Introduction to William Shakespeare

1. Introduction toWilliam Shakespeare Drama Unit

2. Shakespeare’s Life • Born: April 1564 in Stratford-on-Avon in England • Died: April 23, 1616 • Birthday celebrated on April 23 • Oldest of 6 children • Formal education = no records exist to verify • Son of a city official – eligible to attend school • Curriculum: • Latin literature, Greek, grammar, arithmetic, and rhetoric

3. Shakespeare’s Life • At 18 he married Anne Hathaway (26) • 21 years old – support a wife and 3 children • He eventually left his wife to go earn a living in London • Writing and performing theatre • 6 years later he made a name for himself • 1594: partner in the Lord Chamberlain’s Men theatre company • Wrote 2 plays a year  38 plays, 2 extended poems, sonnets

4. Elizabethan England Elizabeth I England 1558-1603 ruled Peace and prosperity Daughter of Henry 8 and Anne Boleyn (2nd wife) Illegitimate child and monarch Had no heir  national security threat Smaller, more isolated Exploration of New World was just beginning Economy based in agriculture Plague: killed 11,000 Londoners in 1593

5. Elizabethan England • James I of England/James 6 of Scotland • 1603 succeeded Elizabeth I • First monarch to rule England, Scotland, and Ireland simultaneously • Respected intellectual & political failure • Conflicts of his rule led to the English Civil War

6. Elizabethan Theatre • James Burbage: built the first theatre in England in 1576 • Skirt rigid rules governing entertainment • Located outside the city  “Shoreditch” • Shores of the Thames River and beyond a ditch outside of London • Globe Theatre • 3,000 audience members • Drink ale and eat snacks • Linked to a football game or rock concert

7. Elizabethan Theatre • Wealthy: paid 2-3 pence for gallery seats • “Common folk”: stood on the floor for one cent • Performances took place during the day • Basic props and sets • Rehearsed for a few days before performing • All actors were male • Female roles were played by young men • 1660: women were allowed to act

8. The Globe Theatre

9. Elizabethan Theatre • 1642: Puritans closed theatres • 18 years later they reopened • 1666: The Globe Theatre was destroyed by a fire

10. The Taming of the Shrew

11. Characters • Tranio: Lucentio servant, disguises himself as Lucentio to win Bianca’s hand • Baptista: wealthy gentleman of Pauda; Bianca & Katherine’s father • Bianca: Baptista’s youngest daughter; has multiple suitors • Petruchio: down-on-his luck gentleman from Verona; marries Katherine for her money • Lucentio: young man from Pisa; disguises himself as a tutor to woo Bianca • Katherine: Baptista’s oldest daughter; the “shrew”

12. Characters • Gremio: old man; one of Bianca’s suitors • Hortensio: Petruchio’s friend; one of Bianca’s suitors • Biondello: Lucentio’s servant • Grumio: Petruchio’s servant • Vincentio: Lucentio’s father

13. Plot Summary • Baptista declares Bianca cannot marry until Katherine does • Katherine decides she will not marry • Petruchio takes on a challenge of convincing Katherine to marry him • Petruchio tries to “tame” Katherine • Lucentio instantly falls in love with Bianca and disguises himself to win her over • Shrew – small mammal, known for its aggressive behavior

14. Then & Now

15. Pay Attention To… • How Kate and Bianca are pressured by family and society • How people use words to express themselves • Try to decide if this kind of story can happen in real life

16. Activities and Assessments The Taming of the Shrew

17. Pre-Reading Journal: Blog: Do you think men and women are equal? Do you know someone who tries to get someone’s attention by doing things like teasing, pretending to steal things from them, or just hanging around a lot? Make a note of some of the popular books or movies that have a sympathetic female as the main character.

18. During Reading Blog on Edmodo: Journal: 1. Write a six-line argument between Katherine and Petruchio using modern-day insults. Remember to keep it playful and fun – these characters really like each other. 1. Do you think Katherine is truly saying that she now believes that a woman should be in all ways inferior to a man? Could there be any other meaning? Rewrite Kaatherine’s last monologue from your own point of view.

19. Post-Reading: Character Study • Purpose: to bring the characters into a real-world context • Complete a profile with: vital statistics, likes/dislikes, friends, profile picture, write on each other’s walls • Reflection: • Name one thing you had to imagine about your character that you think is really interesting? • Was it easy to imagine beyond the play? Do you feel the play did not provide enough information? Explain. • How easy was it to decide who your character’s friends are? Would your character ignore a friend request from other characters in the play? Why or why not?

20. Post-Reading: Twittering • Purpose: to increase understanding of how the characters interact and feel towards one another • Choose a character and create a twitter name for them. • Create a list of tweets that their character would post throughout the play. • Using Edmodo, tweet with the other characters. • Example: @Gremio: @Bianca4 realz I will come to woo, my lady • Example: @Lucentiodawg: Hmm, is @Tranio thinking what I’m thinking? • Reflection: • Was it easy to decide what the character’s Twitter names were? Did you try to make the Twitter names reflect something about the character? • Was it easy or fun to pick out lines from the play to use in a tweet? • Were some relationships easier to convey via tweets than others? Why?

21. Post-Reading: The Dating Game • Cast: Bianca, Lucentio, Hortensio, Gremio, Host • Bianca questions each of her suitors • Examples: Why do you desire my hand in marriage? What is your profession? What do you think of my sister, Katherine? How long have you lived in Pauda? • Let Bianca guess which bachelor is which • Reflection: • Was Bianca able to figure out which suitor was which? • Which clues were useful? Which were not? Why? • Was it interesting to pretend and embody a certain character?

22. Post-Reading: Musical Interlude • Research current music to find connections of meaning through lyrics and musical expression to the play’s plot • Create a list of songs that accurately describes the story arc of the play, paying attention to particular words and moods that connect the song to the text. • Share their lists via Edmodo • Reflection: • What difficulty did you have finding the right songs, if any? • Were certain points of the play harder than others for which to find a current expression? • Does your soundtrack point to a certain interpretation of the story as you see it? • Were there certain characters you chose to highlight? Why?