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William Shakespeare’s Life
For all his fame and celebration, William Shakespeare remains a mysterious
figure in regards to his personal history. There are just two primary sources
for information on the poet: his works (his plays and poems), and various
legal and church documents that have survived from Elizabethan times.
William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, allegedly on April
23, 1564. Young William was born to John Shakespeare, a glover & leather
merchant, and Mary Arden, a landed heiress. William, according to church
register, was the third of eight children in the Shakespeare household.
Scholars maintain that Shakespeare attended the free grammar school in
Stratford. While there are no records existing to prove this claim,
Shakespeare's knowledge of Latin and Classical Greek would tend to support this theory. Shakespeare's
first biographer, Nicholas Rowe, wrote that Shakespeare’s father, John Shakespeare, had placed
William "for some time in a free school." The literary qualities of his works suggest a solid education.
What is certain is that William Shakespeare never proceeded to university schooling, which has stirred
some of the debate concerning the authorship of his works.
The next documented event in Shakespeare's life is his marriage to Anne Hathaway on November 28,
1582. William was 18 at the time, and Anne was 26—and pregnant. Their first daughter, Susanna, was
born on May 26, 1583. The couple later had twins, Hamnet and Judith. Hamnet died in childhood at
the age of 11.
For seven years, William Shakespeare effectively disappears from all
records, turning up in London around 1592. Rowe notes that young
Shakespeare was quite fond of poaching, and may have had to flee
Stratford. There is also rumor of Shakespeare working as an assistant
schoolmaster in Lancashire for a time. It is estimated that Shakespeare
arrived in London around 1588 and began to establish himself as an
actor and playwright. By 1594, he was not only acting and writing for the
Lord Chamberlain's Men (later called the King's Men), but was a
managing partner in the operation as well. When the plague forced
theatre closings in the mid-1590s, Shakespeare and his company made
plans for the Globe Theatre in the Bankside district, across the river
from London proper. While Shakespeare could not be considered
wealthy, by London standards, his success allowed him to purchase New
House and retire in comfort to Stratford in 1611.
William Shakespeare allegedly died on his birthday, April 23, 1616. This is probably more of a poetic
myth than reality, but Shakespeare was buried at Holy Trinity in Stratford on April 25. Shakespeare
died a popular, well-known playwright with a comfortable amount of money. In 1623, two working
companions of Shakespeare from the Lord Chamberlain's Men printed the First Folio edition of the
Collected Works. The First Folio also contained Shakespeare's sonnets.
William Shakespeare's legacy is a body of work that will never again be equaled in Western civilization.
His words have endured for 400 years, and still reach across the centuries as powerfully as ever.
The Elizabethan Age
Shakespeare lived during a remarkable period of English history, a time of relative political
stability that followed and preceded eras of extensive upheaval. Elizabeth I became the
Queen of England in 1558, six years before Shakespeare's birth. During her 45-year reign,
London became a cultural and commercial center where learning and literature thrived.
Queen Elizabeth recognized the importance of the arts to the life and legacy of her nation.
She was fond of the theater, and many of England's greatest playwrights were active during
her reign, including Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, and William Shakespeare. With her
permission, professional theaters were built in England for the first time, attracting 15,000
theatergoers per week in London, a city of 150,000 to 250,000. In addition to Shakespeare's
masterpieces of the stage, Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen, and
Sir Philip Sidney'sDefence of Poesie were all written during this golden age in the literary
arts. The Shakespearean sonnet, Spenserian stanza, and dramatic blank verse also came into
practice during the period.
Upon the death of Elizabeth, King James I rose to power in England. A writer himself, he displayed a great love of
learning, particularly theater. At the king's invitation, Shakespeare's theater company, Lord Chamberlain's Men,
became known as the King's Men, and they produced new works under his patronage. King James also
commissioned the translation of the Bible from Latin into English so that it might be more readily available to
those who had not studied the language of the educated class. Completed in 1611 by a team of scholars and monks,
the King James Version of the Bible has become the bestselling and arguably the most-influential book in the
world.
