Shakespeare: His Life and Times Early Life

Shakespeare: His Life and Times

Early Life

• Born 1564—died 1616
• Stratford-upon-Avon
• Parents: John and Mary Arden Shakespeare
• Mary—daughter of wealthy landowner
• John—glovemaker, local politician

Education

• Probably attended King’s New School in Stratford
• His school day was long and rigorous

Educated in:

-Rhetoric



-Logic

-History



-Latin

• Shakespeare dropped out of ‘middle school’ when his father lost his fortune

Married Life

• Married in 1582 to Anne Hathaway, who was pregnant at the time with their first daughter
• Had twins in 1585- Hamnet & Judith
• Hamnet died from the plague at age 11
• Sometime between 1583-1592, he moved to London and began working in theatre.
• The years 1583-1592 are know as ‘The Lost Years’
• No one know where he was, or what he was doing during those years

Theatre Career

• Member and later part-owner of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, later called the King’s Men
• Globe Theater built in 1599 with Shakespeare as primary investor
• Burned down in 1613 during one of Shakespeare’s plays

The Plays

• 38 plays firmly attributed to Shakespeare
• 14 comedies
• 10 histories
• 10 tragedies
• 4 romances
• Possibly wrote three others
• Collaborated on several others

Shakespeare’s Death

• Shakespeare died on April 23rd, 1616
• Not exactly sure what he died from
• History says he drank too much wine and ate too many pickled herrings
• In his will, Shakespeare left money, horses, stables, etc. to his two sons-in-law
• But only left his wife one thing- the “second-best bed”
• Was he trying to make a point?

Shakespeare’s Death

• Shakespeare is buried in Holy Trinity Church in his birth village of Stratford.
• His grave is covered by a flat stone that bears an epitaph warning of a curse to come upon anyone who moves his bones.