Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

childrens_illustrated_encyclopedia_template_US_layer_v1

The greaTesT playwrighT of all time was

probably the englishman william shakespeare.

he was born in stratford-upon-avon, where he

went to school and later married. when he was in

his 20s, he went to london to work as an actor and

a playwright. his plays were very successful, and

37 of them survive. some, such as Hamlet, are

tragedies, which end with the death of the hero

or heroine. Others, such as Twelfth Night, are

comedies, full of amusing characters who get into

terrible difficulties that are eventually resolved. shakespeare also wrote

histories that are based on real-life events, such as Henry IV. Most of

shakespeare’s plays are written in an unrhymed verse form called blank

verse. They are famous worldwide for their use of language, fascinating

characters, and wide appeal.

460

A MIdsuMMer NIgHT’s dreAM

One of shakespeare’s most popular plays, A

Midsummer Night’s dream, is a comedy. The play

has a huge cast of characters, including two young

couples who fall in and out of love, a group of

workmen, and the king and queen of the fairies,

who create hilarious confusion with their magic.

1564 Born, stratford-upon-

avon, england.

1582 Marries anne

hathaway.

1592 writes his first plays

in london.

1594-99 produces early

comedies, and many

history plays.

1599 globe Theater

constructed.

1600-08 writes many of his

greatest tragedies.

1616 Dies in stratford-

upon-avon.

was it bacon?

in the 19th century,

some people thought

that the learned writer

Francis Bacon (1561-

1626) had written

shakespeare’s plays,

because shakespeare

had not gone to

college, but there is

no real evidence that

proves this.

elizabeth i

literature

Theater

writers and poets

Find out more

pOeTry

shakespeare was a fine poet

and wrote a series of 14-line

love poems called sonnets.

They are addressed to two

different people, “a dark

lady” and Mr. w.h. some

scholars believe that Mr.

w.h. may have been henry

wriothesley, the Third earl

of southampton, who was

shakespeare’s patron.

English

actress,

Maggie

Smith, in a

performance of

A Midsummer

Night’s Dream.

William

ShakeSpeare

Male actors played

female roles.

The audience

stood around

the stage.

King’s Men

in the 1590s, shakespeare

joined a troupe of actors

called the lord

Chamberlain’s Men and

became their resident writer.

when James i came to the

throne in 1603, they gained

his support and became

known as the King’s Men.

They had their own theater,

the globe, near the Thames

river in london.

Henry Wriothesley

The graMMar sChOOl

with its rows of wooden desks, the

old grammar school still stands in

stratford. shakespeare was probably

educated here.

US_460_Shakespeare.indd 460 09/02/16 5:28 pm