Shakespeare the Writer

Shakespeare Wrote 37 plays about 154 sonnets a few long poems for which he earned his initial fame

Stage Celebrity Actor for Lord Chamberlain’s Men and later The King’s Men. Also, he was the principal playwright for them. 1599—He co-owned The Globe Theater where his plays were performed

Shakespeare wrote: Comedies Histories Tragedies

Comedies 4 categories: early, middle, romances, and tragic comedies All the comedies are driven by love Each deals differently with problems of illusion, mistaken identity, rivalries for love, and the war between the sexes. In the comedies, love conquers all.

Comedies Taming of the Shrew Much Ado about Nothing Midsummer Night’s Dream Merchant of Venice Twelfth Night The Tempest

Histories The background came from the chronicles of British history Central theme: politics and the struggle for power Common Traits: Kings are unhappy or tragic Kings are faced with treachery Rivalries exist between families Characters are motivated by ambition and arrogant pride Because the histories dealt realistically with events from the past, these plays were a novelty (new) in Shakespeare’s time Shakespeare himself is often credited with inventing this type of literature.

Histories King John Richard II Richard III Henry IV Parts One and Two Henry V Henry VI Henry VIII

Tragedies Four of Shakespeare’s tragedies are considered his greatest achievements: Hamlet Othello Macbeth King Lear

Tragedies Focus on a powerful central character with a tragic flaw Each finds his humanity and accepts his destiny

Segments of this presentation are from The End Segments of this presentation are from http://jc-schools.net/tutorials/Eng9/BrickeyShakespeare.ppt and http://exchange.guhsd.net/details.php?object_id=66