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There are so many mysteries surrounding Shakespeare including the mystery of if he was actually a real person or a person of fiction. It seem as though no one will ever know the truth as there are so many records that could tilt this topic either way but here are a few of the facts we uncovered.
Factoids:
*Shakespeare was reportedly born on April 23, 1564 during the early English Renaissance and died on his birthday 52 years later on April 23, 1616 (buried in Stratford-upon-Avon, England). He lived through the "Black death." The exact cause of his death has never been determined. Speculations to a binge drinking episode, to drinking water tainted with typhus, and the idea that he was murder have all been documented.*There are no official birth records or records that document his education. It is alleged that he never went to college.
*There are, however, records of his baptism which took place on April 26, 1564. In Shakespeare's day, all babies were baptized three days after their birth. This is how the birth date of April 23, 1564 was figured out.
*He was known as the Bard or the Bard of Avon. The term Bard is used to describe a "professional" poet employed by the nobles.
*There are at least 80 different variations of the spelling of his name.
*His parents were John and Mary Shakespeare. He was said to have seven siblings.
*Shakespeare's mother was Roman Catholic but they belonged to the Church of England which was Protestant. Shakespeare was said to be a "closet catholic." If you are familiar with this time period, it was understood that you must obey the ruling monarchy's choice of religion, otherwise, there would be a price to pay.
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| picture from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shakespeare |
*Can you imagine getting paid to drink beer? At one point in time, this was the occupation of Shakespeare's father, getting paid to drink beer. He was also a glover (leather crafts).
*Shakespeare's wife, Anne Hathaway, was 8 years older than he was and three months pregnant when they married. (So scandalous!) Their marriage certificate has the name Anne Whateley written instead of Hathaway (adds to the mystery). (1582)
*It is believed that Shakespeare's parents and children were illiterate. The people of this time were labeled ignorant.
*Shakespeare fell off the "globe" between 1585 and 1592.
This is referred to as the "Lost years." This was reportedly after the death of one of his twin children at age 11.
*According to the records, Shakespeare has no descendants. His son Hamnet died in 1596, and his daughter Susanna died in 1649.
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| Holy Trinity Church, Stratford, Warwickshire. picture from http://www.shakespeare-online.com/biography/shakespeareburial.html |
*Susanna did have a daughter but sadly she also died childless in 1670. His youngest daughter Judith did have three children but they all died before their mother and were all three childless. The end of the Shakespeare line.
*When he died in 1616, the words "Curst be he that moves my bones" were inscribed on his grave.
*Did you know that Shakepeare's vocabulary contained over 30,000 different words?
*13 of Shakespeare's plays contained suicide.
*According to the records, President Abraham Lincoln was a huge fan of Shakespeare's plays, and Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth, just so happened to be a famous Shakespearean actor. (Just an interesting detail).
*It has always been alleged that Shakespeare was a fraud. Theories include a woman, (Mary Sidney Herbert) used the name William Shakespeare as a pen name. Another theory was that other authors/playwrights/poets such as Francis Bacon, Edward De Vere, and Christopher Marlowe used Shakespeare's name to hide their true identities. None of these have ever been proven.
*Shakespeare was said to have written 37 plays, the first of which when he was 25 years old. He also produced 154 sonnets and poems. Hamlet was thought to be his greatest masterpiece. This was also Shakespeare's longest play. "To be or not to be, that is the question-"
*Some of these plays were later performed at the Globe Theater which was created by Shakespeare himself.
*Did you know that in Shakespeare's time, women were not allowed to play the roles of the women characters? Any of the characters that were women were played by men. Another rule for the actors was that they were not allowed to play a character outside of their own personal class. If you were of the lower class in real life, you could only play a character of the lower class.
*Shakespeare also coined many phrases such as "a sorry sight," "to sneak," "to send packing," "sick at heart," "to thine own self be true," "consciousness does not make cowards," "full circle," and "misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows." "A most notable coward, an infinite and endless liar, an hourly promise breaker." "It is easy for people to joke about scars if they have never been cut." All Shakespeare.
*He is responsible for giving us names such as Cordelia, Olivia, Jessica, and Miranda.
*Words such as gloomy, zany, addiction, bold-face (liar), dauntless, domineering, distasteful, revolting, worthless, churlish (a mean selfish person) and disgraceful were all invented by Shakespeare.
"To be or not to be, that is the question...." It is a good questions. It appears no one may ever know all of the details of this man, real or not real.
*When he died in 1616, the words "Curst be he that moves my bones" were inscribed on his grave.
*Did you know that Shakepeare's vocabulary contained over 30,000 different words?
*13 of Shakespeare's plays contained suicide.*According to the records, President Abraham Lincoln was a huge fan of Shakespeare's plays, and Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth, just so happened to be a famous Shakespearean actor. (Just an interesting detail).
*It has always been alleged that Shakespeare was a fraud. Theories include a woman, (Mary Sidney Herbert) used the name William Shakespeare as a pen name. Another theory was that other authors/playwrights/poets such as Francis Bacon, Edward De Vere, and Christopher Marlowe used Shakespeare's name to hide their true identities. None of these have ever been proven.
*Shakespeare was said to have written 37 plays, the first of which when he was 25 years old. He also produced 154 sonnets and poems. Hamlet was thought to be his greatest masterpiece. This was also Shakespeare's longest play. "To be or not to be, that is the question-"*Some of these plays were later performed at the Globe Theater which was created by Shakespeare himself.
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| The Globe Theater Bank Side, London. Originally built in 1599, destroyed by fire in 1613, and rebuild one year later in 1614. The theater was named the Globe theater to illustrate "the world in a playground." The Latin term totus mundus agit histionem which comes from the phrase quod fere totus mundus exerceat histrionem confirms this. If acting is in your future and you are in London, you can apply to the Globe for your education in dramatics. Checkout this link for more details. |
*Shakespeare also coined many phrases such as "a sorry sight," "to sneak," "to send packing," "sick at heart," "to thine own self be true," "consciousness does not make cowards," "full circle," and "misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows." "A most notable coward, an infinite and endless liar, an hourly promise breaker." "It is easy for people to joke about scars if they have never been cut." All Shakespeare.
*Words such as gloomy, zany, addiction, bold-face (liar), dauntless, domineering, distasteful, revolting, worthless, churlish (a mean selfish person) and disgraceful were all invented by Shakespeare.
"To be or not to be, that is the question...." It is a good questions. It appears no one may ever know all of the details of this man, real or not real.
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