Introducing: Mr. William Shakespeare

1. Introducing: Mr. William Shakespeare

2. The Poet and Playwright • Born: April 23, 1564 • 1571: Enters Grammar School • 1582: Marries Anne Hathaway; she is 8 years his senior • 1583: Daughter Susanna is born • 1585: Twins Hamnet & Judith are born; Hamnet dies at age 11 • 1592: Shakespeare in London working as an actor and playwright • 1593: Begins writing the sonnets (154) • 1599: Shakespeare’s company builds the Globe Theatre (he owned 1/10) • Dies: April 23, 1616

3. Shakespeare: has “great-souled” insight • He has been called the most influential writer in all of English Literature. • He gets this description because all of his plays and poems are universal in theme.

4. Mr. Shakespeare’s Resume

5. Fun Facts • What is Shakespeare’s longest play? Hamlet, with 4,042 lines. • What is Shakespeare’s shortest play? The Comedy of Errors, with 1,787 lines.

6. Fun Facts 884,647 Words 118,406 Lines

7. Fun Facts Shakespeare’s complete works consist of: 884,647 Words 118,406 Lines

8. Fun Facts Unlike many famous 16th c. poets and artists, Shakespeare not only did not die penniless but was a frequent performer before the Court of Queen Elizabeth I (The Merry Wives of Windsor in 1596, A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream in 1603). He bought one of the largest properties in Stratford called The New Place and penned 9 plays by 1595.

9. Words, Words, Words • Today, an average person’s vocabulary might include 2000 words in everyday conversation. • Shakespeare is said to have had a vocabulary of some 29,066 words.

10. Words, Words, Words • In Brush Up Your Shakespeare!, author Michael Macrone explains that it’s not always easy to determine who first coined  a word, but notes that the Oxford English Dictionary attributes all of the bold-faced words below  (and some 500 more) to Shakespeare. • From the spectacledpedant to the schoolboy, all gentlefolk recognize Shakespeare as a fathomlessfount of coinages. The honey-tongued Bard had no rival, nor could he sate his never-endingaddiction to madcap, flowery or foul-mouthed [new words]. Even time-honoredexposure cannot besmirch our amazement at the countless and useful words that lend radiance to our lackluster lives. All in a day’s work!

11. 21st Century Shakespeare • A Google search of “Shakespeare” will return over 52 million web pages for browsing pleasure. • Macbeth is thought to be one of the most produced plays ever, with a performance beginning somewhere in the world every four hours!

12. The Globe Theatre

13. The Globe Theatre The Globe Theatre opened in 1599 and later burned to the ground in 1613; it reopened a year later in 1614.

14. Present Day Globe Theatre: In 1997 a group of theater buffs opened it back up.

15. Shakespeare On Screen Over 300 film adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays, dating from as early as the 1930s, have been recorded.

16. Shakespeare On Screen Antony and Cleopatra As You Like It Hamlet Henry IV, parts 1 and 2, and Henry V Julius Caesar King John King Lear Love's Labour's Lost Macbeth The Merchant of Venice A Midsummer Night's Dream Much Ado About Nothing Othello Richard III Romeo and Juliet The Taming of the Shrew The Tempest Titus Andronicus Twelfth Night The Winter's Tale

18. The End

19. Shakespeare facts cited from the Folger Shakespeare Library at http://www.folger.edu/ and A Reader’s Guide to Shakespeare edited by Joseph Rosenblum

20. Final Thoughts • Finally, tell me about your past experience with Shakespeare. • What have you read of Shakespeare’s works in the past? • What did you find most enjoyable about reading/studying Shakespeare? • Was there anything you found particularly difficult in the past? • If so, what would make your experience more enjoyable with Macbeth?