William Shakespeare (23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English poet, playwright and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's greatest dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". His works consist of approximately 39 plays ,154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. 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, Warwickshire. His faher was a glove-maker. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children: Susanna and twins Hamnet and Judith. Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner of a playing company known as the King's Men. The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare's playing company, Shakespeare acted in many of his plays.
At the age 49 (around 1613), he appears to have retired to Stratford, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive; this has stimulated considerable speculation about such matters as his physical appearance, his sexuality, his religious beliefs, and whether the works attributed to him were written by others. His early plays were primarily comedies and histories and are regarded as some of the best work produced in these genres. Until about 1608, he wrote mainly tragedies, among them Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth, all considered to be among the finest works in the English language. Shakespeare has given many words (estimate of 1,700 – 3,000) to the English language. Estimations of Shakespeare’s vocabulary range from 17,000 to 29,000 words. Shakespeare’s grave includes a curse against moving his bones.
FAMOUS QUOTES
‘All the world ‘s a stage, and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts.’ ("As You Like it")
‘Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?’ (Romeo and Juliet")
‘A man can die but once.’ (Henry IV)
‘A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!’ (Richard III)
“All that glitters is not gold.” “The Merchant of Venice”
