WORLD BOOK DAY
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
Why is Shakespeare famous?
Who was William Shakespeare?
William Shakespeare is one of the world's greatest writers. He wrote
plays for the
theatre. He wrote poetry too.
Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, in England. Later he went to London, to be an
actor.
But he became famous for writing plays. His friends said he was the
best writer of his time. Most people now say he was the best of all
time.
Why is Shakespeare so famous?
Shakespeare lived more than 400 years ago. Yet people still go to see his plays.
Shakespeare plays are
performed
all over the world. Students study Shakespeare in school and at
university. People write books about Shakespeare. There are Shakespeare
theatres and Shakespeare festivals.
When did Shakespeare live?
William Shakespeare was born in 1564. He grew up in
Tudor England in the time of Queen Elizabeth I.
He lived in exciting times. Francis Drake sailed around the world (1577-1580). Shakespeare was probably in London when the
Spanish Armada sailed to attack England in 1588. He saw the coronation of King James I in 1603. 1605 was the year of the
Gunpowder Plot and Guy Fawkes. Shakespeare died in 1616.
The young Shakespeare
The Shakespeare family
Baby William was christened (baptised a Christian) on 26 April 1564.
Many people think his birthday was 23 April - St George's Day.
Shakespeare's father was John Shakespeare, a glove-maker. His mother
Mary was the daughter of a farmer named Robert Arden. His grandfather
was a farmer too.
School days
John Shakespeare was an important man in the town of Stratford. In 1568, he was
mayor. He sent William to the town
grammar school.
The boys at the school had lessons in Latin, Greek and history. They
had to work hard. If boys were naughty, the teacher beat them.
Having fun
Shakespeare and his friends played in the fields. They went fishing and swimming in the River Avon.
When Shakespeare was about 5, a group of
actors
came to Stratford. Perhaps he was taken to see their show. When he was
11, he may have seen Queen Elizabeth, who made a visit to Kenilworth
Castle. For her, there were plays, dances, music, feasts and fireworks!
Shakespeare gets married
Young Shakespeare left school by the time he was 16. We do not know what
job he did. Perhaps he worked as a teacher. Perhaps he helped his
father.
In 1582, Shakespeare got married. His wife, Anne Hathaway, was a
farmer's daughter. She was 8 years older than him. Soon they had a
family - a daughter Susanna, and in 1585 twins, named Judith and Hamnet.
Shakespeare in London
The mystery years
Shakespeare did not write his life story. Some of his life is a mystery.
Some time before 1590, he left Stratford. One story says he had to run away from home, after
poaching deer. But this is probably just a story.
He may have been a
tutor in a rich family's home. He may have joined a travelling group of
actors. He may have gone off to be a soldier. In the end he went to London.
Why London?
London was the biggest city in England, though much smaller than today.
London had markets, shops, taverns (inns), churches and palaces. The
River Thames was busy with ships.
London was where poor people went hoping to make their fortunes. And London had
theatres!
London's theatres
London's first theatre or 'playhouse' opened in 1576. By 1590, there
were several theatres, such as the Rose, the Theatre and the Curtain.
Shakespeare became an actor. Soon he was writing plays too.
Plays in Shakespeare's time
A new theatre:
Shakespeare was a member of a company of actors, called the Lord Chamberlain's Men.
In 1598, they built a new theatre. It was round. They called it the Globe.
The Globe was open to the sky. A flag was raised to show a play was about to begin. Plays began at 2 in the afternoon.
What were theatres like?
Some people stood in front of the stage. Others had seats. Rich men paid
12 pennies (one shilling) to sit on the stage. The audience shouted and
clapped, laughed and booed.
Over the stage was a roof, to keep off the rain. Actors could be lowered from the roof on wires. There was a trap door in the stage too. So actors could pop up to surprise the audience.
The new Globe
The modern Globe Theatre in London is a replica (copy) of Shakespeare's
Globe. People can watch plays just as people did in Shakespeare's day.
The new Globe opened in 1997. The first play was Henry V - just as when the first Globe opened in 1599.
Actors in Shakespeare's day
In Shakespeare's time, there were no women actors. Women's parts were
played by boys. For a time, child actors were more popular than
grown-actors.
Actors wore the clothes of the day, with wigs and make up. Shakespeare is said to have played the Ghost in his play Hamlet.
Special effects
Plays had exciting special effects. There were ghosts, witches, loud bangs, flames and smoke, drums, and even cannons.
In 1613, during Shakespeare's play Henry VIII, a cannon set fire to the straw in the roof. The Globe burned down.
Shakespeare's plays
Shakespeare wrote comedies, stories with a happy ending. These plays
often have people falling in love, wearing disguises, and generally
getting mixed up. A Midsummer Night's Dream is a comedy with fairies and
humans.
He wrote tragedies, stories with a sad ending. Romeo and Juliet is a
tragedy, because the young lovers, Romeo and Juliet, both die.
Shakespeare's history plays are about real people, such as Julius
Caesar, the Roman general, or the English kings Henry V and Richard III.
coronation procession.
Between 1600 and 1608, Shakespeare wrote some of his greatest plays. They include Hamlet, Othello, King Lear and Macbeth.
Shakespeare's last years
By 1613, when the Globe burned down, Shakespeare had left London. He lived quietly in Stratford.
In 1616, his friend Ben Jonson came to visit. They drank wine and ate
pickled herrings. Then Shakespeare fell ill. He died on 23 April 1616.
He was 52.
Shakespeare's plays
Shakespeare wrote (or helped write) at least 38 plays.
The plays were first printed as books in 1623. His friends wanted to
stop other people selling bad copies of the plays, full of mistakes.
What else did Shakespeare write?
Shakespeare wrote some long poems, and lots of short poems called sonnets. In his plays, people speak in poetry too.
The language of Shakespeare
Shakespeare used more English words than any other writer. He made up
words and expressions too. When someone says quick as a flash, blinking
idiot or I haven't slept a wink, you are listening to Shakespeare.
The English language has changed since Shakespeare's time. So he is not always easy to read.
