1. Shakespeare’s Life and Times

2. William Shakespeare Born April 23, 1564 in Stratford-on-Avon
Attended grammar school where he learned Latin– this was his only formal education
Wrote 37 plays and many poems (154 sonnets!)
Also acted for Lord Chamberlain’s Men (later the King’s Men)
Died April 23, 1616

3. Stratford-on-Avon
English village surrounded by forests and fields– this accounts for Shakespeare’s love of nature
Sits on the River Avon

4. Influences for Plays Ovid’s Metamorphoses (for mythology)
Plutarch’s Lives (for Roman History plays)
Holinshed’s Chronicles (for English History plays)

5. Married Life Married Anne Hathaway in November 1582 (18 y.)
Had three children: Susanna (1583), Hamnet, and Judith (1585)
Shakespeare moved to London after his marriage to Anne

6. London Shakespeare went to London around 1585-1586
He had good timing– in 1588 England defeated the Spanish Armada– this made the English people want to learn more about their country

7. Shakespeare’s London
London was a leader in trade, therefore there were a lot of foreigners, which made it easy for Shakespeare to learn languages and discover different cultures
Shakespeare staged a number of his plays in foreign countries, and he most likely never visited them
The plague caused theaters to temporarily close in 1594

8. The Renaissance
Cultural rebirth spanning the 14th- 17th centuries in Europe
Developments in
intellectual and artistic
pursuits
Worked to
Shakespeare’s advantage

9. Shakespeare’s “Little Helpers”
Queen Elizabeth I loved the theater– supported artists with money for costumes and props
James I (Liz’s successor) was also a theater enthusiast

10. The Theater No female actors Very few props Elaborate costumes
Minimal sets and lighting
Actors had to sing, do acrobatic stunts, dance, and fence
Used special effects (grapes for eyeballs!)

11. More Theater Info
Three theaters were in use: The Globe, The Theater, and The Swan
Presentations took place mid-afternoon (sunlight was needed)
“Groundlings” paid a penny to get in– but they had the best seats!

13. Shakespeare’s Plays
Histories: Shortened versions of real historic events (Julius Caesar, Richard III, Henry VI, etc.)
Comedies: Usually end with a marriage (As You Like It, A Midsummer Nights’ Dream, Twelfth Night)
Tragedies: Lots of people die, including the tragic hero (Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, King Lear)

14. Shakespeare’s Tragedies
Divided into five acts
Each act split into scenes (anywhere from one to six scenes)
Uses Chorus as commentator
Culminate in catastrophe
Usually begin with an attention getting scenario– a fight, a ghost, etc.
Catharsis: the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions

15. The Tragic Hero
Usually high status individuals (they have a lot to lose)
Heroes fall from glory to death
Power of expression
Struggles go beyond human endurance
Life reduced to chaos
Understanding comes with pain
Possesses a tragic flaw

16. The Tragic Flaw A weakness in character The cause of the tragedy
Examples: pride (hubris), blindness, ambition, indecision, etc.

17. Allusions
Allusions to Shakespeare’s works are ubiquitous– they are everywhere!
Brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance
Ex: Don't be a Scrooge!

18. Romeo & Juliet Literary Devices

19. Act
 one of the main divisions of a play or opera

20. Scene
a sequence of continuous action in a play, movie, opera, or book

21. Drama
A story written to be acted for an audience

22. Tragedy
A play, novel, or other narrative that depicts serious and important events in which the main character comes to an unhappy end

23. Comic relief
Humor added that lessons the seriousness of the plot

24. Foil
Character who is used as a contrast to another character; intensify the qualities of the 2 characters

25. Alliteration
The use of words that begin with the same sound near one another
wild and woolly
babbling brook 

26. The fire swallowed the entire forest.
Personification
Giving human qualities to an inanimate object, idea, or animal
The kite wept for wind.
The fire swallowed the entire forest.

27. Prose
Direct, unadorned form of language, written or spoken, in ordinary use

28. Monologue
A speech by one character in a play (in company of others)

29. Soliloquy
An unusually long speech in which a character who is on stage alone expresses his or her thoughts aloud

30. Prologue
A short introduction at the beginning of a play that gives a brief overview of the plot

31. Aside
Words spoken by a character in a play to the audience or to another character but that are not supposed to be overheard by the others onstage

32. Blank Verse
Poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter

33. Couplet
Two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme; couplets often signal the EXIT of a character or end of a scene

34. Sonnet
14 line lyric poem that is usually written in iambic pentameter following a distinct rhyme scheme