Unfortunately, King James surrounded himself with untrustworthy advisors, and his extravagant lifestyle strained
the royal finances and the patience of the Puritan-controlled Parliament. When James died in 1628, his son
Charles I ascended to the throne, and tensions between Parliament and the Crown increased. King Charles I
eventually lost a bloody civil war to the Puritans, who executed the King (his son Charles II fled to France). For a
dozen years, the Puritans enacted many reforms which included closing the theaters. The Commonwealth lasted
until Charles II returned from France, claimed the throne, and installed the Restoration. King Charles II also
reopened the theaters, but England's theatrical highpoint had passed.
The Bubonic Plague
William Shakespeare lived in the Elizabethan era when the Bubonic Plague, sometimes referred
to as the Black Death, was virulent. He was known to have a terrible fear of the deadly disease
and its consequences and this is hardly surprising as it touched so many areas of his life
including his life as an actor at the Globe Theater. There were high mortality rates amongst
Elizabethan children and this was true of the brothers and sisters of Shakespeare some of whom
were struck down by the Bubonic Plague (Black Death).
There were repeated outbreaks of the disease during the Elizabethan era and these outbreaks
were often transmitted by the fleas that lived on rodents and animals, especially rats. Contrary
to popular belief it was not just the people who lived in the towns who were at risk of catching
the Bubonic Plague. The disease could also be air bound and transmitted from an infected person's breath. A
devastating outbreak of the Elizabethan plague occurred in 1563 claiming 80,000 people in England. In London
alone, over 20,000 people died of the disease. This particular epidemic claimed between a quarter and a third of
the total Elizabethan London population. Statistics show that 1000 people died weekly in mid August, 1600 per
week in September, and 1800 per week in October. The cause of the Bubonic Plague (Black Death) was unknown
during the Elizabethan era so people were not in the position to take proper care or adequate precautions.
Inadequate hygiene standards added to the problem and spread of the disease.
In the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries victims of the Bubonic
Plague would be sealed in their houses. The houses would be locked
and bolted from the outside. The victims were not allowed to leave and
neither was anyone else allowed to enter. This action was equivalent to
signing a death warrant for the whole family and one of the terrible
consequences of the disease. Any victim of the Black Death would have
to obtain a “Certificate of Health” to resume normal life - if they
recovered.
The Globe Theatre & Plays in Shakespeare’s Day
The sketch at left is perhaps one of the most important in theatrical
history. In 1596, a Dutch student by the name of Johannes de Witt
attended a play in London at the Swan Theatre. While there, de Witt
made a drawing of the theatre interior. A friend of his, Arend van Buchell,
copied this drawing—van Buchell's copy is the sketch shown here—and in
so doing contributed greatly to posterity. This sketch is the only surviving
contemporary rendering of the interior of a public theatre during this time
period. As such, it's the closest thing historians have to an original picture
of what the Globe may have looked like in its heyday.
Shakespeare's Globe Theatre is a storied place. The original Globe was
built circa 1598 in London's Bankside district. It was one of four major
theatres in the area—the other three being the Swan, the Rose, and the
Hope. It was an open-air octagonal amphitheater that could seat up to
3,000 spectators. The theatre was three stories high. The rectangular
stage platform was nearly 43 feet wide and 28 feet deep and housed trap
doors in its flooring and rigging overhead for various stage effects.
In Shakespeare’s time there were no female actors.
Shakespeare himself even acted in some of his own plays, but
because it was such a long time ago, it is not known which
ones. The plays of this period of time were very last minute.
Some actors received their lines just before the play.
The Globe Theatre attracted many different types of
audiences. It brought the young and old, male and female.
This was mainly because of the variety of plays that were
performed there. At times some of the audience members
would ‘boo’ at the bad characters and cheer for the good ones.
The spectators had a range of seating options available. They
could choose to pay the cheapest ticket and be a “groundling”.
Groundlings stood the entire duration of the play. At The Globe Theatre, it is believed that two plays
were done every day, and that both of them were done in the afternoon. It was not done at night
because there was no artificial lighting.
In 1613, the original Globe Theatre burned to the ground
due to a cannon shot during a performance of Henry VIII
that ignited the thatched roof of the gallery. Construction
was begun on the original foundation, and a new Globe was
summarily completed before Shakespeare's death. The
new Globe continued operating as a theatre until 1642,
when it was closed down by the Puritans (as were all the
theatres and any place, for that matter, where people might
be entertained). In 1644, the Globe was knocked down in
order to build homes upon the premises.
