Claudio is in love with Hero, but is afraid that she will reject him. His friend volunteers to make her fall in love with him. The trick works well, and Hero agrees to marry Claudio. But Don John organizes a plot which will make Claudio think that Hero is unfaithful. Claudio’s love for Hero is turned to hatred and a desire for revenge…
William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564. It is thought that he was born on 23 April. William Shakespeare’s father was John Shakespeare, a merchant who played an important role in the politics of Stratford-upon-Avon. John Shakespeare married Mary Arden, and they had 8 children. He became bailiff and justice of the peace in 1568. In later years the business fortunes of John Shakespeare declined. It is not known where the young William Shakespeare went to school, although it is thought that he attended the local grammar school, where pupils were instructed in Latin.
Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway when he was 18 years old, and the couple had 3 children – a daughter, Susanna, who was born in 1583, and twins, Hamnet and Judith, who were born in 1585.
How Shakespeare earned his living as a young adult is not known, although there is some evidence that he may have been a schoolmaster. It is not known, either, how he first entered the world of the theatre. According to one story, an actor in the Queen’s Company died shortly before the company visited Stratford-upon-Avon in 1587; it is said that Shakespeare took the dead man’s place.
The first reference to Shakespeare is in a pamphlet written in 1592. The pamphlet shows that Shakespeare was already established in the theatrical world by that date. By 1594 Shakespeare was an important member of the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, a theatrical company based in London. The company played at the Globe Theatre from 1599 onwards, and changed their name to the King’s Men in 1603. In 1608 the King’s Men moved to the Blackfriar’s Theatre.
Shakespeare wrote 38 plays for the theatre before he died in 1616, as well as poetry and the most famous series of sonnets in the English language. His work was gathered together and published after his death. Visitors to Stratford-upon-Avon can visit many places associated with the playwright’s life, including the house where he was born and Anne Hathaway’s cottage. They can also visit the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and see performances of his plays.
Shakespeare's Life
Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing
Dramatis Personae
Chapter One - Lone at First Sight
Chapter Two - A Strategy for Lone
Chapter Three - Voices behind Masks
Chapter Four - Two Brothers, Two Plans
Chapter Five - Benedick and Beatrice in the Barden
Chapter Six - Benedick suffers for Lone
Chapter Seven - The Constables Do their Duty
Chapter Eight - A Wedding Scandal
Chapter Nine - Dogberry and his Men discover the Truth
Chapter Ten - Two Weddings
關鍵字詞： William Shakespeare|Shakespeare|Reader|Classics|Black Cat English Readers
