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Shakespeare's timeline


Life


  • 1564 Shakespeare is born on the 23rd of April in Stratford-upon-Avon and three days later was baptised at the Holy trinity church (his real birth date is unknown but is believed to be 3 days before his baptism)
  • 1571 Shakespeare was first enrolled in school. It is believed that his first school was a grammar school. By tradition children who lived in Stratford-upon-Avon start education at age seven
  • 1582 At age 18 he marries the 26 year old Anne Hathaway on the 27th November
  • 1583 - 1585 Shakespeare's first born (Susanna) is born in 1583, the twins (Judith and Hamnet)were then born later in the year 1585

  • 1594 He becomes a founding member of the Lord Chamberlain's men, an acting company
  • 1596-1597 Shakespeare's son Hamnet has died, He buys a new large property in Stratford.
  • 1608 Shakespeare's mother dies
  • 1612-1616 Shakespeare retires from theatre and goes back to live in Stratford, He dies on his birthday 1616


Work

  • 1589-1592 Shakespeare begins to establish his career and make a name for himself. He wrote the plays the comedy of errors, Henry IV part 1, part 2 and part 3, Richard III, the taming of the shrew and Titus Andronicus 
  • 1593 Shakespeare finishes writing the play Venus and Adonis. He also begins to the sonnets, Love’s Labour’s Lost, The Two Gentlemen of Verona. 

  •  1594 He then publishes the play The Rape of Lucrece 

  • 1596-1597 Shakespeare writes the plays The Merchant of Venice, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Richard II, Romeo and Juliet. 
  • 1598-1608 Shakespeare writes the plays All’s Well That Ends Well, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, King Lear, Macbeth, Measure for Measure, Othello, Timon of Athens, Troilus & Cressida, Twelfth Night 
  • 1609-1611 He published 'sonnets' and wrote the plays Cymbeline, Pericles Prince of Tyre, The Tempest, The Winter’s Tale. 
  • 1612-1616 Shakespeare wrote the plays Cardenio, Henry VIII, The Two Noble Kinsmen. 




Historical and Social context

Shakespeare was born during the reign of queen Elizabeth I. This meant class was very much a thing in Shakespeare's life. there were 4 main classes during Shakespeare's time:

  • The Nobility - royals, lords and ladies

  • The Gentry - knights, squires and gentlemen

  • The Yeomen - farmers

  • The Poor - had little to no money, lowest class 
This meant there were very large splits between people. We can relate this to our work because in Romeo and Juliet there are people of all sorts of class throughout the play. It would very much help in ensemble street scenes because then we can show the class separation. It also helps ensemble members know how to act in certain situations, such as the party scene because Lord Capulet would only allow people of high status in his house for a party. So thus, the ensemble should always be acting as the Nobility or at a stretch the Gentry. 

Main themes in Romeo and Juliet


  • power of love
  • Passion and violence
  • Individual against society
  • Coincidence vs Fate
  • Love vs Hate

Sub-themes

  • Class/status
  • Hate/war

Language in Romeo and Juliet

The language in Romeo and Juliet is tailored to old English which could really deter young people from Shakespeare. To really understand the things of the play one must look up the language and change it from the 'thee', 'thou' and 'thus'es to 'you', 'yours' and 'so's. once one has understood the language, it would be much easier for one to create a character that would keep the audience engaged. I have also found that with the Shakespeare language, instinctively, comes the Shakespeare voice, which I think is what actually deters people from Shakespeare.

Shakespeare also uses language devices to show the different themes shown at different parts of his plays. For example, if he wanted to show a class difference he would have the person with a higher class speaking in iambic pentameter or in rhymes. This helps the audience understand what may be going on in the scene. Shakespeare also uses wordplay/puns to bring out the comedic side Romeo and Juliet, such as before the party scene where Romeo says 'not I, believe me. You have the dancing shoes with nimble soles, while I have a soul of lead' this shows not only Romeos feelings about his boogie skills, but also his feelings about Rosaline.

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