William Shakespeare (1564–1616) — Life, Works, Sonnets, and Exam Facts

William Shakespeare (1564 to 1616)

A complete, exam-friendly guide covering his life, works, sonnets, poems, tributes, critical writings, folios, memorials, and essential facts often asked in TGT/PGT exams.

Early Life

Birth: 23 April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, on the River Avon.
Baptism: 26 April 1564 at Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.
Parents: John Shakespeare, a tradesman and civic officer, and Mary Arden, daughter of a landowning farmer.
Position in Family: Third child.
Sobriquet: Known as "The Bard of Avon."

Education

At about age seven, he was admitted to the Grammar School in Stratford. There he studied Latin grammar and rhetoric, with some Greek. Ben Jonson later observed that he had "small Latin and less Greek." The grammar school training shaped his command of classical models and language.

Marriage and Children

Marriage: In 1582, at age 18, he married Anne Hathaway, who was about 26.
Children: Susanna, born 1583. Twins Hamnet and Judith, born 1585. Hamnet died in 1596 at age 11.

Career as Actor and Playwright

Shakespeare worked as both an actor and a playwright. He was a member of the Lord Chamberlain's Men, which later became The King’s Men under King James I. He was closely associated with The Globe Theatre, established in 1599, and with the Blackfriars Theatre.

Notable Acting Roles

Adam in As You Like It
The Ghost in Hamlet
King Duncan in Macbeth
The Chorus in Henry V

Literary Career and Works

Shakespeare's work spans plays, sonnets, and narrative poems. He wrote about 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and several narrative poems. Critics and scholars divide his career in different ways to show development, experimentation, and later romance phase.

Well-known Divisions by Critics

William J. Long: Early Experimentation; Rapid Growth and Development; Gloom and Depression; Restored Serenity.
Edward Dowden (1875): In the Workshop; In the World; Out of Depth; On the Heights.

The Sonnets

Publication: 20 May 1609, printed by Thomas Thorpe.
Number: 154 sonnets.
Dedication line: Addressed to William Herbert, Earl of Pembroke, and Philip Herbert, Earl of Montgomery, in the 1609 volume.

Divisions and Themes

Sonnets 1–126: Fair Youth sonnets, addressed to an unnamed young man, often believed to be William Herbert or Henry Wriothesley in scholarly debate.
Sonnets 127–152: Dark Lady sonnets, more sensual and passionate, often linked to a figure called the Dark Lady.
Sonnets 153–154: Cupid sonnets, short allegorical poems about Cupid.

Form and Structure

Most sonnets have 14 lines in iambic pentameter. The typical structure is three quatrains with rhyme scheme ABAB CDCD EFEF, followed by a rhymed couplet GG.

Notable Exceptions

Sonnet 99 has 15 lines.
Sonnet 126 has 12 lines.
Sonnet 145 is in iambic tetrameter rather than pentameter.

Famous Sonnets and Lines

Sonnet 18: "Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate."
Sonnet 65: "Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea..."
Sonnet 116: "Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments..."
Sonnet 130: "My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun..."

Plays by Genre

Tragedies

Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth — known as the four great tragedies.
Later major tragedies: Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus.

Comedies

Major comedies: Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night, The Merchant of Venice, As You Like It.

Roman Plays

Julius Caesar, Coriolanus, Antony and Cleopatra.

Dramatic Romances (Tragicomedies)

Pericles, Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale, The Tempest.

Problem Plays

Term coined by F. S. Boas in 1896. Examples: All's Well That Ends Well, Measure for Measure, Troilus and Cressida.

Original Plot Comedies and Others

Love's Labour's Lost, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Tempest.

The Folios

False Folio (1619): A collection of pirated quarto editions by William Jaggard.
First Folio (1623): Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies, compiled by John Heminges and Henry Condell. It contained 36 plays, excluding Pericles in that edition. Ben Jonson contributed a famous tribute. The First Folio is the main source for many plays.
Second Folio (1632): Included new material such as Milton’s early tribute.
Third Folio (1663), Fourth Folio (1685): Later collected editions and reprints.

Language and Innovations

Shakespeare coined many words now in common use, for example the word "assassination" is often attributed to him.
He contributed many memorable phrases, such as "the beast with two backs."
His vocabulary is estimated to include over 20,000 words.
Style features include mastery of blank verse, rich imagery, and nuanced psychological portraiture.

