SHAKESPEARE TIMES

1. ANSWER THE QUESTIONS :
1. Who were the Shakespeares and the Ardens, and what was each family's place in local society?

Mary Arden Shakespeare was the mother of William Shakespeare the Great Bard. She lived between 1540 - 1608. She was the youngest of eight daughters. Mary's wealthy family home was called Glebe Farm, a two-storey Wilmecote farmstead.

2. When do historians think that Shakespeare arrived in London? What is the reason he may have had to leave Stratford?
The historians thinks in 1592, he was already working inLondon.  He have to leave to Stratford because he was caught stealing a deer. 

3. What was the population of London during Shakespeare's time? Can you briefly describe what the city was like at the time? How did it smell like?
In the 16th century William Shakespeare and his contemporaries lived in London at a time of hostility to the development of the theatre. By the end of the Tudor period in 1603, London was still very compact. There was an assassination attempt on James I in Westminster, through the Gunpowder Plot on 5 November 1605.London was plagued by disease in the early 17th/ref century,culminating in the Great Plague of 1665–1666, which killed up to 100,000 people, or a fifth of the population

4. Who was the ruler when Shakespeare first came to London? Who were her parents? Was she a good queen? Why?
The queen of England was Queen Elisabeth I. Her parents were King Henry VIII but her mother, Anne Boleyn, was executed two and a half years after her birth, and Elizabeth was declared illegitimate.

5. What was the established religion in England during Shakespeare times? Who was Henry VIII? How did he and his daughter influence religion in England?
Was catholic and protestant. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France. Henry was the second monarch of the House of Tudor, succeeding his father, Henry VII.

6. Who was Cristopher Marlowe? Which kind of relationship did he have with Shakespeare? How did he die? What might have been suspicious circumstances surrounding his death?

7. How many sonnets did Shakespeare write? Who is believed to be the "Dark Lady" of the sonnets? Who else, other than Shakespeare, is believed to have written his plays?

8. Who were the Puritans? What were some of their beliefs? What did they think of the theatre and the actors in Shakespeare's time?

9. What were the main theatres in Shakespeare's times? Where did Shakespeare use to act? What are the names of the acting companies with which Shakespeare was associated?

Choose ONE of these topics and analyze its role within the play:

- SETTING: Italian Verona has been renamed into Verona Beach. Why? Where is it? What is The Globe in the film? If you are working with a blog, use TAGZANIA to locate it.

- IMAGERY: there are lots of metaphors and images in the film: WATER (swimming pool, beach, aquarium...) and FIRE (petrol station, fights...), DAY and NIGHT, the MOON. What do they mean?

- LANGUAGE: which characters speak in verse? which in prose? When? Why do the characters speak in American English if Shakespeare was British? The film has no longer a narrator. Who takes this part instead? Why?

- DREAMS: In Shakespeare's play dreams play an important role. Why? How have they been translated into Luhrman's film? Why is Queen Mab cited?

- THE FANCY DRESS PARTY: Are the costumes the characters wear in the party relevant? What do they represent? Relate the knightly armour to chivalric love.

RELIGION: Religion is something by which the two families justify their actions. There are many religious references in the film (e.g. in the title). Which are they? Why? Do they also appear in Shakespeare’s work?

http://www.william-shakespeare.info/william-shakespeare-biography-mother-and-father.htm
http://www.william-shakespeare.org.uk/mary-arden.htm