William Shakespeare: Analysis of the Famous Playwright

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An analysis of the famous playwright, William Shakespeare, reveals the struggles he overcame and activities he did during his childhood, as a playwright, his involvement with the Globe theatre after moving to England, and during the time of his death, along with some interesting and concerning facts about him.

William Shakespeare lived a normal childhood along with his parents and siblings. Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon on April 23, 1564 as the third of eight Shakespeare children. Shakespeare and his siblings were born to their parents John Shakespeare and Mary Arden Shakespeare. As the son of a small-town occupationist, William became enrolled at the King’s New School in Stratford at the age of four or five and continued to study the alphabet, the book of common prayer, and basic Latin (Shmoop Editorial Team). Most schools today do not adhere to the rigorous pacing and educational practices that were in effect during Shakespeare’s time period, so it is well displayed that Shakespeare was a far call from being uneducated. Also, being a student in with a prominent grammatical background due to schooling, William began with works by major literary figures such as Caesar, Virgil, Ovid, Seneca, and more (Shmoop Editorial Team).

William Shakespeare’s family consisted of seven other siblings and his mother and father. William had four sisters (Joan [first born], Joan [second born] Anne, and Margaret) as well as three brothers (Edmund, Gilbert, and Richard) (Mabillard), but fate guided some of them on a twisted path. During the time of young William’s growth, wave after wave of plagues bombarded the countryside and many people suffered and died because of it, some of the victims including the Shakespeare family’s own J...

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...p.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 3 Mar. 2014.

"William Shakespeare." History.com. A E Networks, n.d. Web. 4 Mar 2014. .

Presseley, J.M.. "Shakespeare's "Lost Years"."www.bardweb.net. Shakespeare Resource Center, 1 1 2014. Web. 18 Mar 2014. .

Mabillard, Amanda. Shakespeare of Stratford: Shakespeare's Siblings. Shakespeare Online. 12 Sept. 2000. < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/biography/shakespearesiblings.html

Shmoop Editorial Team. "William Shakespeare: Anne Hathaway." Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.

“10 Things You Didn’t Know About Shakespeare”. History.com. A E Networks. Web. 18 Mar 2014. .

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