In 1993, the late Sam Wanamaker saw the beginning of construction on a new Globe theatre near the
site of the original. This latest Globe Theatre was completed in 1996, and was officially opened by
Queen Elizabeth II in May of 1997 with a production of Henry V. The Globe is as faithful a reproduction
as possible to the Elizabethan model, and seats 1,500 people between the galleries and the
"groundlings." In its initial 1997 season, the theatre attracted 210,000 patrons.
Shakespeare’s Language & Iambic Pentameter
Although Shakespeare is obviously famous for being a playwright, his entire works are written as poetry.
Shakespeare wrote his plays partly in verse (poetry) and partly in prose (everyday language), freely alternating
between the two in the same acts and scenes. Verse is a collection of lines that follow a regular, rhythmic pattern.
Prose is the everyday language of conversation, letters, lectures, sermons, newspaper articles, book chapters, and
encyclopedia articles. Prose has no rhyme or rhythm. Servants and clowns often speak in prose in Shakespeare’s
plays, including Romeo and Juliet.
Shakespeare composed much of his plays in the form of poetry, often in a meter called iambic pentameter. Even
today, iambic pentameter is the most common meter used in English-language poetry. A regular line of the meter
contains roughly ten syllables, with heavier stresses falling on every other syllable. An iamb is a metrical unit, or a
"foot" of meter, made up of one unstressed syllable followed by one stressed syllable ("alive," "forget," "a dog").
Pentameter refers to the number of iambs in the line (penta is the Greek word for five, as in a pentagon). So there
are five iambs in a line of iambic pentameter. Blank verse is unrhymed iambic pentameter.
Here are two examples from Romeo and Juliet. ('bold' means stressed and 'italics' means unstressed)
My grave is like to be my wedding bed.
But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
One of the most interesting things about Shakespeare is his command of language. It is all the more amazing
when one considers Shakespeare's lack of formal education. There were no dictionaries. Shakespeare didn’t have
any extra education about the language than any other man would have during his day. Despite this, Shakespeare
is credited by the Oxford English Dictionary with the introduction of over 1,700 words into the language. His
vocabulary numbers upward of 17,000 words (four times that of an average, educated person).
The Authorship Debate
The Shakespeare authorship question is the argument that someone other than William Shakespeare from
Stratford-upon-Avon wrote the plays and poems that have been attributed to him. There was a William
Shakespeare, but the Shakespeare authorship question exists because not only is there no correlation between the
life of William Shakespeare of Stratford and the works credited to him, but the two directly contradict each other—
many say he just did not have the education or nobility to have accomplished such well-rounded works or writing.
This debate has been ongoing since the 1700s.
Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford: Since the 1930s this man has been considered by some as the true author
of Shakespeare's plays. A well-educated and well-traveled nobleman of Queen Elizabeth I's court, de Vere has been
considered by using connections of the Earl's life with material from the plays—for instance, noting similarities
between Polonius of Hamlet and de Vere’s guardian, William Cecil. The Earl of Oxford apparently stopped his literary
pursuits at an early age—unless the Earl continued writing under the pen name of William Shakespeare.
Francis Bacon, Philosopher and Writer: Bacon has been a traditional favorite of the anti-Shakespeare camp,
and retains a high place on the list of potential candidates. Bacon proponents point toward Bacon's learning, his mail
and memoirs (most notably, his notebook, Promus). Although Bacon was an undisputed man of letters, his style and
expression vary greatly from that of Shakespeare's works. Bacon also produced such a voluminous output of his own,
it's hard to conceive of him finding spare time enough to produce the quality and amount of work attributed to
Shakespeare.
Christopher Marlowe, Playwright: Marlowe would be the ultimate ghost writer, as he was stabbed to death in a
tavern brawl in 1593. However, there are those that say Marlowe really didn't die; according to some, he was actually
an occasional spy in the employ of the Queen. This eventually necessitated a fake death, after which Marlowe went on
for an undetermined number of years penning poetry and plays under the nom de plume of Shakespeare.
The traditional (Stratford) view; Shakespeare did write 37 plays and 154 sonnets.
Most academics agree that William Shakespeare wrote Shakespeare. Evidence for this comes from Parish records
confirming his birth in 1564, records of his life in London in the 1600s, his name as a part shareholder of the
Globe, his marriage certificate, his application to change his family’s coat of arms, and his recorded death in 1616.
