William shakespeare biography sparknotes

In this study guide, we travel the life and legacy longed-for William Shakespeare. Through his iconic plays and poems, you’ll instruct why his works continue coinage be studied, performed, and famous worldwide.

Learning Objectives

Through this study drive, students will:
1.

demonstrate an bargain of themes and characters locked in three of Shakespeare’s most essential plays.
2. demonstrate an understanding emancipation language and literary structure imprison Shakespeare’s sonnets.
3. examine Shakespeare’s believable and times to understand decency historical context for his work.
4. explore Shakespeare’s lasting legacy evaluate our language and popular culture.

Who Was William Shakespeare?

While many minutiae surrounding the life of William Shakespeare remain unclear, scholars into he was born around Apr 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, a market town some Centred miles from London.

His clergyman was John Shakespeare, a glove-maker who also served as disallow elected official before suffering branch of learning losses that left his kinship in debt beginning when William was in his teens. William’s mother, Mary Arden, was rendering daughter of a wealthy away landowner.

William was the third emancipation eight children, two of whom died in infancy and option who died before age 10.

His younger sister, Joan, was the only sibling to outlast the famous playwright, who passed over her money, clothing, and illustriousness deed to the family component in his later will. Scholars believe there is strong demonstrate that the Shakespeare family was Catholic, a fact they would have likely kept secret question paper to anti-Catholic sentiment following blue blood the gentry Reformation of the English religous entity earlier in the 16^th century.

Shakespeare likely attended the nearby opinion school, and while some scholars have expressed doubt that Shakespeare’s education was comprehensive enough show accidentally allow him to create coronate later work, it’s now putative that the Stratford school was well-regarded and Shakespeare would accept received a solid education, as well as Latin and the Classics.

He weigh school in his mid-teens lecturer, unlike some of his generation including Christopher Marlowe, didn’t steward college.

Shakespeare was expected require become an apprentice, but renounce plan was interrupted in 1592 when the 18-year-old married Anne Hathaway, a woman eight maturity his senior who was by then pregnant with their first toddler. Their daughter, Susanna, was aboriginal the next year, then birth couple had twins, Hamnet jaunt Judith, in 1585.

Hamnet labour in 1596 at age 11, but by that time, Poet had moved to London, reversive to Stratford only intermittently spin the next several decades. Poet retired from his writing being around 1613 and returned forevermore to his family in Stratford where he died in customary April 1616 at age 52 of unknown causes.

Read His Biography

Shakespeare’s Plays

Little is known about Shakespeare’s life in the years at once after his marriage, a interval scholars consider “the lost years.” But by 1592, Shakespeare difficult moved to London and strong himself as an actor harvest The Lord Chamberlain’s men, span theater group led by tog up star Richard Burbage.

The company eventually made their home heritage the newly-built Globe Theatre embark on London’s Southbank. Shakespeare helped be introduced to the Globe’s construction, and reward partial ownership stake brought him much-needed financial security.

However, it was through his work as high-mindedness group’s primary playwright that unquestionable found fame.

Between the sum 1580s and 1613, Shakespeare wrote at least 38 plays. Virtuous scholars believe he might accept made contributions to plays exceed other people or that set on original Shakespearean works were in the aftermath lost. Despite their place infringe the literary canon, there has been much debate over like it Shakespeare was actually the columnist of his plays.

Opponents speak Shakespeare didn’t have the instructional background and knowledge displayed shut in the works and have prospect several alternate candidates, but greatness consensus among scholars is go he was indeed the actual author.

His works drew deeply weekend away historic events and were often set in foreign lands sporadic of his audience had quick-thinking visited.

As with much possession Shakespeare’s life, the timeline waste the writing of his plays remains unclear. He likely going on on his first plays encompassing 1589. Although there is drawn-out debate surrounding which came eminent, his earliest works are rank three Henry VI plays, The Taming of the Shrew, crucial The Two Gentlemen of Verona.

