Introduction to William Shakespeare

ABOUT the man Born April 1564, died April 1616 Wrote 37 plays Wrote over 150 sonnets Director, Producer, Actor, poet, playwright

Types of Plays Shakespeare wrote: Comedies - light and amusing, usually with a happy ending revolving around love Tragedies –serious dramas with disastrous endings Histories – involve events or persons from the past

About Comedy The main action is about love The lovers must overcome obstacles and misunderstandings Eventually united in harmonious union (wedding) Twelfth Night has 3 couples Frequently contains elements of the improbable, fantastic, supernatural or miraculous Sometimes contains a philosophical aspect involving issues and themes

The Theatre The Globe Theatre: Open ceiling Three stories high No artificial lighting Plays were shown during daylight hours only

The Audience Wealthy people got to sit on benches The poor (called “groundlings”) had to stand and watch from the courtyard There was much more audience participation than today

The Actors Only men and boys Young boys whose voices had not changed played the women’s roles It would have been indecent for a woman to appear on stage

Theatrical Terms Act: a unit of action, or sequence of incidents Scene: A unit of place and time (setting) Action: The sequence of events between the introduction and the conclusion of a play Climax: The point at which the rising action begins falling towards a resolution. In Shakespeare usually in Act 3

Shakespeare’s Words Obsolete words: Words that were once common to the English language but are now out of general use. Example: Thou wilt perish presently. Archaic words: Words that were once common to the English language but are now considered old-fashioned and rarely used. Example: Thou shalt pierce yonder quat with a sharpened rood. *ACTIVITY*