2.  1564 – 1616  Shakespeare is widely regarded as the greatest writer in English Literature.  Lived at Stratford-Upon Avon in England  He was born and died on the same day.  He married Anne Hathaway, a woman eight years his senior.  Shakespeare wrote 37 Plays and about 154 Sonnets.  His plays can be classified as Comedies, Tragedies, and Histories.

4.  He fathered three children: Susanna and twins, Hamnet and Judeth.  His greatest writing period was between 1600 and 1611. A Midsummer Night’s Dream was written about within this timeframe.

5. Shakespeare even penned a poem for his own grave.

6.  Shakespeare started his career as an actor.  He worked with a troupe known as Lord Chamberlain’s Men (later known as The King’s Men).  He was the principal playwright for the troupe.  Then, in 1599, Lord Chamberlain’s Men came together to build The Globe.

7.  Plays were performed for the general public.  The theater did not have a roof; therefore, plays were performed in the open air.  No artificial lighting was used and rude mechanicals (the most basic prop forms) were employed.  A different color flag flew atop the theater indicating the play to be performed. A red flag indicated a history play. A white flag indicated a comedy. A black flag indicated a tragedy.  The stage consisted of a trap door from which ghosts would arise and a second-level gallery that served as the “heavens” or a balcony.  The costumes were elaborate and expensive.  All actors were male.  Young boys whose voices had not changed played the roles of women.

9.  The theater consisted of a courtyard surrounded by three levels of galleries.  Groundlings (the lower class or poor people of the time) stood to watch the play in the courtyard.  Groundlings would often yell at the actors on stage. Some even threw things. It was a theater based on much more interaction than today’s theater.  The wealthy sat in the galleries. The higher one’s gallery seat, the higher his or her social class.

10.  Remember, only the wealthy were literate at this time, so many spectators may not have understood content of the plays.

11.  A Shakespearean Comedy follows the basic plot structure according to Freytag’s Pyramid: Inciting Incident (Exposition), Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, and Resolution.

13.  Plot: The sequence of events in a literary work  Exposition: The general atmosphere, time, place, main characters, and opening conditions of the play.  Conflict: A struggle between opposing forces within a literary work.  Crisis: This is the point where the protagonist’s situation will either get better or worsen.  Climax: This is the story’s turning point.  Resolution: The end of the central conflict.

14.  A Comedy is a drama or literary work generally intended to be humorous or to amuse by inducing laughter.

15.  The writing is a combination of both prose and poetry. Higher social classes speak in prose to reveal education. Lower social classes speak in poetic form to reveal illiterate nature.

16.  Round Character: This character has many traits, much like a real person.  Static Character: This character is unchanging throughout the work.  Flat Character: This character embodies a single trait throughout the entire work.  Dynamic Character: This character changes throughout the literary work.  Monologue: This occurs when a character speaks on stage for an extended period of time. Other characters will also be on stage.  Soliloquy: This occurs when a character speaks alone on stage. This is typically a long speech which expresses the thoughts of the character.  Aside: This occurs when words are spoken in an undertone and are not meant to be heard by all characters on stage.

17.  Dramatic Irony: The irony occurring when the implications of a situation, speech, etc., are understood by the audience but not by the characters in the play.  Verbal Irony : Irony in which a person says or writes one thing and means another, or uses words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of the literal meaning  Situational Irony : Irony involving a situation in which actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was expected

18.  A Midsummer Night’s Dream is one of Shakespeare’s delightful and strangest creations.  The play demonstrates the extent of Shakespeare’s skill and knowledge and the extent of his imagination.

20. Kevin Kline...Nick Bottom Michelle Pfeiffer...Titania Rupert Everett...Oberon Stanley Tucci...Puck Calista Flockhart...Helena Anna Friel...Hermia Christian Bale...Demetrius Dominic West...Lysander David Strathairn...Theseus Sophie Marceau...Hippolyta Roger Rees...Peter Quince Max Wright...Robin Starveling Gregory Jbara...Snug Bill Irwin...Tom Snout Sam Rockwell...Francis Flute