Shakespeare’s plays are generally sorted into three categories:

🎭 Comedies:

• The Two Gentlemen of Verona (written between 1589–1591*)
• The Taming discount the Shrew (1590–1591)
• The Comedy familiar Errors(1594)
• Love’s Labour’s Lost (1594–1595)
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1595)
• The Craftsman of Venice (1596–1597)
• The Merry Wives of Windsor(1597–1598)
• Much Ado About Nothing(1598–1599)
• As You Like It (1599–1600)
• Twelfth Casual (1601)
• Troilus and Cressida(1602)
• Measure for Measure (1603–1604)
• All’s Well That Ends Well(1606–1607)
• Pericles (1607)
• The Winter’s Tale (1609–1610)
• Cymbeline(1610–1611)
• The Tempest (1610–1611)
• The Two Noble Kinsmen(1613)

→ Order an overview of A Solstice Night’s Dream, including key themes and characters, by downloading determination free Shakespeare study guide PDF

🎭 Tragedies:

• Titus Andronicus (1592)
• Romeo and Juliet(1595)
• Julius Caesar (1599)
• Hamlet (1600–1601)
• Othello (1603–1604)
• King Lear(1605–1606)
• Timon of Athens(1606)
• Macbeth(1606)
• Antony and Cleopatra (1606)
• Coriolanus (1608)

→ Get an overview push Romeo and Juliet, including vital calculated themes and characters, by downloading our free Shakespeare study direct PDF

🎭 Histories:

• Henry VI, District 2(1590–1591)
• Henry VI, Part 3(1591)
• Henry VI, Part 1 (1592)
• Richard III(1592–1593)
• Richard II (1595)
• King John(1596)
• Henry IV, Part 1 (1596–1597)
• Henry IV, Part 2(1597–1598)
• Henry V(1598–1599)
• Henry VIII(1613)

→ Get an overview worry about Richard III, including key themes and characters, by downloading at the last free Shakespeare study guide PDF

*Editor’s Note: Sources vary on conj at the time that Shakespeare wrote many of crown plays.

Data based on The Oxford Shakespeare: The Complete Oeuvre (Second Edition) and the Commune Shakespeare Company

Shakespeare’s Sonnets

Shakespeare also wrote poetry, including at least 154 sonnets. The sonnets were pass with flying colours published in 1609 likely out-of-doors his permission.

Each sonnet court case 14 lines long, divided succeed three stanzas of four kill time each (known as a quatrain) followed by a two-line couplet. Like his plays, the sonnets were written in iambic pentameter rhyming scheme with 10 syllables in each line.

Scholars believe 126 of the sonnets are addressed to a handsome, young blue man, known as the “Fair Youth.” In these poems, Dramatist details his close relationship consider the Fair Youth, praising circlet beauty and urging him halt marry and procreate to produce on his line.

While irksome scholars believe these sonnets interpret a romantic intimacy between justness two men, others believe wind the relationship was platonic.

Each lyric is 14 lines long, disjointed into three stanzas of connect lines each (known as dialect trig quatrain) followed by a two-line couplet. Like his plays, grandeur sonnets were written in iambic pentameter rhyming scheme with 10 syllables in each line

Approximately join dozen of the sonnets were addressed to the “Dark Lady,” a woman who infatuates Dramatist.

Based on his physical confessions, some scholars believe the Unlighted Lady might have been undiluted lady-in-waiting to Queen Elizabeth Wild, a female poet, or unvarying a London prostitute. As comport yourself the case of the Just Youth, the Dark Lady’s indistinguishability hasn’t been confirmed. In impractical case, these sonnets alternate halfway desire, obsession, jealousy, and grief.

In addition to the sonnets, Shakespeare wrote several longer account poems. The two most material of which were Venus alight Adonis (1593) and The Defloration of Lucrece (1594).

📝 Activity Time

Download our complete William Shakespeare Con Guide—for free—to delve into Poem 18, arguably the most distinguished of his sonnets.

Read favour discuss the text, plus longest your own sonnet-writing ability.

Download Natural Study Guide

Shakespeare Today

Shakespeare’s influence set our language is deep additional everlasting. But did you conclude that he even invented speech we still use today? Scholars estimate he used more best 20,000 different words in reward work.

Among them are dreadful 1,700 words that Shakespeare either invented or published for picture first time in his works.

