William Shakespeare

W. William Shakespeare (1564～1616)

Born on April 23, 1564 in Stratford, England - May 3, 1616 (April 23 in the Julian calendar), a famous British playwright and poet. His main works include "Romeo and Juliet", "Hamlet", etc.

Life

The great British playwright and poet William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwick County, central England, in 1564. His father, John Shakespeare, was a grocer engaged in wool, leather manufacturing and grain business. He was appointed as the town civil officer in 1565 and was elected as the mayor three years later. Shakespeare studied at a local grammar school as a child. Although he received a good basic education, he never went to college. In 1582, the 18-year-old Shakespeare married 26-year-old Anne Hathaway, a peasant girl from a neighboring country. They had three children when they were less than 21 years old.

His situation from 1585 to 1592 is unknown, and it is called the "lost years" by commentators. He left Stratford after 1585 and went to London to make a living. Around 1590, he joined a troupe and became an actor and playwright, starting his stage and creative career. He became famous in the theater world at the age of thirty, and four years later he became a leading figure in the British theater world. In 1592, theater manager P. Henslow first mentioned Shakespeare's play "Henry VI" Part 1. In the same year, before his death, the playwright R. Green alluded to Shakespeare's surname in "A Wisdom of a Thousand Regrets" and quoted lines from the second chapter of "Henry VI", calling Shakespeare "an upstart crow". This shows that he had already Quite famous. From 1593 to 1594, he wrote and published two long poems, "Venus and Adonis" and "The Humiliation of Lucrece", which were dedicated to the young noble Earl of Southampton. He also wrote some miscellaneous poems and 154 sonnets published in 1609. Starting from 1594, his troupe was protected by the Chamberlain and was called the "Chamberlain's Troupe". Around 1598, as a shareholder of the theater company, he co-founded the Globe Theater with others, and his later dramas were mainly performed here (the "Blackfriars Theater" was later added around 1609). He himself also performed in the palace with the troupe, and occasionally performed in universities and law schools; in summer or when the plague was prevalent and the London theaters were closed, he would perform in other provinces. In 1598, university scholar F. Mills listed Shakespeare's plays before he was 35 years old in his "Treasure House of Wisdom" and praised his comedies and tragedies as "unparalleled", ranking him among the first-rate dramatic poets in ancient times. But he never published any of his plays during his lifetime. In 1596, he applied for the title of "gentleman" and the right to own a coat of arms in his father's name, and purchased considerable real estate three times. In 1603, when James I succeeded to the throne, his troupe was renamed the "King's Troupe", and he and the actors in the troupe were appointed as chamberlains. Around 1612 he bid farewell to London and returned to his hometown to settle down. He died of illness on April 23, 1616 and was buried in the Holy Trinity Church in the town. He left a will before his death. Two of his portraits that are said to be more reliable are the bust in the church and the portrait of Droshot, and the handwriting has 6 signatures and three pages of the play "Sir Thomas More". In 1623, actors J. Heming and H. Condale printed his plays into a folio, which included 36 plays (20 of which were printed for the first time), known as the "First Folio". Since 1772, some people have continuously raised questions about the author of Shakespeare's plays, and tried to prove that the author was Bacon, C. Marlowe, Earl of Letland, Earl of Oxford, Earl of Derby, etc., but there is a lack of evidence.

Shakespeare lived in London for more than twenty years, during which time his wife remained in Stratford. Nearing the age of destiny, he retired and returned to his hometown of Stratford (around 1612). Shakespeare died unfortunately around his fifty-second birthday in 1616 and was buried in Holy Trinity Church. He left a will before his death. Two of his portraits that are said to be more reliable are the bust in the church and the portrait of Droshot, and the handwriting has 6 signatures and three pages of the play "Sir Thomas More".

In 1623, actors J. Heming and H. Condale printed his plays into a folio, which included 36 plays (20 of which were printed for the first time), known as the "First Folio". Since 1772, some people have continuously raised questions about the author of Shakespeare's plays, and tried to prove that the author was Bacon, C. Marlowe, Earl of Letland, Earl of Oxford, Earl of Derby, etc., but there is a lack of evidence.

Works

Shakespeare wrote thirty-seven plays in more than 20 years from about 1590 to 1612 (such as "The Two Noblesse" co-written with Fletcher) "Mother" is thirty-eight volumes), and also contains two long poems and one hundred and fifty-four sonnets. His plays are mostly based on existing materials such as historical records, novels, folklore and old plays, reflecting the historical reality of the transition from feudal society to capitalist society, and promoting the humanitarian thoughts and humanistic views of the emerging bourgeoisie. On the one hand, he extensively drew on ancient dramas, British medieval dramas, and emerging European culture and art, and on the other hand, he deeply observed life, understood society, and grasped the pulse of the times. Therefore, Shakespeare was able to create many lifelike characters and depict a vast and colorful world. It is a picture of social life and is famous for its blend of sorrow and joy, rich in poetry and imagination, unity in contradictions and changes, and rich in philosophy of life and critical spirit.

