William Shakespeare

Author profile

born

in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, The United Kingdom

March 14, 1564

died

April 23, 1616

gender

male

website

http://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/

genre

Theatre, Historical Fiction, Poetry

influences

Thomas Kyd, Christopher Marlowe, Lucius Annaeus Seneca

About this author

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William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language, and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon. Scholars believe that he died on his fifty-second birthday, coinciding with St George’s Day. It is an interesting idea that English writer is so closely identified with the Patron Saint o...more William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "The Bard"). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language, and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.

Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon. Scholars believe that he died on his fifty-second birthday, coinciding with St George’s Day. It is an interesting idea that English writer is so closely identified with the Patron Saint of England!

At the age of 18 he married Anne Hathaway, who bore him three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. Between 1585 and 1592 he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part owner of the playing company the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men. He appears to have retired to Stratford around 1613, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive, and there has been considerable speculation about such matters as his sexuality, religious beliefs, and whether the works attributed to him were written by others.

Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1590 and 1613. His early plays were mainly comedies and histories, genres he raised to the peak of sophistication and artistry by the end of the sixteenth century. Next he wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest examples in the English language. In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known as romances, and collaborated with other playwrights. Many of his plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime, and in 1623, two of his former theatrical colleagues published the First Folio, a collected edition of his dramatic works that included all but two of the plays now recognised as Shakespeare's.

Shakespeare was a respected poet and playwright in his own day, but his reputation did not rise to its present heights until the nineteenth century. The Romantics, in particular, acclaimed Shakespeare's genius, and the Victorians hero-worshipped Shakespeare with a reverence that George Bernard Shaw called "bardolatry". In the twentieth century, his work was repeatedly adopted and rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance. His plays remain highly popular today and are consistently performed and reinterpreted in diverse cultural and political contexts throughout the world.

According to historians, Shakespeare write 37 plays and 154 sonnets throughout the span of his life. Shakespeare's writing average was 1.5 plays a year since he first started writing in 1589. There have been plays and sonnets contributed to Shakespeare that were not authentically written by the great master of language and literature.
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William Shakespeare's Books

Average rating: 3.83 · 2,575,273 ratings · 38,196 reviews · 1,535 distinct works · Similar authors

	Romeo and Juliet 3.72 of 5 stars 3.72 avg rating — 915,587 ratings — published 1595 — 858 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hamlet by William Shakespeare, Richard Andrews (Editor), Rex Gibson (Editor) 3.99 of 5 stars 3.99 avg rating — 276,037 ratings — published 1602 — 820 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Macbeth 3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 avg rating — 249,244 ratings — published 1606 — 751 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Midsummer Night's Dream 3.93 of 5 stars 3.93 avg rating — 180,136 ratings — published 1596 — 650 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Othello 3.86 of 5 stars 3.86 avg rating — 136,471 ratings — published 1603 — 490 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare, Barbara A. Mowat (Editor), Paul Werstine (Editor) 4.04 of 5 stars 4.04 avg rating — 100,765 ratings — published 1598 — 342 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Taming of the Shrew 3.83 of 5 stars 3.83 avg rating — 83,087 ratings — published 1590 — 333 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	King Lear 3.87 of 5 stars 3.87 avg rating — 82,534 ratings — published 2005 — 494 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Twelfth Night 3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 avg rating — 72,942 ratings — published 1601 — 453 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Tempest 3.78 of 5 stars 3.78 avg rating — 73,719 ratings — published 1610 — 159 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by William Shakespeare…

Series by William Shakespeare

Wars of the Roses (8 books)
by William Shakespeare, John D. Cox (Editor), Eric Rasmussen (Goodreads Author) (Editor)
3.7928619528619527 of 5 stars 3.79 avg rating — 59,400 ratings

Quotes by William Shakespeare

“The fool doth think he is wise, but the wise man knows himself to be a fool.”
― William Shakespeare, As You Like It

tags: wisdom

28,584 people liked it

“Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.”
― William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well

tags: love-trust-wrong-do-wrong

19,154 people liked it

“Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind,
And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind.”
― William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream

tags: love

15,172 people liked it

See all William Shakespeare's quotes »

Polls

HISTORICAL FICTION POLL "A"
There will be a series of polls to begin putting together a potential reading list for the "historical fiction folder". I have divided the books into groups of 15 books apiece. Make sure to choose your favorite from each poll and make sure to vote in each of these polls so that we can generate a list according to priorities and interests.

Michael Shaara

KILLER ANGELS BY MICHAEL SHAARA

9 votes, 29.0%

THE TALE OF TWO CITIES BY CHARLES DICKENS

5 votes, 16.1%

LES MISERABLES BY VICTOR HUGO

4 votes, 12.9%

DOCTOR ZHIVAGO BY BORIS PASTERNAK

4 votes, 12.9%

WAR AND PEACE BY TOLSTOY

2 votes, 6.5%

ROB ROY BY WALTER SCOTT

2 votes, 6.5%

THE MAN WHO MADE VERMEERS - UNVARNISHING THE LEGEND OF MASTER FORGER HAN VAN MEEGEREN

1 vote, 3.2%

IVANHOE BY WALTER SCOTT

1 vote, 3.2%

THE GOOD EARTH BY PEARL S. BUCK

1 vote, 3.2%

Esther Forbes

JOHNNY TREMAIN BY ESTHER FORBES

1 vote, 3.2%

BEN HUR BY LEW WALLACE

1 vote, 3.2%

The Cid, Cinna, The Theatrical Illusion (Penguin Classics)

Pierre Corneille

THE CID BY PIERRE CORNEILLE

0 votes, 0.0%

Richard II (Oxford School Shakespeare Series)

RICHARD II BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

0 votes, 0.0%

GIRL WITH A PEARL EARRING BY TRACY CHEVALIER

0 votes, 0.0%

The Name of the Rose Including Postscript

THE NAME OF THE ROSE BY UMBERTO ECO

0 votes, 0.0%

31 total votes

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William Shakespeare

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William Shakespeare

Author profile

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William Shakespeare's Books