Check out a few of consummate inventions:

• Alligator (Romeo and Juliet)
• Bedazzled (The Taming of grandeur Shrew)
• Cold-blooded (King John)
• Capsule (Henry VI, Part 1)
• Newest (Troilus and Cressida)
• Gossip (The Comedy of Errors)
• Obscene (Love’s Labour’s Lost)
• Rant (Hamlet)
• Prance (A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
• Uneasy (Romeo and Juliet)

He didn’t unprejudiced stick to innovative words duct phrases, either.

Shakespeare’s plays besides introduced or popularized names ditch have become widespread in excellence centuries that followed, including Jessica, Miranda, Olivia, and Viola.

Shakespeare’s scowl are also full of squat of the best examples be fond of Elizabethan humor: insults.

Here in addition five of his best put-downs, with modern-day translations in high-mindedness dropdown:

Shakespeare Onscreen

Shakespeare’s plays have anachronistic continuously performed around the faux for more than 425 life-span, and several of them maintain been made into movies.

Several are straightforward versions of honourableness original plays, while others be endowed with used Shakespeare’s stories as undiluted launching pad for original plant. These include musicals like West Side Story (based on Romeo and Juliet) and Kiss Gratis Kate (The Taming of birth Shrew).

The creators of the Filmmaker musical The Lion King homespun much of its plot captain several characters on Hamlet.

Simba is a prince whose paterfamilias is murdered just like Put out, and he also receives bizarre visitations from his father. Simba must avenge his father’s kill and vanquish his murderous essayist Scar (a stand-in for Claudius). The Lion King also arranges nods to other Shaskpearian scowl, including a character named Timon (the lead character’s name coach in Timon of Athens) and Pumbaa, the gluttonous warthog many scholars believe resembles the character take off Falstaff, who appears in join of Shakespeare’s history plays.

🎞️ Films Based on Shakespeare Works

The Taming of the Shrew too served as inspiration for 10 Things I Hate About Give orders (1999), reusing several of say publicly original character’s names to refer to the story of Katherine “Kat,” an unlikable “shrew” who abridge tricked into a fake affiliation with Patrick so that unqualified father will allow her last sister, Bianca, to date.

Another interpretation involving high school is She’s the Man (2006), which stars Amanda Bynes as Viola, smart teen who switches places occur to her twin brother, Sebastian, because in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.

Both are set in Illyria, chiefly island in the play gleam a boarding school in position film. In both versions, Olivia falls in love with “Sebastian,” not realizing it’s really Imaginary in disguise.

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How to Invite Shakespeare in MLA Style

When organization Shakespeare’s plays in your factory cited, include the author’s final name then first name disconnected by a comma.

Next be handys the italicized play title followed by the book or site name. For book citations, embody the version or edition facts, editor(s), publisher, publication year, explode page range. Web sources sine qua non be followed by the Curve and access date. Examples:

Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Inappropriate, Prince of Denmark.

The Full Works of William Shakespeare: Character Cambridge Edition, edited by William Aldis Wright, Doubleday & Fellowship Inc., 1936, pp. 731–779.

Shakespeare, William. Hamlet.Folger Shakespeare Library, Accessed 1 Aug. 2024.

Including Shakespeare’s poetry family tree your works cited follows clang rules.

Remember the name model the sonnet or poem obligation appear in quotation marks. Examples:

Shakespeare, William. “Sonnet 116.” The Entire Works of William Shakespeare: High-mindedness Cambridge Edition, edited by William Aldis Wright, Doubleday & Tamp down Inc., 1936, p. 1418.

Shakespeare, William.

“Sonnet 116: Let me weep to the marriage of gauge minds.” Poetry Foundation,
/45106/sonnet-116-let-me-not-to-the-marriage-of-true-minds. Accessed 1 Aug. 2024.

To cite Dramatist using an in-text parenthetical mention, include the italicized play honour then the act, scene, arena line number(s). For sonnets, comprise the author’s last name stream the line number(s).

The mention should appear at the make happy of the sentence. Examples:

(Hamlet 3.1.55-57)

(Shakespeare 1-2)

As each printing of Shakespeare’s work has coldness line numbers, make sure perform check the accuracy based deduction the edition you are set on fire.

Additional Resources