William Shakespeare: The Man Who Transformed English Literature A legendary playwright and a poet, William Shakespeare transformed the history of English Literature. He wrote more than 37 plays, with four different categories of history, comedy, tragedy, and romance. His collection includes four outstanding poems and Sonnets. He invented thousands of words in English language by the blend of Latin and French. William Shakespeare is regarded as the “National Poet of England”. Born in Stratford-on-Avon on April 23rd, 1564, William Shakespeare was the son of John and Mary. His father was a wealthy businessman of leatherwork and his mother was from a reputed Arden family. William Shakespeare was the oldest of three younger brothers, Gilbert, Richard, and Edmund. He attended Stratford’s grammar school till the age of 15. The prime emphasis of the school’s curriculum was writing, acting and memorizing the Latin plays. When William Shakespeare was 18, he married Anne Hathaway. His wife was already pregnant at the time of marriage and was eight years older than him. Anne Hathaway was originally from Shottery, a village outside Stratford. However, after marriage, she spent her life at Stratford. The couple was blessed with twins, Judith and Hamnet in 1585. The period of 1586 to 1592 is said to be ‘the lost years’ of Shakespeare’s life. There is no evidence regarding his life activities. Sources reveal that Shakespeare went to work in London while his family stayed at Stratford. In 1593, theatres of London were closed down because of pandemic. At that time, Shakespeare started writing and published a sensual poetry called “Venus and Adonis”. The poetry was dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, who was the 3rd Earl of Southampton and Queen Elizabeth’s favorite. Henry VI, Part I, II and III, Titus Andronicus and The Two Gentlemen of Verona are few of Shakespeare’s initial plays. 1594 was marked as the beginning of success for William Shakespeare because of “The Lord of Chamberlain’s Men” which later became “The King’s Men”. For the theater, Shakespeare worked as an actor, playwright and was the founding member as well as a shareholder. In 1956, Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet which is one of the best romantic tragedy till today. For several years, his life focused on writing which bought masterpieces to the English Literature. Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra are some of famous stories. A winter’s Tale and Tempest were romantic stories written in the last years of his life. In the last stages of his life, William Shakespeare was financially prospered. From his writing, acting and investing in real-estate, he purchased an enormous house in New Place in 1597. William Shakespeare expired on April 23rd, 1616. The cause of his death remains unidentified.
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