English II H: William Shakespeare Background Information

Who was the most famous playwright in the world?

William Shakespeare

Define “Bard”

A storyteller

What place do we get information about his life?

Legal and Church Documents

Where was Shakespeare born?

Stratford (on Avon)

When was Shakespeare born?

April 23rd, 1564

When did Shakespeare die?

April 23rd, 1616 (52 years old)

Where was Shakespeare buried?

Under the floor of Holy Trinity Church (in Stratford; Westminster Abbey)

How many siblings did Shakespeare have?

7 Siblings (3rd/8)

What was Shakespeare’s father’s name and occupation?

John Shakespeare; he was a shopkeeper

Who did William Shakespeare marry? What was their age difference?

Anne Hathaway; 8 year age gap

How many children did they have?

3 (Susanna, Hamnet, and Judith)

When did Shakespeare become an actor and a playwright?

1592

Name of Shakespeare’s acting company

Lord Chamberlain;s Men

What did they change the former name to?

King’s Men

Who were the two English monarchs that supported Shakespeare?

King James (loved) and Queen Elizabeth I (liked)

How many plays did Shakespeare write before retiring?

37

Date he returned home to retire

1612

What was the verse carved on Shakespeare’s gravestone?

”good friend for Jesus’ sake forbear to dig the dust enclosed here! Blessed be the man that spares those stones and cursed be the man that moves my bones.”

Who was Shakespeare’s business partner?

James Burbage (the son of James)

What was the name of the first permanent theater in London?

The Theatre

Where did touring acting companies usually rent space to perform?

Courtyards of inns

Manner in which the theater was set up

Built in the shape and form of the inns

Where did Shakespeare get timbers (wood) for his theater?

Burbage’s theatre was torn down

What was the name of Shakespeare’s theatre?

The Globe Theatre

Nickname of Shakespeare’s theatre

wooden O

Describe the wooden O

Large, 16 sided, 3 story, thatched roof, large stage, open to the sky, and two doors for entrances and exits.

What was the time of day when plays where preformed? Why?

Performed in the afternoon because the natural lighting was open to the time; causes less risk for thatch roof to catch on fire.

Describe the costumes

The costumes were elaborate and more elegant because when royals (especially king James) when royals were finished with the clothes they donated them.

Describe the sets

Very few, minimal sets’ a balcony was used.

Groundlings:

800+ people who stood shoulder to shoulder around the stage to see the play; poor people

what was the price of admission for a groundling?

1 penny (very expensive back then)

Which religious group did not like the plays?

The Puritans

What was the gender of all Shakespearean actors?

Male

What is the type of stage we use today?

Proscenium Stage

Describe a proscenium

only an inner stage, curtain supersets from the audience

Describe a thrust stage

Audience sits on ¾ sides of the stage

Archaic:

Very old/old fashioned

Histories:

Genre of plays, focusing on monarchs (MUST BE HISTORICALLY ACCURATE.)

Tragedies:

A character with fatal flaw which leads to suffering, catastrophe, downfall, etc.

Comedies:

Happy endings, resolution, revolved, around love

Prose

any piece of writing that is not poetry. The servants and lower-class people in Shakespeare’s plays usually speak in prose.

Soliloquy:

a lengthy speech in which a character, alone on stage, expresses his or her innermost thoughts to the audience.

Aside:

is a character’s brief remark that is not heard by other characters, even though they may be in close proximity to him or her on the stage. An aside is often necessary for the audience to continue to know the character’s true feelings while keeping the information secret from the other characters.

Dramatic Foil:

when a character has personality characteristics that are the opposite of another character. By being opposites, these characters make each other more noticeable.

Aye/Nay

Yes/No

Anon

Soon; On my way

But

Except

Dost/Doth

Do

Good-en

Good Evening

Hap/Happy

Luck/Lucky

Hast/Hath

Have

Humor

Mood

4 humors that must be in harmony

Blood, Phlem, Yellow Bile, and Black Bile

Maid

Unmarried Woman

Mark

Listen

Betwixt

Between

Bosom

Heart

Oft

Often

Durst

Dare

Soft

Shhhh

Stay

Wait

Hither

Here

Thither

There

Wherefore

Why

Still

Yet

Withal

With

Hie

Quickly

Whilst

While

Thee/Thou

You

Thine

Yours

Attend

To wait

Ope

Open

Prithee

I beg you

Ides of March (Caesar Assisinated)

March 15th

Meet

Proper

Wilt

Will

O’er

Over

E’en

Evening/Even

Ere

(air) before

Art

Are

Whither

Where

Yonder/Yon

Over there

What do flags mean hanging off the theatre?

A play was bing performed

Wha color was Comedy?

White

What color was history?

Red

What color was tragedy?

Black