1. The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet
By: William Shakespeare

2. Meet my hero: Shakespeare
Born April 23, 1564
Born in Stratford-upon-Avon in England
Little is known about Shakespeare

3. Early Life William Shakespeare’s father was a merchant that studied Latin Literature Next, he …

4. Meet my hero: Shakespeare
Married Anne Hathaway at age 18 on Nov. 28, 1582 (she was 26!, hmmm do I hear cheetah…)

6. Children Daughter Susanna born 6 months later (premarital sex!)
1 yr. 9 months later, twins Hamnet and Judith were born
Hamnet died at age 11

7. Susana with twins Hamnet and Judith

8. The Death of William
Died April 23, 1616 (age of 52)

9. Meet my hero: Shakespeare
Nicknamed “The Bard” which means poet
Was an actor and a stage manager, too!
Considered the greatest writer EVER by most scholars

10. William Popularity and Wealth
His first plays were produced in
Richard Burbage and other actors assisted in the building of the Globe Theater
He’s written 154 sonnets/poems and 37 plays

13. Authorship debate
Some people have debated whether William Shakespeare wrote his plays and poems. Some common arguments include:
Can one person write that many quality poems/plays in 52 years of life?
Shakespeare never attended University- could he have had such intellect?
Limited records about his life

14. Elizabethan England
Shakespeare’s theater company, the Lord Chamberland’s Men, performed twice in front of Queen Elizabeth I
Women not allowed to perform on stage; men played those roles
Globe theater

15. Elizabethan England- the language
Thou & Thee= you
Thy & Thine= your
Doth= does

16. Tips on reading Shakespeare: Recognize the layers
The narrative story
The characters
The subplots
The language
The puns
The foils
The structure

17. Clarification on literary terms
Pun: A play on words that relies on a word’s having more than one meaning or sounding like another word.
Ex. Math teachers have problems.
Foil: character in a work whose behavior and values contrast with those of another character in order to highlight the distinctive personality of that character (usually the protagonist).
Ex. Bob Ewell is a foil to Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird.

18. Tips on reading Shakespeare: the structure
Iambic- refers to the stress pattern of words; most common in English language– unaccented syllable followed by an accented syllable. (This equals one “iambic foot”)
Pentameter (5 iambic feet per line; thus 10 syllables)

19. Tips on reading Shakespeare: why the heck does he write like that?
The dramatic convention of the day; much the same as Eminem raps in Iambic feet most of the time.
Only royalty and so called other upper class character speak in this.
Clowns, lower class and “mad men” speak in prose

20. Tips on reading Shakespeare: how do I approach it?
Recognize that Shakespeare is difficult
Recognize that his writing is rich, layered and the best English has to offer.
Recognize that you need a plan of attack

21. Tips on reading Shakespeare: recommendations
Read a synopsis of the play; (or, at the very least, read about the characters)
Read a summary of each scene; then, read the original.
You may wish to read an analysis of each scene; however, this may cloud your interpretation.
Read the footnotes!

22. Tips on reading Shakespeare: No Fear Shakespeare
Try reading the original play first. NFS takes so much away from play and language. If you are still having trouble, use this site.
Also, use sparknotes.com for the summary and analysis.

23. Tips on reading Shakespeare: there’s no “right” answer
You, as an intelligent and thoughtful reader, are entitled to your interpretations and thoughts.
Shakespeare’s plays reveal many, many meanings.

24. Tips on reading Shakespeare: study questions
Meant to help you pull out ideas
Look for important quotes.
Shakespeare’s plays are noted for their universal and timeless themes.

25. Elements of a drama
Drama= literature acted in front of an audience by people who play the parts of the characters
Two basic types
Comedy- work with a happy ending; humorous
Tragedy- involves the downfall of the main character who wins the sympathy of the audience

26. Elements of a drama Playwright= author of the play
Script= written form of the play that contains stage directions and dialogue
Dialogue= the speech of actors in the play

27. Elements of a drama
Act= major division of a drama [Shakespeare’s plays contain 5 acts]
Scene= smaller divisions of acts; usually has a new setting [Shakespeare’s acts usually contain 5-6 scenes each]

28. Elements of a drama
Stage directions= notes provided by the playwright to describe how something should be presented or performed on stage.
Usually found in italics and enclosed in brackets or parenthesis

29. Elements of a drama
Tragic flaw= a personal failing that leads to the downfall of a central character in a tragedy
Conflict= struggle in the play
Prologue= introduction to the play
In Romeo and Juliet it tells the audience how the play will end!