Special Notes

Longest Play: Hamlet with about 4,042 lines and 29,551 words.
Shortest Play: The Comedy of Errors with about 1,787 lines and 14,369 words.
He lived through the plague years, including the Black Death outbreak in London in 1603.

Tributes to Shakespeare

Robert Greene: Called him "an upstart crow."
Ben Jonson: "He was not of an age, but for all time!" and "Soul of the age!" Also praised his natural gifts: "Nature herself was proud of his designs."
John Dryden: "He was the man who of all modern, and perhaps ancient poets, had the largest and most comprehensive soul."
Alexander Pope: Praised Shakespeare's originality.
John Milton: Referred to him as "Our sweetest Shakespeare, Fancy’s child" and "Dear son of memory, great heir of Fame."
S. T. Coleridge: "Our myriad-minded Shakespeare."
T. S. Eliot: Called Macbeth "an artistic success" and described Hamlet as "the Mona Lisa of literature" while critiquing it for lack of objective correlative.

Famous Critical Works on Shakespeare

Hamlet and His Problems — T. S. Eliot.
Shakespeare: His Mind and Art (1875) — Edward Dowden.
Shakespearean Tragedy (1904) — A. C. Bradley.
On the Knocking at the Gate in Macbeth (1823) — Thomas De Quincey.
How Many Children Had Lady Macbeth? (1933) — L. C. Knights.
Shakespearian Comedy (1938) & Shakespearian Tragedy (1948) — H. B. Charlton.
The Fools of Shakespeare (1913) — Warde Fowler.
Hamlet and the Distracted Globe (1978) — Andrew John Gurr.
The Bible in Shakespeare (2013) — Hannibal Hamlin.

Death and Memorials

Death: 23 April 1616 in Stratford-upon-Avon, age 52.
Burial: 25 April 1616, in the chancel of Holy Trinity Church, Stratford.
Memorials include funeral monuments in Southwark Cathedral, a statue in Poets' Corner at Westminster Abbey, and many monuments worldwide.

Chronological Works with Key Exam Facts

Early Poetry and Plague Years

1593: Venus and Adonis — first published work, dedicated to Henry Wriothesley.
1594: The Rape of Lucrece — narrative poem, also dedicated to Henry Wriothesley.

Histories (Early Career)

1591: Henry VI, Part 2
1591: Henry VI, Part 3
1592: Henry VI, Part 1
1592–1593: Richard III — famous opening: "Now is the winter of our discontent..."
1595: Richard II — notable as written entirely in verse.
1596: King John
1596–1597: Henry IV, Part 1
1597–1598: Henry IV, Part 2
1598–1599: Henry V — includes "Once more unto the breach..."

Early Comedies and Tragedies (Experimentation)

1590–1591: Two Gentlemen of Verona (Comedy)
1590–1591: The Taming of the Shrew (Comedy)
1592–1593: Titus Andronicus (Tragedy) — often cited as his first tragedy.
1594: The Comedy of Errors — the shortest play.
1594–1595: Love's Labour's Lost
1595: Romeo and Juliet — early major tragedy.
1595: A Midsummer Night's Dream

Middle Career and Popularity

1596: The Merchant of Venice
1597–1598: The Merry Wives of Windsor
1599: Much Ado About Nothing
1599: Julius Caesar
1599–1600: As You Like It
1600–1601: Hamlet
1601: Twelfth Night
1602: Troilus and Cressida

Great Tragedies and Problem Plays

1603: Measure for Measure
1603–1604: Othello
1604–1605: All's Well That Ends Well
1605: King Lear and Timon of Athens
1606: Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra
1607: Pericles (partly by Shakespeare)
1608: Coriolanus

Romances and Final Phase

1609: The Winter's Tale
1610: Cymbeline
1611: The Tempest — often considered his last play written alone.
1613: Henry VIII — Globe Theatre burned down during its performance.
1613–1614: The Two Noble Kinsmen — co-authored with John Fletcher.

Short Notes on Shakespeare's Major Poems

1. Venus and Adonis (1593)

First published work of Shakespeare.
Based on passages from Ovid's Metamorphoses.
Dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton.
Form: Narrative poem, stanzas of six lines in iambic pentameter, rhyme scheme ABABCC.
Theme: Love, passion, mortality. Plot: Venus loves Adonis; Adonis prefers hunting; Adonis is killed by a boar; a flower springs from his blood.
Exam points: Year 1593, first printed work, ABABCC scheme, Ovid source.