Other evidence includes records of acting in his own and others plays. He was also both praised and criticized by
other actors in various publications during his time. Thus, most academics to believe that Shakespeare was in fact
the man who penned the plays and poetry for which he has become so famous.
Duels
Honor was of utmost concern to cavaliers and gentlemen of the period. And
it was to uphold honor that the duel was at times resorted to. Though
officially frowned upon, duels for the sake of honor continued in
Shakespeare’s lifetime.
The formality of the judicial combat—a duel which was to decide which of
two combatants was in the right over some issue—is seen in The Tragedy
of Romeo and Juliet with spontaneous and illegal duels between
characters. To start a judicial duel it was the responsibility of the injured
party to call out the opponent. The call or challenge was made by
throwing a glove, or dagger at the feet of the opponent. By the end of the
1600's this practice was abandoned in favor of a verbal challenge (in front
of witnesses) or by a written challenge. The Crown would be petitioned
for a field, to help settle the dispute by force of arms. The extra-judicial
duel was a private affair and it is this type of duel that most think of when
discussing duels in general. The extra-judicial duel was a criminal offense
and was held in contempt of the law.
For centuries a challenge to a duel was an honorable and expected response to
an insult among the upper classes in Europe. During the Middle ages, swords
were common weapons of choice for this one-to-one combat. The duel or
match would continue until one of the parties gained satisfaction (drew blood).
Wounds from dueling were often fatal. Dueling became so common that by the
14th century a set of rules had been developed (see box at right).
ll freemen are
permitted to
duel.
Upper-class gentlemen can use
substitutes in a duel. If the
substitute loses, he may be
punished by losing a hand or
being executed.
A person can be challenged to a
duel who is accused of murder,
treason, spreading rumors that
damage a person’s reputation,
dishonesty in a sale or business
transaction, and so on.
Burial Customs
Funerals were very elaborate if one was a member of nobility.
Black dresses, pins, stockings, gloves, and sprigs of rosemary in a
hatband were all visible signals that a person was in mourning.
Onlookers would know a funeral procession by distinctive banners
and coats of arms carried by servants. Church bells were rung
while the coffin was transported to the church graveyard.
Young women would be adorned with
flowers. Married women and men would be
more likely to have herbs rather than flowers
placed in the grave. In the Middle Ages coins were placed on the deceased’s eyes,
in the belief that money would pay the dead person’s way into the next world.
Traditionally a feast would be held following the funeral. For families with less
money, the mourning feast would be limited and include only cakes and ale.
For common people, there were not markers or headstones to mark the site of the
grave. Those who were wealthy might be buried inside the church. The wealthiest
people could afford to be buried in private chapels, or individual or family tombs.
Bells were a major source of communication for Elizabethans. The church bells called the faithful to
services on Sundays and Holy Days, announced good news, gave an alarm for fire or war and celebrated
various occasions, including weddings and funerals. The bells rang continuously during fearful times such as an epidemic or the plague. When someone died, only an ominous single bell sounded.
The Role of Women
Elizabethan women from wealthy and noble families were sometimes
allowed the privilege of an education. The girls of noble birth were taught
by tutors at home and Elizabethan women were taught from the age of five,
or even younger. Various languages were taught including Latin, Italian,
Greek and French. Elizabethan women were not allowed to go to
university. Music and dancing skills were essential for Elizabethan women.
“A man may chastise [discipline] his wife and beat her for correction, for she is of
his household, therefore the lord may chastise his own.” –Nicolas Byard, 13th
century
“It is plain that wives should be subject to their husbands and should almost be
servants.” –Canon Law, 13th century
“…Copy the behaviour of a dog who always has his heart and his eye upon his
master; even if his master whip him and throw stones at him, the dog follows,
wagging his tail…Wherefore for a better and stronger reason, women ought to have
a perfect and solemn love for their husbands.” –Goodman of Paris, 14th century
Wedding Customs and Traditions
During the Elizabethan era women were very much second class citizens.
Regardless of their social standing they were expected to marry. With parental
permission it was legal for girls to marry at age 12 although it was not usual or
traditional for marriages at such young ages. The age of consent was 21 and boys
would generally not marry until this age. Marriages were frequently arranged so
that both families involved would benefit—bringing prestige or wealth to a family.
