Short Biography William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare (1564-1616). English poet and

playwright – Shakespeare is widely considered to be
the greatest writer in the English language. He wrote
38 plays and 154 sonnets.

Short bio of William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-
Avon on 23rd April 1564.

His father William was a successful local

businessman, and his mother Mary was the daughter
of a landowner. Relatively prosperous, it is likely the
family paid for Williams education, although there is
no evidence he attended university.

In 1582 William, aged only 18, married an older

woman named Anne Hathaway. They had three children, Susanna, Hamnet and Juliet.
Their only son Hamnet died aged just 11.

After his marriage, information about the life of Shakespeare is sketchy, but it seems he
spent most of his time in London – writing and acting in his plays.

Due to some well-timed investments, Shakespeare was able to secure a firm financial
background, leaving time for writing and acting. The best of these investments was buying
some real estate near Stratford in 1605, which soon doubled in value.

It seemed Shakespeare didn’t mind being absent from his family – he only returned home
during Lent when all the theatres were closed. It is thought that during the 1590s he wrote
the majority of his sonnets. This was a time of prolific writing and his plays developed a
good deal of interest and controversy. His early plays were mainly comedies (e.g. Much
Ado about Nothing, A Midsummer’s Night Dream) and histories (e.g. Henry V)

By the early Seventeenth Century, Shakespeare had begun to write plays in the genre of
tragedy. These plays, such as Hamlet, Othello and King Lear, often hinge on some fatal
error or flaw in the lead character and provide fascinating insights into the darker aspects
of human nature. These later plays are considered Shakespeare’s finest achievements.

Some academics, known as the “Oxfords,” claim that Shakespeare never actually wrote
any plays. They contend Shakespeare was actually just a successful businessman, and for
authorship suggest names such as Edward de Vere. Nevertheless, there is evidence of
Shakespeare in theatres as he received a variety of criticism from people such as Ben
Johnson and Robert Greene. When writing an introduction to Shakespeare’s First Folio of
published plays in 1623, Johnson wrote of Shakespeare:

“not of an age, but for all time”

Shakespeare the Poet

William Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets mostly in the 1590s. These short poems, deal with
issues such as lost love. His sonnets have an enduring appeal due to his formidable skill
with language and words.

“Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which
alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove:”

– Sonnet CXVI

The Plays of Shakespeare

The plays of Shakespeare have been studied more than any other writing in the English
language and have been translated into numerous languages. He was rare as a play-write
for excelling in tragedies, comedies and histories. He deftly combined popular
entertainment with an extraordinary poetic capacity for expression which is almost mantric
in quality.

“This above all: to thine ownself be true, And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man. Farewell: my blessing season this in thee!”

– Lord Polonius, Hamlet Act I, Scene 3

During his lifetime, Shakespeare was not without controversy, but he also received lavish
praise for his plays which were very popular and commercially successful.

His plays have retained an enduring appeal throughout history and the world. Some of his
most popular plays include:

 Twelfth Night
 Henry V
 Romeo and Juliet
 Macbeth
 Hamlet
 King Lear
 Othello
“All 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, Act II,

Death of Shakespeare
Shakespeare died in 1616; it is not clear how he died, and numerous suggestions have been
put forward. John Ward, the local vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford (where
Shakespeare is buried), writes in a diary account that:

“Shakespeare, Drayton, and Ben Jonson had a merry meeting and it seems drank too hard,
for Shakespeare died of a fever there contracted.”

In 1616, there was an outbreak of typhus (“The new fever”) which may have been the
cause. The average life expectancy of someone born in London, England in the Sixteenth
Century was about 35 years old, Shakespeare died age 52.

Shakespeare’s Epitaph
Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare To digg the dust encloased heare
Blessed by y man y spares hes stones And curst be he y moves my bones

– More interesting facts on Shakespeare

Quotes on Shakespeare

“Shakespeare, no mere child of nature; no automaton of genius; no passive vehicle of

inspiration possessed by the spirit, not possessing it; first studied patiently, meditated
deeply, understood minutely, till knowledge became habitual and intuitive, wedded itself
to his habitual feelings, and at length gave birth to that stupendous power by which he
stands alone, with no equal or second in his own class; to that power which seated him on
one of the two glorysmitten summits of the poetic mountain, with Milton’s his compeer,
not rival.”

– Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Biographia Literaria (1817)

Citation: Pettinger, Tejvan. “Biography of William Shakespeare”,
Oxford, www.biographyonline.net, 18th May 2006. Last updated 1 March 2018.

Popular quotes of Shakespeare

“This above all: to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.”

– Polonius, giving Laertes a pep talk. (Hamlet)

“To be, or not to be: that is the question Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them. To die: to sleep;”

– Hamlet

“There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in our
philosophy.”

– Hamlet (to Horatio on seeing a ghost)

“We are such stuff As dreams are made on, and our little life Is rounded with a sleep.”

– The Tempest (Prospero)

The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings.”

Julius Caesar (Cassius to Brutus)

“Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”

– Macbeth (on learning of the death of Queen)

“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”

— Hamlet in Hamlet

“Self-love, my liege, is not so vile a sin, as self-neglecting.”

—Dauphin in Henry V

“Our doubts are traitors, And make us lose the good we oft might win, By fearing to
attempt.”