2. The Rape of Lucrece (1594)

Genre: Narrative poem based on the legend of Lucretia.
Dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton.
Form: 1,855 lines, 265 stanzas, each stanza of 7 lines in iambic pentameter. Rhyme royal ABABBCC.
Summary: Lucrece is raped by Sextus Tarquinius, she confesses and commits suicide, the event leads to the overthrow of the Tarquin monarchy.
Exam points: Use of Chaucerian rhyme royal, themes of honour, chastity, shame, political change.

3. A Lover's Complaint (1609)

Published as an appendix to the 1609 Quarto of the Sonnets by Thomas Thorpe.
Form: 47 stanzas, each of 7 lines, rhyme royal ABABBCC.
Summary: A young woman tells how she was seduced and betrayed by a charming young man. Themes include lost innocence and deception in love.
Exam points: 47 stanzas, published with the Sonnets in 1609, rhyme royal.

4. The Phoenix and the Turtle (1601 / published 1609)

Allegorical, metaphysical poem about the Phoenix and the Turtledove.
Theme: The mystical union and death of ideal love where truth and beauty perish together.
Exam points: Allegory of ideal love, symbols of Phoenix and Turtle.

5. The Passionate Pilgrim (1599)

Published by William Jaggard as an anthology of 20 poems attributed to "W. Shakespeare."
Only about 5 poems are authentically by Shakespeare; others are by different poets.
Exam points: Year 1599, publisher William Jaggard, partially spurious collection.

Other later items: A Lover's Complaint and The Sonnets (1609), A Lover's Complaint uses rhyme royal like The Rape of Lucrece.

Essential Exam Facts (Frequently Asked in TGT / PGT)

First Tragedy: Titus Andronicus.
First Comedy: Two Gentlemen of Verona.
First Printed Work: Venus and Adonis, 1593.
Shortest Play: The Comedy of Errors, 1,787 lines.
Longest Play: Hamlet, 4,042 lines.
Last Play Written Alone: The Tempest.
Problem Plays: Measure for Measure, All's Well That Ends Well, Troilus and Cressida. Term used by F. S. Boas, 1896.
Great Tragedies: Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth.
Roman Plays: Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus.
Dramatic Romances: Pericles, Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale, The Tempest.

Famous Critical Opinions (Short)

Ben Jonson: "He was not of an age, but for all time!" and "Soul of the age!"
T. S. Eliot: Called Hamlet "the Mona Lisa of literature" and saw Macbeth as "an artistic success."
S. T. Coleridge: "Myriad-minded Shakespeare."

📘 Additional Literary Facts about Shakespeare’s Plays and Theatres

Here are more exam-oriented facts about Shakespeare’s plays, including his use of masques, prologues, epilogues, and important Elizabethan theatres related to his career and performances.

🎭 Shakespeare’s Plays that Include Masques

Henry VIII
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Romeo and Juliet
The Tempest

Note: A masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment combining music, dance, and elaborate costumes, popular in Shakespeare’s time.

📜 Prologue and Epilogue

A Prologue introduces the story at the beginning of a play or poem, while an Epilogue provides closure or concluding remarks at the end.

🕊️ Shakespeare’s Plays that Have Epilogues

Six Comedies:

A Midsummer Night's Dream
Love’s Labour’s Lost
As You Like It
Twelfth Night
Troilus and Cressida
All’s Well That Ends Well

Three History Plays:

Henry IV
Henry V
Henry VIII

One Tragedy:

Timon of Athens

Three Romances:

Pericles
The Tempest
The Two Noble Kinsmen

🎙️ Shakespeare’s Plays that Have Prologues

Henry VIII
Romeo and Juliet
Pericles, Prince of Tyre
Henry IV, Part 2
Henry V

🏛️ Important Theatres of Shakespeare’s Era

1567 – The Red Lion
1576 – The Theatre by James Burbage; also The Blackfriars Theatre and Newington Butts Theatre
1577 – The Curtain
1587 – The Rose
1595 – The Swan
1596 – The Blackfriars Theatre (rebuilt version)
1599 – The Globe Theatre (destroyed in 1613, rebuilt in 1614)
1600 – The Fortune Theatre
1604 – The Red Bull Theatre
1614 – The Hope Theatre

These theatres were the heart of the Elizabethan and Jacobean drama, where Shakespeare’s plays were performed before large audiences in London.

✨ These literary facts are highly useful for TGT/PGT English exams and UGC-NET preparation. ✨

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William Shakespeare – Complete Life, Works, Poems, and Exam Notes for TGT/PGT English