William Shakespeare

1. William Shakespeare London, Theatre and His Life

2. 4 Basic Forms of Plays • History • only deals with English histories • not always tragic • Comedy • Love, sex, relationship between people of the same age genre

3. Four Basic Forms of Plays • Tragedy • Death, darkness and foreshadowing • Sometimes only the ending is what qualifies the play to be tragic (like Romeo & Juliet) • Romance • The relationships between mostly father and daughter – her growing up, and his inability to let her grow up

4. Theatre/Drama On paper, his work is just literature… the live performance of this literature is what creates actual drama and makes his work understandable. These works were DESIGNED to be read out loud. If you are not reading this work out loud, the point gets muddled.

5. Theatre/Drama • The following help create drama: • Tone, diction: the way actors speak • Body language: the method in which bodies move and portray emotion • Comic jokes: meant to lighten any situation • Actions made: sword fights, crossing the stage, screaming, etc.

6. Theatre/Drama • Additional Factors in Drama • Background action: people eating dinner, dancing, etc. • Monologues: a person moving to the front of the stage to say something only you and I hear • Costumes and sets: the outfits and the backgrounds • Fights: highly choreographed violence

7. Elizabethan Stage / The Globe Theatre • No roof, plays were done during the day to utilize as much natural daylight as possible • Actors were often in a center stage pressed on the back wall, while the audience surrounded them • This meant that actors had to move constantly and had to address different angles of the audience • If the audience was neglected, problems arised

8. Elizabethan Stage • Most commonly played on THE GLOBE THEATRE • Cost a penny to be standing on the ground, this was often a full day’s work • Seats on the tiers cost tuppence to four pence (a month’s amount of work)

9. Elizabethan Stage • Held up to 2,500 people • Stage was covered, as were tier seats • Those on the ground had no cover from sun or rain • It was always a spectacle – people above and below the stage for special effects • Even used a sewn up pig’s bladder for blood!

10. Elizabethan Stage

11. Elizabethan Stage

12. Elizabethan Stage • Shakespeare wrote the play, but had no more authority than that • Actors, upon receiving the script, could change and alter everything in the script to ensure the play worked while on stage • We have no idea how roles were selected, directors directed, etc. The records are all gone. • We don’t even know if they had prompters or if they knew how to improvise

13. Elizabethan Stage • They would play the same play twice in a row, and during the course of a week would perform six different plays • It was all situational: weather, audience, authority, etc. • Some days, it worked. Other days, it failed miserably.

14. Elizabethan Stage • These people had memorized THOUSANDS of lines, and knew the roles over nearly 18 different characters! • Mostly, the troupes consisted of SEVEN people total! • Really consider this feat: seven people total would perform plays that would have nearly 20 characters!

15. Fun Fact: Dialogue • What you read is NOT how they spoke in that era, they spoke a form of English that you could easily understand today • The language in Shakespeare’s poems and plays were simply a formality • They did not walk around saying “Thou art” or “thine”… remember that as you read! • Likewise, you have to READ these out loud. Take your time and really try to decipher what they are saying. Don’t immediately say “I don’t get it.” You can get it if you take the time to get it.

16. William Shakespeare

17. William Shakespeare: Background Info • 1564-1616: Approximate dates • Birth year is debated, as records were not as accurate as today • Church records show he was born in Stratford on Avon, Trinity Church • Parents: John Shakespeare and Mary Arden

18. William Shakespeare: Background Info • 1582: Shakespeare is 18 and marries Anne Hathaway who is 26 (probably was an arranged marriage) • Left questions to consider: why was she so late getting married? Why does he marry so early? Their ages should be reversed.

