– Company consisted of 10-12 adults, 6 boy
apprentices & 2-3 stage hands
Costumes
• Authentic to the actor’s times
• Received by buying costumes cheaply from
servants who inherited them
• Color of Costumes was symbolic:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Dark Blue: Servant or Apprentice
Scarlet: ruler
Yellow: jealousy
Orange: pride
Azure blue: honor
Rose: gallantry
Women
• Theatre was not appropriate for women
• Only the extremely wealthy women were
allowed in the theatre but had to be escorted
by a Lord
• In the “Pit,” the Ladies of the Evening often
solicited business from the groundlings before
performance
Changes of “The Globe Theatre”
•
•
•
•
•
Moved once across the Thames River
Burned down
Closed once because of the plague
Shut down by Puritans
Reconstructed in 1996