William Shakespeare : The Greatest Playwright Of All Times

Love was very important to the Shakespearean audience. There is not a play written by Shakespeare that does not contain some form of a love relationship. These plays usually end happily, however in the case of “Macbeth”, the relationship that carries this important function, that is love, is conveyed in a way most peculiar. Instead of the average “happily ever after” ending an audience would expect, Shakespeare offers the audience, a villainous duo. One would expect that their relationship is an average husband and wife relationship, but there are many similarities and differences in the relationship which makes it even more enjoyable for the audience to watch the course of it.

‘Marital intimacy is dangerous, the very dream of it is a threat’ (Greenblatt). Compare Othello and Much Ado in light of this statement. To what extent does your study of these plays lead you to agree with this assessment of marriage in Shakespeare’s drama? What is revealed about the context in which the plays were written and how would the audiences’ responses differ over time?

Centuries ago in Elizabethan England there were many traditions about marriage and the treatment of women. One strong tradition of these times was the practice of marriage between races. Interracial marriages were considered extremely taboo. (High Beam). In this era marriages were arranged by the parents with strong help from the local church. The individuals had little choice as to who they would marry. (Elizabethan England Life). Yet another example of these traditions was the respectable treatment of women. While the husband was in charge of his wife, as was the father, the husband were expected to treat the women right (Elizbethi). In spurning all of these traditions, Shakespeare demonstrates a view of marriage far different from that

William Shakespeare, one of the greatest authors of all time, was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom. The exact date of his birth is unknown though many historians have come to the agreement that he was born on or near April 23 1564. This assumption is due to the fact that his records show he was baptized on the 26th of April 1564. It is also likely that he attended King Edward VI Grammar School in Stratford. As that would have been typical for a child who’s father was an alderman. What is known is that he did not go to Unversity.

William Shakespeare, the renowned poet credited with writing 37 plays and 154 sonnets symbolizes brilliance in literature. The playwright's legendary plots and characters along with his portrayal of love proves him to be one of the greatest poet of all time. Despite the authors profound successes, the authenticity of Shakespeare's writing is a mysterious conspiracy. A missing paper trail, similarities found in works of Shakespeare’s and his contemporaries, and an unsettling exhibit question the Bard’s credibility. There remains an ongoing debate between Shakespeare’s devoted admirers and anti-Stratfordians, who unambiguously believe Shakespeare is a fraud due to lack of documentation, similarities between Shakespeare’s works and his enemies,

Finally, marriage in Shakespeare’s time was not a symbol of love, it was seen to be advantageous to the man as it was a way to make money. It was a business arrangement and the men were content with this as it meant that they had all of the power, whilst the women had none. For all the reasons stated above, values and attitudes have changed since Shakespeare’s time so therefore, this play would be viewed differently by a modern audience. In both points that we’re made above, you can see that men’s rights were above women’s, which I think is absolutely

Through rich imagery and a comic context Shakespeare uses characters to explore his ideas about love and marriage, using relationships to show the trials of love. In his play Shakespeare makes Beatrice and Benedick the critics of love and through them the modern audience is shown how Elizabethan society maltreats the female role and how the male code of honour and pride can lead to devastation.

When examining the plays written by Shakespeare there are many instances where the common theme of marriage is shows. In the times of the 1600’s the ceremony of marriage was very common and done in a very orderly and strict fashion. In those time there was no aspects of a genuine love and heart felt marriage but instead they were seen as an agreement between the two parties. In many of the works of Shakespeare many characters deal with the issue of marriage and you begin to see the toll if had on many women involved in these types of marriages. In many different reviews, Journals and other scholarly works shows that there is proof of how the idea of women played a major role in the lives of women and how they were to be treated.

At that time, William was 18 and Anne was 26 and pregnant, six months after the wedding she gave birth to their daughter, Susanna. Two years later, Anne Hathaway gave birth to twins, a son named Hamnet and a daughter named Judith. Hamnet later died died at age 11 of unknown causes. “Shakespeare had a arranged marriage with Anne Hathaway, who gave birth to their daughter Susanna(1583)and the twins Judith and Hamnet(1585)” (Bleiberg). After the birth of the twins, seven years of Shakespeare’s life was nonexistent. Scholars call this duration the “lost years”, also many people wondered what he was doing during this period. “After the birth of the twins, there are seven years of William Shakespeare's life where no records exist. Scholars call this period the "lost years," and there is wide speculation on what he was doing during this period” (Biography.com). So how did Shakespeare support himself and his family? Where did he live? When and why did he leave Stratford and set out for London theatrical world? No one knows, but in 1592 Shakespeare became popular enough to be hated by becoming as both an actor and a playwright. “We do know that by 1592 he had achieved some prominence in London as both an actor and a playwright” (Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet

William Shakespeare’s exact birthdate is unknown, but he was born and baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon, England on April 26, 1564. His parents were John and Mary Shakespeare. His father died in 1601, he left Shakespeare with only a little real estate. On the other hand, his mother died September 1608 in Stratford-upon-Avon, England. Shakespeare was the first child of three and the oldest of John and Mary’s. Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway in 1582. Shakespeare was 18 when he married Anne. Six months after the marriage, Anne gave birth to Susanna, their first daughter. Two years later she gives birth to twins. A license was issued for the marriage on November 27, 1582. They remained married until his death in 1616. For some time he lived with a French Huguenot family named Mountjoy. They lived near St. Olave’s Church in Cripplegate, London. Records of a lawsuit somewhere around May 1612, show Shakespeare giving evidence in a genial way and in the

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford on April 23, 1564 and he was later baptized on April 26, 1564. His parents were John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. William was the third of eight children, three of which died in childhood. John was a merchant and high bailiff in Stratford. Because he held a position of an official in Stratford, his children would likely have been waived tuition for their education. Although there are no records to prove it, historians infer that Shakespeare went to the Stratford Grammar School due to his knowledge of Latin and Classical Greek. Because his tuition was waived, Shakespeare was able to learn writing free of cost, and this likely had a huge effect on the brilliance of his writing later in his life.

“How would a modern audience view this play in a different way to an audience in Shakespeare’s time, particularly in relation to the role and status of women and attitudes to marriage and courtship?

In 1564, William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon (Hazell 32). It seems that Shakespeare’s career began around the year 1592. This was a tough time for playwrights and actors. There was an outbreak of the bubonic plague which caused concerns for those wanting to watch because of being surrounded by those potentially

By examining Shakespeare’s treatment of familial ties in his plays The Life and Death of King John and The Winter’s Tale, we can see how his attitudes and opinions towards family relationships evolved. In King John (written between 1594 and 1596), Shakespeare adopts what was then a fairly conventional attitude towards family relationships: his characters never question the highly patriarchal family hierarchy. They also assume that the majority of wives will be unfaithful, simply because they are female—however, they take the charge of adultery rather lightly. By contrast, in The Winter’s Tale (written between 1610 and 1611), he adopts a much more progressive, feminist view of family

Since we know Stratford's famous Bard lived with his father, John Shakespeare, we can presume that he grew up in Henley Street, some one hundred miles northwest of London.