19. William Shakespeare: Background Info • She was pregnant when they wed • Statistics show that nearly 1/3 of women were pregnant on their wedding day • If she was not pregnant, it was not a “good sign” that the groom’s family would have an heir. • They had a daughter (Susanne) in 1582, and then twins (Hamnet and Judith) in 1585

20. William Shakespeare: Background Info • He had basic reading skills (the Bible and some Latin), basic mathematics • There is no proof that Shakespeare was taught how to write. • Leaves the question: how can one of the greatest writers in the world not know how to write?

21. William Shakespeare: Background Info • There are no records to show writing ambition, he simply showed up in London in 1592 to write • We don’t know why he left his family, but we know it happened in 1592 because we have articles from other playwrights hated him (the theory is because his son died)

22. William Shakespeare: Background Info • Writing begins… • Started writing comedies (they were awful) • Progressed to histories (takes place in early English history; civil wars predating Henry VII) • England’s history and monarchy IS important when it comes to this subject! • How he wrote was directly impacted by who was King or Queen, or what the official religion was…

23. William Shakespeare: Background Info • He NEVER wrote about the current historical times…. • He did this intentionally: if you talked about Elizabethan times, you could upset the audience as they were all aware there was no heir. • If Elizabeth caught wind of this, she would cut off your hand leaving you unable to write • It was a matter of safety for his own life • He also found that you could draw on history, play it up and enjoy success

24. William Shakespeare: Background Info • 1594-1612: writes plays, but we have no idea of what order they came in • After Elizabeth’s death, he focused mostly on tragedies • King Lear, MacBeth, Romeo & Juliet • As he ages, his works become darker and darker

25. William Shakespeare: Background Info • The Romances (the last ones we know of) are pretty dark, however still fit in the specific genre as there is always some form of reconciliation at the end • Real life connection: there are no happy families or couples in Shakespeare literature • Relate to authorial purpose: • Is it to assume he did not know a happy married life? We do not have those answers.

26. William Shakespeare: Background Info • Financially… • He owned 1/5 of the theatre • Never made a dime off his writings • 1609: His sonnets are published (possibly without consent) • 1616: dies of natural causes (though that’s speculated as well), his will still survives

27. Late 16th to Early 17th Century England Crucial cultural information that pre-dates Shakespeare and ties it all together!

28. Setting the Stage… • Queen Elizabeth reigned from 1559-1603 (the majority of Shakespeare’s life) • She was nervous the majority of her reign due to a war with Spain in 1580s • Simple reason: She was a woman leading a kingdom • The word “kingdom” traditionally (throughout history) has specific implications of being male dominated

29. Women in Theatres • Not officially in theatres, they were not allowed; however, there were street performers that were women • Important to know is that everything Shakespeare did was witnessed by women • The 15/16th century was a “man’s world” • Women were not allowed to act, to own land, to have power, etc. • The only reason a woman was Queen was because there was no other person in the Tudor bloodline.

30. Church and Religion • Christian church was split during Shakespeare’s life (which lead to a crisis of questioning which was the right way to worship?) • This is in large part Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII: Elizabeth’s parents • The churches were torn between Protestant and Catholicism – and it changed depending how the monarchy changed

31. Patriarchal Society • All was ruled by the “father” • Patri is derivative of a Greek word, meaning “father” • Archy is derivative of another Greek work, meaning “power” • Literally translates to “father power”

32. Patriarchal Society • The ranks of power literally looked like this: Father to oldest son to other children to women • Kings were “monarchs” – they were, essentially, the father of the country • Again – this is why Queen Elizabeth had so many problems… she was a woman ruling during a time when males were supposed to have supreme power.

33. Patriarchal Society • “1 God, 1 King”: The universe is ruled by 1 person, which means that the country should be ruled by 1 person as well • This was the “common logic” of that time. • The general belief is that God anointed the ruler of England (he or she was hand selected by God, which left little room for debate regardless if he or she was a good ruler) • It was a natural concept designed by nobility to allow the elitists to govern

34. Welcome to Shakespeare’s World • Prepare for drama at its absolute finest: • Murder • Requited love • Suicide • Family problems