Everything you never wanted to know about Bill

William ShakespeareThe BardThe Poet

The PlaywrightMoney Lender

Actor (The King’s Men)HusbandFather

PhilandererThat’s what I heard?!

From the Beginning

Born in Stratford-upon-Avon Allegedly on April 23, 1564. Church records from Holy

Trinity Church indicate that he was baptized there on April 26, 1564.

Dad John Shakespeare: a successful glover, leather

merchant, alderman and high bailiff of Stratford (it all sounds great doesn’t it?).

It all declined in the late 1570’s though.

MomMary Arden, a landed local heiress.

From the Beginning

William According to the church register, was the third of

eight children — 3 of whom died in childhood.

It is assumed by scholars that Shakespeare attended the free grammar school in Stratford, which, at the time, had a reputation to rival that of Eton. It is a guess, but based on his ability to write he went to school somewhere for some time.

The Next Records

Marriage To Anne Hathaway - November 28, 1582. William was 18 and Anne was 26

- and pregnant

Children Susanna, born on May 26, 1583. Hamnet and Judith, born February 2, 1585

Hamnet died in childhood at the age of 11

Life in LondonShakespeare arrived in London around 1588 and began to

establish himself as an actor and playwright.

By 1594 he was acting, writing and managing partner for the Lord Chamberlain's Men (later called the King's Men after James I in 1603), with Will Kempe, a master comedian, and Richard Burbage, a leading tragic actor of the day.

The Lord Chamberlain's Men became a favorite London troupe, patronized by royalty and made popular by the theatre-going public.

Finally, he dies

William Shakespeare wrote his will in 1611:

To his daughter Susanna he left his properties

To his daughter Judith he left £300

To his wife Anne left "my second best bed"

William Shakespeare allegedly died on his birthday, April 23, 1616. This is probably more of a romantic myth than reality, but Shakespeare was interred at

Holy Trinity in Stratford on April 25.

What happened to his work? In 1623, two working companions of Shakespeare

from the Lord Chamberlain's Men, John Heminges and Henry Condell, printed the First Folio edition of his collected plays, of which half were previously unpublished.

Thanks HenryThanks John

But, Reading His Work is so Hard

LanguageShakespeare had an incredibly large vocabularyHe is credited with introducing nearly 3,000 words into

the English languageFrom his work it is estimated that he had a vocabulary

of approximately 17,000 words, without a dictionary

According to one source, he was able to use over 7,000 of those words only once and never again; that is more than the number of words used in the King James Bible

Grammar, it too I hate

The most common simple sentence in modern English follows the pattern: Subject (S), Verb (V), Object (O). SVO

For example: subject (John), a verb (caught), an object (the ball).

A simple and clear sentence, "John caught the ball,” that even Shakespeare and fellow Elizabethans would/could understand.

Shakespeare used a great deal of SOV inversion, which changes the sentence to "John the ball caught." This is found in many Germanic languages, from which English derives a lot of its syntax.

Grammar, still I loathe thee Due to the Norman invasion of England in 1066, English

poetry adapted the rhymed verse that was popular in French and Italian.

Of course, Shakespeare wrote a great deal of work in blank verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter).

When he wasn't rhyming, what was he thinking? Elizabethans allowed more freedom in word order.

Shakespeare took advantage of this freedom with inverted word order so he could effectively place the metrical stress wherever he needed it most—to suggest emphasis and meaning.

Why else break he the rules?One part of speech is often substituted for another; this is

most frequent with nouns and verbs. In the dark backward and abysm of time.

That may repeat and history his loss.

My death's sad tale may yet undeaf his ear.

Adjectives don't always mean what they seem to sayWherever in your sightless (= invisible) substances.

There's something in 't That is deceivable (= deceptive).

Oppressed with two weak (= weakening) evils

Why else break he the rules?Verbs don't always agree with their subjects; frequently

a singular verb is used with a plural subject.These high wild hills and rough uneven ways

Draws out our miles, and makes them wearisome.

Three parts of him Is ours already.

The infinitive (to + verb, e.g., "to have" or "to eat") is used as a noun more frequently than in modern English; it is also frequently substituted for a gerund (verb + -ing).

Could you on this fair mountain leave to feed [i.e., leave off feeding].

Why else break he the rules?Double-negatives are often used for emphasis of a

point.You may deny that you were not the mean Of my

Lord Hastings' late imprisonment [i.e., deny that you were the mean].

The possessive of the neuter pronoun it ("its") is regularly written as his, and sometimes as simply it.

How far that little candle throws his beams!Since nature cannot choose his origin.

The Stage is the Thing

The Stage is the ThingActual quote ‘The play is the thing’ H. II.ii.604

The previous image of the Swan Theater is the only surviving image of an Elizabethan era stage.

Thanks to Johannes de Witt

There four were large theatres

Swan, Rose, Hope and Shakespeare’s Globe

They were open-air, octagonal amphitheaters three stories high, and held up to 3,000 spectators.

The rectangular stage platform probably housed trap doors in its flooring and primitive rigging overhead for various stage effects.

Stage Cont.

At the base of the stage was an area called the ‘yard’ where people would stand to watch the performance. The people who watched there were called groundlings.

Around the yard were three levels of seating which were more expensive than standing. The first two levels were called the ‘Two penny Rooms’ and the top level was called the ‘Penny Gallery’.

Stage Cont.

Although the three galleries cost the same to sit in, the middle gallery was considered the highest status.

The lower gallery was too close for comfort to the yard,

while the upper gallery served as a meeting place for unsavory business deals, and local prostitutes.

The most expensive seats were located above the rear of the stage. These seats provided separation from the masses and a place for the rich to show off. Tickets for the ‘Lords Rooms’ were sold for six pennies each.

Stage, lastly

Unlike most modern dramas, Elizabethan plays did not have scenery to indicate the setting of the play.

The setting was usually unknown until the characters identified it with lines of dialogue.

The main stage had no curtain so one scene had to follow the other quickly, because there was no curtain to close and open and no scenery to change.

Ta da….

Will The Real Macbeth Stand Up?

A Real Mac Bethad mac Findláich, or Macbeth 1005 - 1057

1040 he killed King Duncan in battle

Macbeth became king and married Gruoch (Lady Macbeth)to keep the throne.

He ruled successfully for 14 years.

He was also a brave leader and made successful forays over the border into Northumbria, England.

1054, Macbeth was challenged by Siward, Earl of Northumbria, who wanted Duncan's son, Malcolm, to be king.

1057, Macbeth was killed in battle by Malcolm III.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/macbeth.shtml

Were there Witches?

I dunno,

BUT, supposedly King James I was interested in them.

We still seem to like them, too.

A Real Banquo?Probably not.

At least there is no actual record of him during Macbeth’s court

One would think an important General would be noted in history.

Often the nobility claimed mythic warriors to be the start of their family trees.

Favorite Images and Themes in Macbeth

AmbitionGender

Tyrants Vs KingsNatural Order

FateFall of Man

HubrisLight Vs. Dark

Reality Vs. MetaphysicalClothing

Works Cited

• All information was collected from

www.bardweb.net

and collaborated, because who knows what crazy people post on the Internet.

The End - Finis