William Shakespeare Of all the Elizabethan poets, William Shakespeare is the most famous.

He was born in 1564 in the villa e of Stratfor!"on"#von to an ol! an! prominent famil$. His father, %ohn Shakespeare, was a lover an! wool !ealer with a shop in Stratfor!. Shakespeare entere! rammar s&hool in 15'1 at the a e of seven. Elizabethan e!u&ation was base! on learnin b$ rote, an! he ha! an e(&ellent aural memor$. His e!u&ation in )atin left an unmistakable impression on his vo&abular$. *n the upper s&hool, he stu!ie! lo i& an! rhetori&, an! e(&elle! in !iale&ti& ar ument, a skill he later put to use in his pla$s. Shakespeare learne! +reek m$tholo $ an! ,oman histor$. When he be an to write, he showe! a marvelous abilit$ to make a little knowle! e o a lon wa$. Shakespeare marrie! while he was still a minor an! nee!e! his parents- permission. His bri!e, #nne Hathawa$, was twent$"si( $ears ol!. # !au hter, Susanna, was born to the $oun &ouple in 15./, followe! b$ twins, Hamnet an! %u!ith, twent$ months later. Shakespeare supporte! his famil$ b$ workin in his father-s shop an!, a&&or!in to some sour&es, as a s&hoolmaster in the &ountr$si!e. However, in the late 15.0s, he appeare! in )on!on. 1ra!ition has it that he fle! to )on!on for fear of prose&ution for stealin a !eer from the park of a lo&al nobleman. #nother theor$ is that he aban!one! his wife an! &hil!ren an! es&ape! to )on!on to seek his fortune. *t seems likel$, however, that Shakespeare !i! not aban!on his famil$. *n fa&t, his wife ma$ have a&&ompanie! him to )on!on. *n 15.., )on!on was fille! with martial a&tivities an! e(&itement, for it was the time of the !efeat of the Spanish #rma!a. 1he moo! of national pri!e an! self"&onfi!en&e &arrie! over into the theater. 2rama was a popular national a&tivit$ appre&iate! b$ ever$one from 3ueen Elizabeth to the women of the street. 1he 3ueen was a &lever, &ultivate! woman who en&oura e! Elizabethan !rama. *t was an e(traor!inar$ time for a man of Shakespeare-s talents to burst upon the s&ene. Shakespeare apprenti&e! as an a&tor, an! soon the $oun man from Stratfor!, with his sharp ear for lan ua e, be&ame a pla$wri ht as well. ,i&har! 4iel!, a frien! from Stratfor!, was apprenti&e! to one of the lea!in printers in )on!on, an! it was this firm that publishe! Shakespeare-s first poem, 56enus an! #!onis,5 in 157/, followe! b$ 5)u&re&e5 in 1574. Shakespeare-s pla$s ha! not brou ht him mu&h re&o nition, but his poems &ause! a stir in the literar$ worl!. #s a member of a roup of a&tors known as the Earl of 8embroke-s 9en, Shakespeare &ame un!er the influen&e of :hristopher 9arlowe, one of the reatest !ramatists of the perio!. 9arlowe-s storm$ personalit$ ma!e an impa&t on the $oun Shakespeare. 1here are e&hoes of 9arlowe throu hout his pla$s. Shakespeare has been as a 5ma pie, an inveterate borrower.5 He borrowe! names, phrases an! ima es from other poets an! !ramatists, but he improve! what he borrowe! an! a!apte! it to his own enius. 1he theaters were &lose! between 157; an! 1574 be&ause of a pla ue. With the reopenin of the theaters in 1574, Shakespeare <oine! the )or! :hamberlain-s :ompan$ =later &alle! the >in -s 8la$ers? an! remaine! with them until his retirement. When the +lobe 1heatre was built in 1577, Shakespeare was a sharehol!er. @$ this time, he apparentl$ was makin a oo! in&ome. Some of Shakespeare-s sonnets were written !urin the perio! when the theaters were &lose!, an! the$ present one of the reat m$steries of literatureA 1o what e(tent were the sonnets autobio raphi&alB Some are a!!resse! to a $oun man an! some to a 52ark )a!$.5 #lthou h it is impossible to !etermine what is fa&t an! what is fi&tion in this literar$ puzzle, there is no !en$in the enius of the sonnets.

,ea!, for e(ample, sonnet CC*C. When, in !is ra&e with fortune an! men-s e$es, * all alone beweep m$ out&ast state, #n! trouble !eaf heaven with m$ bootless &ries, #n! look upon m$self, an! &urse m$ fate, Wishin me like to one more ri&h in hope, 4eatur-! like him, like him with frien!s possess-!, 2esirin this man-s art, an! that man-s s&ope, With what * most en<o$ &ontente! leastD Eet in these thou hts m$self almost !espisin , Hapl$ * think on thee, an! then m$ state, )ike to the lark at break of !a$ arisin 4rom sullen earth, sin s h$mns at heaven-s ateA 4or th$ sweet love remember-! su&h wealth brin s 1hat then * s&orn to &han e m$ state with kin s. @$ 1600, the politi&al s&ene was &han in . 1he Earl of Esse( was e(e&ute! in 1601 an! the publi& moo! was one of !isillusionment. 4rom 1601 to 160/, Shakespeare wrote his reatest works, the four tra e!iesA Hamlet, Othello, >in )ear, an! 9a&beth. Some of his frien!s thou ht that these pla$s were evi!en&e of mental strain an! e(haustion, but Shakespeare was prosperous, an! he was free to e(plore his min! to its ultimate !epths. Shakespeare-s literar$ work &overs a perio! of twent$ $ears. 2urin that time, he wrote /' pla$s an! 154 sonnets. Fone of the pla$s was publishe! an! no manus&ripts e(ist. Several $ears after Shakespeare-s !eath in 1616, two of his frien!s &olle&te! his writin s in the 54irst 4olio.5 #lthou h the authenti&it$ of the te(t in the 54irst 4olio5 is somewhat !oubtful, it remains the ultimate authorit$ on Shakespeare-s work. 1he ins&ription on the 54irst 4olio5 is b$ @en %onson, Shakespeare-s &ontemporar$. %onson wrote of the reatest fi ure in En lish literature,