Shakespeare's Early Life
There are no legal birth records of William Shakespeare, but he was baptized at Holy Trinity Church around April 26, 1564. His father was a leather merchant, named John Shakespeare, and his Mother was a local land heiress named Mary Arden. He had two older sisters and three younger bothers and grew up on the countryside and he drew on his childhood memories to write his plays, sonnets, and poems. It was thought that he attended to King Edward VI School.
William Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway on November 28, 1582, in Worcestershire, but there was an 8 year age difference, Shakespeare was 18 and Anne was 26! Their fist child, Susanna, was born on May 26, 1583. Two years later on February 2, 1585, their twins Hamnet and Judith were born. After the birth of the twins, there is a seven year period with no records of William Shakespeare. These were called his "Lost Years".
William Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway on November 28, 1582, in Worcestershire, but there was an 8 year age difference, Shakespeare was 18 and Anne was 26! Their fist child, Susanna, was born on May 26, 1583. Two years later on February 2, 1585, their twins Hamnet and Judith were born. After the birth of the twins, there is a seven year period with no records of William Shakespeare. These were called his "Lost Years".
Theatrical Beginnings
By 1592 there is evidence that Shakespeare made a living as an actor. By 1597, William Shakespeare had published about 15 of his 37 plays. William Shakespeare's early plays consisted of elaborate metaphors and rhetorical phrases that didn't always align with the the story's plot or character. However, Shakespeare was very innovative, he adapted the traditional style to his own purposes by creating a freer flow of words. With only a small degree of variation he primarily used a metrical pattern consisting of lines of unrhymed iambic (noting or pertaining to satirical poetry written in iambs)pentameter, or blank verse to compose his plays.
Early Works: Histories and Comedies
With the exception of Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare's First plays were mostly histories written in the early 1590s. Henry VI parts 1,2 and 3, and Henry V dramatize the destructive results of a weak or corrupt ruler and have been interpreted by drama historians as Shakespeare's way of justifying the origins of the Tudor dynasty.
Shakespeare also wrote several comedies during his early period: the witty romance A Midsummer Nights Dream, the romantic Merchant of Venice, the wit and wordplay of Much Ado About Nothing.
Shakespeare also wrote several comedies during his early period: the witty romance A Midsummer Nights Dream, the romantic Merchant of Venice, the wit and wordplay of Much Ado About Nothing.
The Famous Balcony Scene
This is the famous balcony scene from one of William Shakespeare's most popular plays, Romeo and Juliet.
Romeo's Famous Line:But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the east and Juliet is the sun!
Juliet's Famous Line:O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore at
Romeo's Famous Line:But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the east and Juliet is the sun!
Juliet's Famous Line:O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore at
Later Works: Tragedies
Around the 1600s Shakespeare wrote the tragedies Hamlet, King Lear, Othello and Macbeth. In these plays the characters present vivid impressions of human temperament that are timeless and universal.
William Shakespeare's Will
This is a picture of Shakespeare's Will. He Wrote this on March 25th, 1616, one month before his death.