William Shakespeare,1564 - 1616

Born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon

Lived under the late renaissance.Renaissance means rebirth.

The rebirth of old ideals from ancient Greece.

Meant that the theater was very popular.

Wrote plays and poetryPlays:TragediesHistoriesComedies

Poetry: preferably sonnets

Sonnet: 13 lines, Rhyme pattern abab cdcd efef gg

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;Coral is far more red than her lips' red;If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.I have seen roses damasked, red and white,But no such roses see I in her cheeks;And in some perfumes is there more delightThan in the breath that from my mistress reeks.I love to hear her speak, yet well I knowThat music hath a far more pleasing sound;I grant I never saw a goddess go;My mistress when she walks treads on the ground. And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare.

Sonnet 130

The tragediesTragedy – story about suffering

HamletMacbethRomeo and JulietOthello

The historiesHistories: plays based on kings’ lives

Richard IIIHenry IVHenry VHenry VIII

The comediesMuch Ado About NothingA Midsummer Night’s DreamThe Merchant from VeniceThe Taming of the ShrewThe Tempest

Famous quotesAll the world's a stage,and all the men and women merely players:they have their exits and their entrances;and one man in his time plays many parts…

As You Like it

To be or not to be; that is the question

Hamlet

What's in a name? That which we call a roseBy any other word would smell as sweet;

Romeo and Juliet

Fair is foul, and foul is fair

Macbeth

Find out….

What is the play about?

Is it a tragedy, comedy or history? Why?

Are there any particularly famous versions?

Are there any especially famous lines? What are they?

Any extra interesting information?