KathyQiu

**Introduction ** Poet and playwright William Shakespeare is widely considered one of the greatest writers in history, having authored many of the world’s finest poems and plays. His plays have been translated into nearly every existing language and are more frequently performed than any other playwright’s. Despite the fact that Shakespeare’s surviving works include 38 plays and 154 sonnets as well as several other poems, little is known about his life. Furthermore, his youth is an even greater mystery (“William Shakespeare”).
 * Shakespeare’s Youth **

**Birth ** Shakespeare was born to John and Mary Shakespeare along with seven other children in Stratford (Best). His father was a successful glover and tanner, while his mother came from an affluent family ("Williams Shakespeare"). Unlike most of John and Mary's other children, Shakespeare managed to survive the bubonic plague,which was highly prevalent during the Elizabethan era. Also referred to as the Black Death, the disease led to high mortality rates among Elizabethan youngsters (Best). The parish Register for Stratford indicates that young Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564. Although his exact date of birth is unknown, many scholars assert that he was born on April 26 of that year as it was the custom for children to be baptized on the nearest Sunday (Best). One of the conventions of Elizabethan England was swaddling. This practice involved tightly wapping infants in swaddling bands or cloths for the first six to twelve months in order to prevent them from freely using their limbs, which was commonly deemed unhealthy for the child. Furthermore, people believed that the practice of swaddling resulted in good posture (Secara). Shakespeare, having been born in 1564, likely underwent this treatment.

**Childhood ** Young boys of the Elizabethan era were dressed in skirts not much different from those of girls. They didn't receive their first pairs of breeches until they were three to seven years old, with the exact age depending on their nurses and parents' assessment. When a boy finally obtained his breeches, he was said to have been "breeched" and a celebration would be held in his honor (Secara). Children were viewed as property and commanded to respect and obey their parents. Adults' expectations for their children's behavior were primarily based on the Bible. In 1577, Hugh Rhodes, a gentleman in the king's chapel, described the standard behavior of proper children in his //Book of Nurture//. The key principles included respecting one's father and mother, rising early in the morning, saying one's morning prayers, chewing with the mouth closed, and sitting in the appropriate seat at the dinner table (Secara). The most elementary level of education in Elizabethan England was the petty school, which pupils began attending between the ages of five and seven. Scholars believe that Shakespeare began his education at the Stratford grammar school around seven years old (Greenblatt 25). While no record of his attending the school exists, it’s probable that Shakespeare attended the King Edward VI's New Schoolof Stratford-upon-Avon because his father would have likely wanted for his son to be educated at an institution under the care of Stratford’s governing body (Mabillard). Contrary to its name, the King's New School was not new and had not been founded by Elizabeth's stepbrother Edward VI. This school, like so many others at the time, bore a misleading title as to hide its Roman Catholic origins, which were perceived as a taboo. Latin was then the major language of study in English grammar schools. Although neither one of Shakespeare's parents was absolutely literate, they wanted their son to have a suitable classical education (Greenblatt 24-25). From analyses of his plays, it's evident that Shakespeare absorbed much of what he was taught in school, as he demonstrates impressive familiarity with stories by various Latin authors (Mabillard). Shakespeare was removed from the King's New School around the age of thirteen due to his father’s financial and social difficulties. It is probable that he resumed his studies elsewhere (“William Shakespeare”).

**Teenage Years ** The period from 1578 to 1582 is commonly referred to as Shakespeare’s “Lost Years”because not much is known regarding the events that took place during this time (Greenblatt 54). However, one thing scholars do know is that in 1582, the eighteen-year-old Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had fathered a child (Greenblatt 149). No one knows exactly when Shakespeare started writing, but documents indicate that he began sometime between 1585 and 1592, when he was already in his twenties (“William Shakespeare”).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt;">**Works Cited** <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Best, Michael. “The Plague.” //Internet Shakespeare Editions//. N.p., 15 Sept. 2005. Web. 7 Oct. 2010. <http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/‌Library/‌SLT/‌society/‌plague.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">- - -. “Shakespeare’s Baptism.” //Internet Shakespeare Editions//. N.p., 7 Apr. 2010. Web. 21 Sept. 2010. <http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/‌Library/‌SLT/‌life/‌childhood.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Greenblatt, Stephen. //Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare//. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2004. Print. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">John Shakespeare’s house in Stratford-upon-Avon. N.d. //DAIA Production//. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://www.daiaprod.com/‌macbeth_education_shakespeare_en.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Mabillard, Amanda. “Shakespeare’s Education and Childhood.” //Shakespeare Online//. N.p., 23 Sept. 2010. Web. 23 Sept. 2010. <http://www.shakespeare-online.com/‌biography/‌shakespeareeducation.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Martin, Tommy. Sketch of Anne Hathaway. 2003. MayaVision International. //PBS//. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://www.pbs.org/‌shakespeare/‌players/‌player23.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Rolfe, William. The schoolroom at Stratford-on-Avon. 1896. University of Victoria Library. //Internet Shakespeare Editions//. Web. 18 Oct. 2010. <http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/‌Library/‌SLT/‌life/‌pettyschool.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">Secara, Maggie. “Children and Childhood.” //Life in Elizabethan England//. N.p., 14 Mar. 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. <http://www.elizabethan.org/‌compendium/‌40.html>. <span style="font-family: Times New Roman; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">“William Shakespeare.” //Famous People//. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2010. <http://www.thefamouspeople.com/‌profiles/‌william-shakespeare-38.php>.