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"My love shall in my verse ever live young."

WRITER HERO:
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

by Kate

The greatest writer of all times is William Shakespeare. He has written over 30 plays and over 150 sonnets. He is my hero because of all he has done for today's literature. I have read over 15 of his plays including A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Tempest, Romeo & Juliet, The Twelfth Night, A Comedy of Errors, and Hamlet. He has done three types of writing. Comedy, tragedy, and history. My favorite comedy was A Comedy of Errors. My favorite tragedy was Hamlet. I didn't really read that many histories, so I don't have a favorite among them.

Shakespeare was born on April 23, 1564, in the town Stratford-upon-Avon in England. His parents were John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. When he was 18 he married 26-year-old Anne Hathaway. They had three children together: Susannah, Hamnet, and Judith. Hamnet did not survive childhood. Shakespeare worked with a company that was first called The Lord Chamberlain's Men but later was called The King's Men. He worked at two theaters: The Globe Theater and The Blackfriars Theater.


Shakespeare was famous during his life because he performed in front of Queen Elizabeth I more than anyone else. Only once did he get in trouble. He was asked to perform Richard II by men who were conspiring to kill Elizabeth, and Shakespeare was accused of conspiring against her also. But that was cleared up. Some people think that Shakespeare lived two different lives and that may be, but the life that we know he had is the best.

Shakespeare did many things to be anybody's hero, but he is my hero and he is also my favorite writer ever. I eventually intend to read all of his plays and sonnets. I'm already halfway there. If anyone is interested in reading Shakepeare, start with the comedies. Try something like A Midsummer Night's Dream. A Comedy of Errors and Twelfth Night are very confusing, so start with something easier. Romeo & Juliet is very good as well. That could be a good one to start with.

Well, I hope I have said enough to get at least one person to like Shakespeare.

Written by Kate from Doylestown
Photos courtesy of The Schoenberg Center for the Electronic Text and Image


RELATED LINKS

Shakespeare's Sonnets

Mr. William Shakespeare and the Internet

Shakespeare Festivals and theaters around the US.

Poetryfoundation.org is an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in American culture. It exists to discover and celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience.

EXTRA INFORMATION

To see how the plays looked when they were first published, go to the Schoenberg Center for the Electronic Text and Image.


 


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Last changed on:7/9/2002 8:21:06 AM