Generally speaking, Shakespeare's drama creation can be divided into the following three periods:

The first period (1590-1600) mainly wrote historical dramas and comedies, with 9 historical dramas. , 10 comedies and 2 tragedies.

Except "King John", which is about the history of England in the early 13th century, among the 9 historical dramas, the other 8 are two 4-part series with connected contents: "Henry VI" Part 1, 2 and 2. and "Richard III"; "Richard II", "Henry IV" Parts 1 and 2 and "Henry V". These historical dramas summarized the turmoil in British history for more than a hundred years and created a series of positive and negative monarch images. They reflected Shakespeare's opposition to feudal separatism, support of centralization, condemnation of tyrants' tyranny, and demand for enlightened monarchs to carry out top-down reforms and establish The humanist political and moral ideal of harmonious social relations.

10 Comedies "The Comedy of Errors", "The Taming of the Shrew", "The Two Gentlemen of Verona", "Love's Labour's Labour", "A Midsummer Night's Dream", "The Merchant of Venice", "Windsor" "The Merry Wives", "Much Ado About Nothing", "As You Like It" and "Twelfth Night" mostly take love, friendship and marriage as their themes. The protagonists are mostly young men and women with humanistic wisdom and virtue, through whom they strive for freedom and happiness. Struggle, praising progress and beautiful new people and new trends, while also gently exposing and ridiculing the decay and ugliness of old things, such as the hypocrisy of asceticism, the hypocrisy of Puritans, and the greed of loan sharks. The basic mood of Shakespeare's drama creation during this period was optimistic and clear, and full of confidence in solving social conflicts with humanistic ideals. Even the tragedy "Romeo and Juliet" written during this period was also permeated with a comic atmosphere. Although the protagonist died for love, the ideal of love defeated death and led to the reconciliation of feudal feuds. However, the later mature comedy "The Merchant of Venice" in this period also contains melancholy and tragic elements. While advocating benevolence, friendship and sincere love, it also reflects the class oppression and racial discrimination issues of the weak and the strong in Christian society. It shows that the author has gradually realized that there is an insoluble contradiction between ideal and reality.

The second period (1601-1607) was dominated by tragedy, and he wrote 3 Roman plays, 5 tragedies and 3 "dark comedies" or "problem plays".

The Roman dramas "Julius Caesar", "Antony and Cleopatra" and "Coriolanus" are based on Plutarch's "Heroes of Greece and Rome" historical drama.

The four major tragedies "Hamlet", "Othello", "King Lear", "Macbeth" and the tragedy "Timon of Athens" mark the author's in-depth thinking on the times and life, and his efforts to shape It contains some tragic heroes of the new era: they woke up from the imprisonment and ignorance of the Middle Ages, and under the dawn of modern times, they ambitiously wanted to develop or improve themselves, but they could not overcome the limitations of the times and themselves, and finally found themselves in the same environment. In the struggle against the disparity in strength between the hostile forces within, he suffered inevitable defeat and sacrifice. In order to avenge his father, Hamlet found that "the whole era was out of joint" and decided to take up the responsibility of "rearranging the world". The result was that he had empty ambitions and was unable to recover. Othello is an upright and honest man who trusts people but hates evil as much as he hates evil. He killed his wife and himself under the influence of an adulterer. In pursuit of the best and the most beautiful, he suffered evil retribution. King Lear lost his nature and reason in the honor, pride, and self-confidence that power brought to him. He imagined that by giving up power and dividing the country to prove that he was not a king but an ordinary person, he could be the same or greater, so he suffered A painful ordeal. Macbeth was originally a meritorious hero with a kind and beautiful side to his character. However, driven by the temptation of the throne and his ambition, he became a sinner who "went from blood to blood" and was filled with regret. The tragedies of these characters profoundly reveal the various social evils and bourgeois egoism that have begun to appear during the period of primitive accumulation of capital, and show the irreconcilable contradiction between humanistic ideals and cruel reality, which has a high degree of general significance.

Due to the enhanced depth of thought and realism in the plays of this period, "Comedies" such as "Troilus and Cressida", "Marriage at Last" and "Tit for Tat" It also reveals its dark side, shrouded in the evil shadow of betrayal and intrigue, so it is called a "problem drama" or a "dark comedy."

The third period (1608-1613) tended to be tragicomedy or legendary dramas of compromise and fantasy.