The dowry was an Elizabethan wedding custom which benefited the husband. A
dowry was an amount of money, goods, and property that the bride would bring to
the marriage. The law gave a husband full rights over his wife. Many couples would
meet for the very first time on their wedding day.
 Diamond rings became popular between 1200 and 1400. Italians believed
that diamonds were created from the flames of love.
 Brides began to carry bouquets and toss them to the guests in the 1300s.
Prior to that, it was popular for the bride to toss her garter to the men,
reenacting how a lady would toss her ribbon o colors of her knight.
However, sometimes drunken guests got out of control and tried to remove
the garter ahead of time. To avoid this situation, brides switched to tossing
flowers.
 English newlyweds between 1300 and 1650 would pile small cakes as high as
they could. Then the couple would lean over and try to kiss without
knocking down the pile of sweets. If the couple succeeded, they would share
a lifetime of prosperity.
 Between 1300 and 1650, weddings of powerful noble families could last up to a week. During that time, the guests
would eat, sleep, and be entertained at the expense of the bridal families.
 In the 1300s, brides favored blue, red, peach, orange, tan and white for festive colors. They often chose blue or
yellow for their garters or for flowers tucked in their hair. Thus the tradition of “something blue” began.
 Weddings in the 1400s often featured a living centerpiece, made of pastry and filled with 24 live blackbirds. As
part of the wedding celebration, the birds would be released. The nursery rhyme of “four and twenty blackbirds
baked in a pie” originated from this custom.
Religion, Divine Order and Fate
Religion was central to the society for which
Shakespeare wrote. Queen Elizabeth made
attendance at Church of England services
mandatory, even though many church-goers
had to travel long distances. People who did
not attend—for any reason except illness—
were punished with fines. (Shakespeare's
father and sister were reported as absent,
though his father's debts probably were the
cause of his inability to attend church.)
Elizabethans who made up Shakespeare’s
audience believed that they lived in an orderly
and secure world. They were taught that the
entire universe was arranged according to
God’s plan, or divine order. In this
arrangement, the planets, stars, humans,
animals, plants, and even the minerals
occupied unchanging positions. If any part of
this “chain” were disturbed, they believed that
great chaos would surely follow.
God
Angels
Man
Birds
Fish
Animals
Plants
Minerals
Within each level or rung of this order, there is
Elements
another chain of order. For example: “Every
degree of people, in their vocation, calling,
and office, hath appointed to them their duty and order. Some
are high in degree, some in low, some in kings and princes, some inferiors and subjects, priests and
laymen, masters and servants, fathers and children, husbands and wives, rich and poor, and every
one hath need of other, so that in all things is to be lauded and praised the goodly order of God,
without the which, no house, no city, no common wealth, can continue and endure.” Romeo and Juliet
break the chain of order when they ignore their fathers’ wishes.
Many Elizabethans also believed that their lives were shaped by fate or fortune. According to this view,
Romeo and Juliet had little control over what happened to them. Their futures were already
determined by a combination of luck, the position of the stars when they
were born, and God’s will.
Romeo and Juliet see omens throughout the play, continually reminding the
audience of their fate. Their death is a catalyst for change in Verona: the
dueling families are united in their grief creating a political shift in the city.
Fortune’s Fool
Fortuna was the Roman goddess of chance. She told of omens and future happenings. Shakespeare wrote
“Fortune is painted blind…and she is painted also with a wheel, to signify to you…that she is turning, and
inconstant, and mutability, and variation…”
For centuries, the goddess Fortuna has been considered unpredictable. During the Middle Ages, writers tried
to reconcile the pagan [not Christian, Jewish or Muslim; worshipping many gods] idea of fortune with their
Christian faith [worshipping one god]. Eventually, fortune’s workings were seen as an instrument of God’s
will. The workings of God’s will were also seen in the natural order. For example, after the death of a king,
there might be a natural disaster. Those who violated the natural order were believed to meet misfortune. In
act 3, scene 1, line 137 Romeo calls out “I am fortune’s fool!” In the prologue, the lovers are referred to as
“star-crossed.” The Elizabethans believed that star-crossed people were born under unlucky stars.