William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet and actor born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. He wrote 37 plays and 154 other works including poems during his lifetime. Some of his most famous plays include Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth. Shakespeare's plays were performed in London theaters like the Globe Theatre, which was owned by Shakespeare and his acting troupe. His plays have endured and are still popular today for their complex characters, themes, and use of language like iambic pentameter and sonnets.

1. Helpful Information for Navigating Romeo &
Juliet
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2. What’s the Deal with
Shakespeare?
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3. William Shakespeare Dates
 from Stratford-
upon-Avon (outside
of London)
 Baptized on April 26,
1564.
 Believed to have
been born on April
23, 1564.
 Died April 23, 1616.
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4. Meet the Shakespeares
 Son to John and
Mary Shakespeare
 7 siblings
 Married Anne
Hathaway (then 26)
in 1582
 3 children
 Susanna
 Twins: Judith &
Hamnet

5. Important Places
https://www.contours.co.uk/walking-holidays/maps/shakespeares-way-map.gif

6. Shakespeare’s Resume
 Little is known of his career between the twins’
birth and 1592.
 1592 = first record of Shakespeare as a London
actor and playwright
 Eventually became a business partner in a major
acting company, the Lord Chamberlain’s Men
 Authored 37 plays and 154 other works that we
know of (many published poems)
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7. The Globe Theatre
 One of the most
famous playhouses of
all time
 Built by W.S. and The
Lord Chamberlain’s
Men in 1599
 Circular Structure
 Available to all (cost
about 10% of a
worker’s daily wage to
enter)
 Burnt in a performance
mishap in 1616
 Rebuilt in late 1990s.
http://i2.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article3224814.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/A-view-of-the-22-million-Globe-Theatre-in-London.jpg

8. The Globe Theatre
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9. Elizabethan Theatre
 Queen Elizabeth, and subsequently, King
James were huge fans of theatre.
 Only men were allowed to act on stage
 Juliet (and all other female characters) played by
men

10. Writing Style
 Lots of elaborate metaphors & similes, puns,
and other figurative language and wordplay.
 “primarily used a metrical pattern consisting of
lines of unrhymed iambic pentameter, or blank
verse, to compose his plays. At the same time,
there are passages in all the plays that deviate
from this and use forms of poetry or simple
prose” (“William”).

11. Iambic Pentameter
 5 pairs of two syllables (feet)
 One stressed, one unstressed

12. Sonnet Form
 Poem
 Originated in Italy (from sonetto: “little poem” or
“song”)
 14 lines (3 quatrains, 1 couplet)
 Iambic pentameter
 Specific, strict rhyme scheme:
 ABAB CDCD EFEF GG
 The couplet (last two lines) usually holds the
theme of the sonnet, or a new look at a theme
already introduced.
 Often used to discuss themes about the conflicts
or sadness relating to love.

13. A COMPLAINT BY NIGHT OF THE
LOVER
NOT BELOVED
Alas! so all things now do hold their peace!
Heaven and earth disturbed in no thing
The beasts, the air, the birds their song do cease,
The nightés car the stars about do bring. car: chariot
Calm is the sea. The waves work less and less:
So am not I, whom love, alas! doth wring,
Bringing before my face the great increase
Of my desires, whereat I weep and sing,
In joy and woe, as in a doubtful case.
For my sweet thoughts sometime do pleasure bring;
But by and by, the cause of my disease
Gives me a pang, that inwardly doth sting,
When that I think what grief it is again,
To live and lack the thing should rid my pain.

14. Three Categories of Plays
 Histories
 Explore British history
 Comedies
 Story about marriages, love all mixed up
 Has a happy ending
 Tragedies
 Has a noble protagonist, flawed in some way, who
is placed in a stressful situation with a fatal
ending
 Romeo and Juliet falls into this category

15. Dramatic Structure
 5 Act Play
 Exposition
 Rising Action
 Climax
 Falling Action
 Catastrophe
 See handout.

16. Shakespeare is Still Cool
 Genius characters
 Real human beings
 Timeless plots
 Elicits a broad
spectrum of
emotions and
conflicts
 Themes are still
relevant today
https://iamsansan.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/pg-02-shakespeare-g_175920t.jpg?w=676

17. Shakespeare & Hip Hop
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSbtkLA3
GrY&feature=player_embedded
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/DSbtkLA3GrY/maxresdefault.jpg

18.  "Shakespeare's Globe Theatre."
Shakespeare's Globe Theatre at
AbsoluteShakespeare.com.
AbsoluteShakespeare.com., n.d. Web. 24 Mar.
2016.
 "Shakespeare's Life." Folger Shakespeare
Library. Folger Shakespeare Library, n.d. Web.
23 Mar. 2016.
 "William Shakespeare Biography." Bio.com.
A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 24 Mar.
2016.