2. Content Who is he? What are some interesting facts about him/ his life? How did he become a writer? What was his childhood like? Did he have a family? What was his social status like? What inspired him to write? Why his plays were well received?
3. Shakespeare and his life Full name is William Shakespeare Lived from 26 April 1564to 23 April 1616 Was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language Plays have been translated into major languages and are performed more often than other playwright. Early plays were mainly comedies and histories then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608
4. Shakespeare’s family William's father, John Shakespeare, was a prominent local citizen who served as an alderman and bailiff (important roles in local government). His mother was Mary Arden Shakespeare. William was the fourth of the Shakespeare's' eight children, only five of whom survived to adulthood. Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway on November 28, 1582. William was 18 and Anne was 26 and pregnant. They had three children.
5. Shakespeare’s writing career From great classical authors like Ovid and Seneca, to English historians like Holinshed, Shakespeare's greatest inspirations were the works of other great writers. With the exception to some playwrights, Shakespeare borrowed his plots, down to fine detail. He was also inspired by nature like birds. Shakespeare's works contain over 600 references to birds of all kinds, including the swan, bunting, cock, dove, etc. William Shakespeare's writing style was borrowed from the conventions of the day, while at the same time adapting them to his needs. His plays were received well. His acting company made good money playing his plays. Some of them were so popular that pirate copies of the script started appearing on the open market.
6. Shakespeare’s schooling Probably entered Stratford Grammar School at age 7 He spent 11 hours a day, 6 days a week in school. Students studied Latin grammar, composition and literature, maybe Greek. The teachers were graduates of Oxford Universityand enforced strict discipline as well as physical punishment. By modern standards, his schooling was demanding, dull, and strict.
7. Interesting facts about Shakespeare and his works Shakespeare was buried in the Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon. He put a curse on anyone daring to move his body from that final resting place. Almost four hundred years after Shakespeare's death there are 15 million pages referring to him on Google. Shakespeare uses "dog" or "dogs" over two hundred times in his works. He was also the first writer to use the compound noun "watchdog", in The Tempest. Macbeth is thought to be one of the most produced plays ever, with a performance beginning somewhere in the world every four hours! Shakespeare's works contain first-ever recordings of 2,035 English words.