—Lucio in Measure for Measure

Romeo and Juliet Summary
Romeo and Juliet is set in Verona, Italy, where there is an ongoing feud between the Montague
and Capulet families. The play opens with servants from both houses engaged in a street brawl that
eventually draws in the family patriarchs and the city officials, including Prince Escalus. The Prince ends
the conflict by issuing a decree that prohibits any further fighting at the risk of great punishment.

Meanwhile, Romeo, a young man from the Montague house, laments his unrequited love for a
woman named Rosaline, who has vowed to remain chaste for the rest of her life. Romeo and his friend
Benvolio happen to stumble across a Capulet servant, Peter, who is trying to read a list of invitees to a
masked party at the Capulet house that evening. Romeo helps Peter read the list and decides to attend
the party because Rosaline will be there. He plans to wear a mask so that he will nobody will recognize
him as a Montague.

Romeo arrives at the Capulets' party in costume. He falls in love with young Juliet Capulet from
the moment he sees her. However, Juliet's cousin Tybalt recognizes Romeo and wants to kill him on the
spot. Lord Capulet intervenes, insisting that Tybalt not disturb the party because it will anger the Prince.
Undeterred, Romeo quietly approaches Juliet and confesses his love for her. After exchanging loving
words, they kiss.

Afterwards, Juliet's Nurse tells Romeo that Juliet is a Capulet, which upsets the smitten youngster.
Meanwhile, Juliet is similarly distraught when she finds out that Romeo is a Montague. Later that night,
Romeo climbs the garden wall into Juliet's garden. Juliet emerges on her balcony and speaks her private
thoughts out loud. She wishes Romeo could shed his name and marry her. Upon hearing her confession,
Romeo appears and tells Juliet that he loves her. She warns him to be true in his love, and he swears by
his own self that he will be. Before they part, they agree that Juliet will send her Nurse to meet Romeo at
nine o'clock the next day, at which point he will set a place for them to be married.

The Nurse carries out her duty, and tells Juliet to meet Romeo at the chapel where Friar Laurence
lives and works. Juliet meets Romeo there, and the Friar marries them in secret.

Benvolio and Mercutio (another one of Romeo's friends) are waiting on the street later that day
when Tybalt arrives. Tybalt demands to know where Romeo is so that he can challenge him to a duel, in
order to punish him for sneaking into the party. Mercutio is eloquently vague, but Romeo happens to
arrive in the middle of the verbal sparring. Tybalt challenges him, but Romeo passively resists fighting, at
which point Mercutio jumps in and draws his sword on Tybalt. Romeo tries to block the two men, but
Tybalt cuts Mercutio and runs away, only to return after he hears that Mercutio has died. Angry over his
friend's death, Romeo fights with Tybalt and kills him. Then, he decides to flee. When Prince Escalus
arrives at the murder scene, he banishes Romeo from Verona forever.

The Nurse tells Juliet the sad news about what has happened to Tybalt and Romeo. Juliet is heart-
broken, but she realizes that Romeo would have been killed if he had not fought Tybalt. She sends her
Nurse to find Romeo and give him her ring.

That night, Romeo sneaks into Juliet's room, and they consummate their marriage. The next
morning, he is forced to leave when Juliet's mother arrives. Romeo travels to Mantua, where he waits for
someone to send news about Juliet or his banishment.

During Romeo and Juliet's only night together, however, Lord Capulet decides that Juliet should
marry a young man named Paris, who has been asking for her hand. Lord and Lady Capulet tell Juliet of
their plan, but she refuses, infuriating her father. When both Lady Capulet and the Nurse refuse to
intercede for the girl, she insists that they leave her side.

Juliet then visits Friar Laurence, and together they concoct a plan to reunite her with Romeo. The
Friar gives Juliet a potion that will make her seem dead for at least two days, during which time Romeo
will come to meet her in the Capulet vault. The Friar promises to send word of the plan to Romeo.

Juliet drinks the Friar's potion that night. The next morning, the day of Juliet and Paris' wedding,
her Nurse finds her "dead" in bed. The whole house decries her suicide, and Friar Laurence insists they
quickly place her into the family vault.

Unfortunately, Friar John has been unable to deliver the letter to Romeo informing him of the
plan, so when Romeo's servant brings him news in Mantua that Juliet has died, Romeo is heart-broken.
He hurries back to Verona, but first, buys poison from an Apothecary and writes a suicide note detailing
the tragic course of events. As soon as Friar Laurence realizes that his letter never made it to Romeo's
hands, he rushes to the Capulet tomb, hoping to arrive before Romeo does.

Romeo arrives at the Capulet vault and finds it guarded by Paris, who is there to mourn the loss
of his betrothed. Paris challenges Romeo to a duel, and Romeo kills him quickly. Romeo then carries Paris'
body into the grave and sets it down. Upon seeing Juliet's "dead" body lying in the tomb, Romeo drinks
the poison, gives her a last kiss - and dies.

Friar Laurence arrives to the vault just as Juliet wakes up. He tries to convince her to flee, but
upon seeing Romeo's dead body, she takes her own life as well.

The rest of the town starts to arrive at the tomb, including Lord Capulet and Lord Montague. Friar
Laurence explains the whole story, and Romeo's letter confirms it. The two families agree to settle their
feud and form an alliance despite the tragic circumstances.