© 2007 Jillian Lipinski

William Shakespeare

The Bard (Poet) of Avon

Curtain Call For the remainder of your high

school career and possibly some of college, you will be reading the works of William Shakespeare. To maximize your understanding, you must first learn the facts:

• Life• Renaissance• Works• Techniques/Language• Theatre

I. LifeA. Birth

1. Stratford-upon-Avon (90 NW of London)

2. 1564

3. Parents- John and Mary Shakespeare

I. LifeB. Death

1. 1616

2. 52 years old

3. Possibly on his birthday

GOOD FREND FOR JESUS SAKE FORBEARE,TO DIGG THE DUST ENCLOASED HEARE.BLESTE BE Ye MAN Yt SPARES THES STONES,AND CURST BE HE Yt MOVES MY BONES.Photo Source: http://www.poetsgraves.co.uk/images/stratgrave_images_JPG.jpg

I. LifeC. Family

1. Married at age 182. Wife: Anne Hathaway age 263. 3 children4. Abandoned family

II. RenaissanceA. 14th Century

1. Italy, then England2. Renewed interest in science, commerce, philosophy, and the arts3. Emphasis on individual freedom of choice

II. RenaissanceB. Elizabethan Age (1558-1603)

1. Renaissance peaked2. Last of the Tudors3. Unmarried Queen- Elizabeth I4. She was a patron of Shakespeare

                                                     

                                                         

III. WorksA. Plays

1. 37 total2. Comedies3. Tragedies4. Histories5. Problem Plays

Source:http://www.depauw.edu/pa/news/images/theatre-masks.jpg

III. WorksB. Sonnets

1. 154 total2. Dark Lady, Young Man, Old Man3. Numbered4. 3 quatrains (4 lines) and a rhymed

couplet (2 lines)5. Iambic pentameter- 10 syllables; unstressed-stressed pattern6. Rhyme scheme: ABABCDCDEFEFGG

IV. Techniques/Language…

A. Blank Verse1. Unrhymed2. Iambic pentameter

B. Soliloquy- one person speaking1. One character on stage2. Only the audience hears

C. Aside- one person speaking1. Several characters on stage2. Only the audience or one character hears

IV. Techniques/LanguageD. Allusion- reference to an outside person, place,

thing or idea

E. Comic Relief-humor to relieve emotional intensity

IV. Techniques/LanguageF. Pun- play on words

1. “You have dancing shoes/with nimble soles; I have a soul of lead/So states me to the ground I cannot move.” (RJ: I.iv.15-16)

G. New words/phrases1. “Dead as a doornail”2. “Laughing-stock”3. “It’s all Greek to me”

V. TheatreA. The Globe

1. Built in 15992. Bank of River Thames3. Structure

a. 3 storyb. Wooden framec. Open courtyardd. Raised platform

stageSource:http://www.onlineshakespeare.com/

V. Theatre

B. Other theatres1. The Theatre2. The Rose

V. TheatreC. Attendants

1. Richa. Sat in seatsb. Enjoyed the flowery verse

V. Theatre2. Poor

a. Sat on groundb. Enjoyed puns, crude humor, and prosec. Groundlings; penny stinkers

V. TheatreD. Facts

1. Actorsa. All malesb. Young men played womenc. Wandering nomads

V. Theatre2. Scenery/Costume

a. No curtains or lightingb. Little sceneryc. Had props and sound effectsd. Elegant costumes

Elements of Tragedy• Tragedy- A type of drama, opposed to comedy, that depicts action

that is serious and complete and leads to the downfall and suffering of the protagonist.

• Catharsis- Aristotle’s term for the emotional experience the audience feels after a tragedy.

• Hubris- One of the characteristics of a tragic hero— pride and arrogance

• Hamartia- Aristotle’s word for the cause of the protagonist’s misfortunes

Elements of Tragic Hero• A character of noble stature; not an ordinary man, but a

man with outstanding quality and greatness about him.

• The hero is good, though not perfect. His fall is a result of hamartia

• The hero’s downfall is his own fault. Called tragic flaw.

Elements of a Tragic Hero• The hero’s misfortune is not wholly deserved.

The punishment exceeds the crime.

• Yet the tragic fall is not pure loss. Though it may result in the protagonist’s death, it involves, before his death, some increase in awareness, some gain in self-knowledge.