William Shakespeare William Shakespeare April 26 1564the day

William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare • April 26, 1564(the day he was baptized) in Stratford-upon-Avon; however, his actual birthday isn’t entirely known • English Poet and playwright-often referred to the greatest writer in the English language • Son of John and Mary • There were 8 children (all did not survive)

• At age 18, he married Anne Hathaway. She was 26 • They had 3 children: Susanna and twins Hamnet and Judith. – Hamnet died at 11 of unknown causes • 1585 -1592 are considered Shakespeare’s lost years. He had no written works known • By 1592, many of his works were on stage in London

• By 1612, William retired back to Stratford-upon. Avon and began writing less • Died on April 23, 1616; the day people celebrate his birthday • http: //player. discoveryeducation. com/index. cfm? guid. Asset. Id=83 E 1 AAC 6 -3086 -4 B 3 E-B 8 CE-B 3 B 34 D 330600&bln. From. Search=1&productcode=US

Plays • His heroes have some type of fatal flaw or error in judgment destroys hero and those he loves • Wrote roughly 40 plays • Still popular today….

Taming of the Shrew Twelfth Night Hamlet

Sonnets and Poems • Began writing poems due to the plague which shut down theatres • Composed 154 sonnets; sonnet 18 is the most known (Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day…” – Sonnet 18 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia • Much debate about the sonnets: supposedly written about/for a married woman and young man • Sonnets were about love, death, sexual passion, procreation, and the time

The Globe • Built in 1599 and was in London • Fire destroyed it in 1613 but it was rebuilt in 1614 • Women did not act in the plays • Most of his famous plays were performed here