Born
21-23 April 1564 – Died 23rd April 1616
William
Shakespeare was born into an ordinary family in Stratford-Upon-Avon
in April 1564 to parents John and Mary. His father held many civic positions;
and due to these duties he sought application for a coat of arms, which would
have given him title of Gentleman; this was rejected in 1568. Alike many
tradesmen & land owners of the time it is thought that neither of his parents
could write.
The
nearby town of Coventry was rich with a
tradition of theatrical activity, with touring companies visiting Stratford; it is thought
that Williams mind was enriched with inspiration from an early age, through the
culture of his town and a rich education.
As
there is no documented evidence not a lot is known of Shakespeare’s earlier
life, it is thought that he attended the Kings new school in Stratford as his fathers position came with
free education for his children. Here Shakespeare would have had a rich Latin
based education with access to famous myths & histories along with training
in oral presentation. The standards at this school were higher than any other
of the period, with all school Masters holding University degrees. Due
to the families’ financial ruin, Shakespeare was unable to obtain his
university degree, which would have automatically given him the status of
gentleman.The
school is still functioning to this day and is fondly referred to as Shakespeare’s
School.
Shakespeare
lived in a time of instability with intense rioting threatening Catholics –
with many having to keep religious parchments locked away & provide ‘Priest
Holes’ in their homes for the Catholics & priests to hide in. The English government’s persecution of English
Catholics was as cruel as it was necessary in the government's eyes. While there is no
documented evidence still existing, it is believed the Shakespeare family were
Catholics, during this time when the religion went against Law.
In
1882 at the age of 18 he married Anne Hathaway in what was thought to be a
‘Shotgun wedding’. It is believed her family pressurised William into the
marriage as Anne was already pregnant with their first child. Some say this is
what led to him opting to live in London
for most of his marriage, as his hatred for Anne’s entrapment grew.
It
is thought he joined a travelling company of actors and was apprenticed to play
young woman’s parts.
During
the height of the English Renaissance & the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Christopher
Marlowe & Robert Green which were part of the University wits and William Shakespeare broke free from the earlier
medieval style. In 1570 acting became a legal profession & was directly
under the control of the government. The Queens People recognised the theatre
as a powerful medium & as a result all acting companies were now required
to have a license and patronage of noble origin.
The
first reference to Shakespeare as a writer & actor was in 1592. The
reference was negative, made by Robert
Greene, a professional writer in his pamphlet ‘Greenes Groatsworth of Wit’ (1592). In a letter to Christopher
Marlowe & two unknown scholars he clearly points to William, warning about
an "upstart crow beautified with our feathers"
His skill for plotting became evident in the 1590’s & it is thought that he
compiled the work of several authors for his history plays including the three Henry VI plays. Many Elizabethan plays had up to 5 authors allowing them to be staged
quickly in order to exploit topical events or manipulate public opinion.
Greene’s
snobbery towards Shakespeare was evident, for having the ‘nerve’ to rewrite the
work of college graduates.
It is
unknown whether Greene wrote this out of jealousy because Shakespeare was
making more money from the plays than he, as Greene was dying in poverty, or if
he was accusing William of Plagiarism.
References
to his published works came in 1593 with his two Poems dedicated to the Earl of
South Hampton, Venus and Adonis &
The Rape of Lucrece. Dedicating poems was very popular at this time
as Southampton was extremely wealthy, it is
recorded that he gave a sum of £1000 – believed to be for his poems – but the
sum was nevertheless classed as enormous for the time. Shakespeare also received use of his
private library... Speculation
surrounds this situation and friendship of the pair, that perhaps The Earl and Shakespeare had an some form of intimacy, and
questions are left as to what the Earl had received in return?!
His early plays were mainly
comedies & histories such as Comedy of Errors & Henry VI parts 1-3. Later plays included Tragedies & Romance
such as Twelfth Night, A midsummer’s Night Dream, Hamlet & Othello. His full collection of
surviving manuscripts contain: 154 sonnets, 38 plays, 2 long narrative poems
and a collection of other poems.
One
classic characteristic of Shakespeare was his typical double meanings. He had a
tendency to make the language of Love interchangeable with that of money – an
example of this is seen in Sonnet 87 – Farewell – thou art too dear for my
possessing’
Shakespeare’s
contributions provided us with the rich vibrant English language we know today.
The
Oxford English Dictionary records over 2000, with words like ‘puppy dog’, eyeball
& ‘anchovy’. He created the word ‘alligator’ because he ran out of things
to rhyme with crocodile! He gave us phrases like "flesh and blood" "out of house and
home".
Shakespeare’s
first positive success dates from 1598, when his first plays began to be
published with his name on the title page; indicating his name was a selling
point.
He
had a broad career becoming a shareholder in The Lord Chamberlains Men (1576), in
1598 they built The Globe in the hopes of having a permanent home for their
plays & due to a disagreement had to dissemble the theatre and move to new
home across the Thames.
In
1603 The lord chamberlains men became The Kings Men – after Queen Elizabeth I’s
death, her successor James I, a writer himself, felt it important to associate
himself with the performing arts and reinstated the Lord Chamberlains Men as
the Kings Men. Around this time the Essex rebellion had failed & the earl
of South Hampton imprisoned - James released Southampton
from Prison at this time (1603). It is thought Shakespeare moved away from the Southampton circle at this time, and returned to Stratford
permanently in 1611. He died in 1616.
After
his death, the Kings men on return to Stratford
were paid by the council not to perform – his plays were not performed again in
Stratford until
1786.
Shakespeare
was the greatest ever English playwright – coming from an ordinary background
is part of the fascination, a hasty marriage to Anne Hathaway and a bizarre
friendship with the Earl of South Hampton - he has today several society’s dedicated
to preserving his work including the Royal Shakespeare Company & the
Shakespeare-Oxford Society.
Julie Nicholl-Stimpson
All Rights Reserved.