The main works are four tragicomedies or legendary dramas: "Prince of Tire", "Cymbeline", "The Winter's Tale" and "The Tempest". These works mostly deal with separation, reunion, frame-up, and reconciliation. Although it still adheres to humanistic ideals and reveals the dark reality, the resolution of conflicts mainly relies on magic, fantasy, coincidence and accidental events, and ends with the promotion of forgiveness, tolerance, compromise and reconciliation.

Shakespeare also collaborated with Fletcher to write the historical drama "Henry VIII" and the legendary drama "The Two Noble Kinsmen", the latter of which has been included in some Shakespeare drama collections in recent years.

Shakespeare's works include:

Tragedies: Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear, Hamlet, Othello, Titus Andronicus, Julius ·Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, The Siege of Troy, Timon of Athens, etc.

Comedy: Mistakes, Mistakes, We Are Happy, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, Tit for Tat, The Tempest, The Taming of the Shrew, Twelfth Night, The Merchant of Venice, The Merry Wives of Windsor Them, Love in vain, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Pericles, Prince of Tire, Cymbeline, The Winter's Tale, etc.

Historical dramas: Henry IV, Henry V, Henry VI, Henry VIII, King John, Richard II, Richard III.

Sonnets: lover's complaints, Lucrece's loss of virginity, Venus and Adonis, enthusiastic pilgrims, phoenix and turtledove, etc.

Achievement and influence

Most of Shakespeare's plays are based on old scripts, novels, chronicles or folklore, but he injects his own ideas into the rewriting, giving the old themes novelty. , rich and profound content. In terms of artistic expression, he inherited and developed the three major traditions of ancient Greek and Roman drama, medieval Britain and Renaissance European drama, and made creative innovations from content to form. His plays are not bound by the three unities, break through the boundaries of tragedy and comedy, strive to reflect the true face of life, and deeply explore the inner mysteries of the characters, thus being able to create many typical characters with complex and diverse personalities, real and vivid images, and depict a broad, It is a colorful picture of social life and is famous for its broad, profound, poetic and philosophical nature.

Shakespeare's plays were popular plays written for the British stage and audience at that time. Therefore, its characteristics such as the blending of tragedy and joy, the appreciation of elegance and vulgarity, the freedom of time and space, and its efforts to mobilize the audience's imagination to make up for the simplicity of the stage were criticized by classicists represented by Voltaire in the 18th century. It was arbitrarily deleted during the performance. It was not until the beginning of the 19th century that the true value of Shakespeare's plays began to be realized by critics such as Coleridge and Hazlitt. However, Shakespearean opera performances at that time were still often incorporated into the five-act structure of the play. At the end of the 19th century, W. Poel and H. Granville-Barker strongly opposed the spectacular tradition of Shakespearean theater performances at that time, and advocated the performance of Elizabethan theaters without scenery in order to restore its inherent characteristics.

At the beginning of the 17th century, Shakespeare's plays were introduced to Germany, France, Italy, Russia, and the Nordic countries, and then gradually spread to the United States and even all over the world. They had a huge and far-reaching impact on the development of drama in various countries and have become An important link and source of inspiration for world cultural development and exchange. China began to introduce and translate Shakespeare's plays at the beginning of this century. In 1978, it published the 11-volume "The Complete Works of Shakespeare" based on Zhu Shenghao's translation, which was fully revised and supplemented. In 1902, students from St. John's College in Shanghai were the first to perform "The Merchant of Venice" in English. According to incomplete statistics, China has 65 professional and amateur performance groups, operating in 5 languages: English, Chinese, Tibetan, Mongolian, and Cantonese, and in 6 forms: civilized drama, modern drama, opera, radio drama, ballet, and puppet show.* **Performed 21 Shakespeare plays, including most of Shakespeare's important works. Shakespeare's plays have become teaching materials for Chinese middle schools and universities, especially drama schools. The important roles in Shakespeare's plays have opened up a vast world for the training and improvement of Chinese actors.

The classic lines are:

1. Fragile, your name is woman!

2. To be or not to be, that's a question. (Survival or death, that is the question.)

3. Those who give up time, time will also give up on him.

4. A successful liar no longer needs to make a living by lying, because the people who are deceived have become his supporters, and it will be in vain for me to say anything else.

5. People can control their own destiny. If we are controlled by others, the fault lies not in fate but in ourselves.

6 Happy love relaxes the fighter's tense mood.

7 Love that is too perfect is sad and harmful to the body. As a child of the world, we don’t have that spare time.

8 Jealous siblings are a lie!

9 God is fair. Those who control destiny will always stand at both ends of the balance. Those who are controlled by destiny only understand that God has given him the destiny!

10 A proud person will always destroy himself in pride.

11 Love is a sweet pain, sincere love is never a smooth road.

12 Because she was born beautiful, she was pursued by men; because she was a woman, she was captured by men.

13 It would be terrible if a woman becomes jealous because of her feelings.

14 Don’t give up on what you were originally determined to achieve just because of one setback.

15 Women do not have the conditions to be proud in love.

16 I admit that there is nothing in the world more painful than the punishment of love, and there is nothing more joyful than serving it.

17 New flames can extinguish old flames, and big pain can alleviate small pain.

18 A smart person turns into a fool, and is the easiest fish to take the bait; because he relies on his talent and knowledge and cannot see his own arrogance.

19 The foolish things of a fool are not surprising, but the foolish things of a wise man make people laugh; because he uses all his abilities to prove his stupidity.

20 The appearance is often completely inconsistent with the thing itself, and people are easily deceived by superficial decorations.

21 No matter how long the darkness is, day will always come.

22 If you work hard for a day, you can sleep peacefully for a day; if you work hard for a lifetime, you can sleep forever.

23 Women are loved, not understood.

24 Gold, how magical you are. You can make the old become young, the ugly become beautiful, the black become white, the wrong become right...

25 When you are dizzy, you have to spin even more, and you are so sad that you are in pain, Use the sadness of others to heal!

26 Love is like a flower growing on a cliff. You must have courage to pick it.

27 The whole world is a huge stage, and all men and women in this world are just actors. There is a time for each player to come on and off the field. Everyone plays many roles throughout his life, and there are seven stages from birth to death.

Others

Shakespeare left thirty-seven plays to the world, including some general plays that he co-wrote with others. In addition, he also wrote one hundred and fifty-four sonnets and three or four long poems.

Given Shakespeare's genius, achievements, and reputation, it seems somewhat bizarre that his name does not figure prominently in this volume. I rank Shakespeare so low not because I don't appreciate his artistic achievements, but because I think literary and artistic figures generally have less impact on human history.

The activities of religious leaders, scientists, politicians, explorers, philosophers or inventors often influence the development of many other areas of human endeavor. For example, the progress of science has had a huge impact on economic and political affairs, as well as the development of religious beliefs, philosophical views, and art.

Although a famous painter may have a great influence on the works of later painters, his impact on music and literature may be minimal. In fact, he may have little impact on exploration and other fields of human endeavor. No impact at all. Similar statements apply to poets, playwrights, and music composers. Generally speaking, literary and artistic figures only have an influence on literature and art, and in fact only on the special field in which they are engaged. It is for this reason that not a single literary, musical or artistic figure is included in the top thirty, and only a few are included in this volume.

So why are there literary and artistic figures in this volume? This is because appreciating literature and art has a certain direct impact on everyone's life (although this impact is not always great). In other words, a person may spend part of his time listening to music, part of his time reading, and part of his time painting. etc. Even if the time we spend listening to music has no impact on our other activities (which is certainly an exaggeration), this portion of our time would still represent a boring time in our lives.

An artist may have more of an impact on our lives than the time we spend listening to, reading or looking at his work. This is because his works are likely to have an impact on the creative activities of other writers, whose works are experienced and appreciated by us.

In some cases, literary and artistic works have more or less explicit philosophical content, which will affect our views on other issues. This is of course more often the case with literary works than with musical or artistic works. For example, in Romeo and Juliet (Act 3, Scene 1), Shakespeare has the prince say: "You cannot show mercy to murderers, otherwise you encourage murder." The point made here (whether people accept it or not) With distinctive philosophical content, it may have an impact on people's political attitudes rather than other effects such as admiring the "Mona Lisa".

There seems to be no doubt that Shakespeare is second to none among all literary figures. Relatively speaking, few people today talk about the works of Chaucer, Virgil, or even Homer, but if a Shakespeare play were to be performed, there would definitely be a large audience. Shakespeare's genius for coining words is unparalleled and he is often quoted - even by people who have never seen or read one of his plays. Moreover, his fame is not a flash in the pan. His works have brought much joy to readers and critics for nearly four hundred years. Since Shakespeare's works have withstood the test of time, it seems reasonable to assume that they will remain popular for many centuries to come.

When evaluating Shakespeare’s influence, we should consider that without him, there would be no works of his at all (of course, similar arguments are suitable for every literary and artistic figure, but this factor is important when evaluating The influence of ordinary artists does not seem to be particularly important).

Although Shakespeare wrote in English, he was a truly world-famous figure. Although English is not quite a world language, it is closer than any other language. Moreover, Shakespeare's works have been translated into many kinds of literature, and many countries read his works and staged his plays.

Of course, the works of some popular writers are also despised by literary critics, but this is not the case with Shakespeare. Literary scholars spare no effort to praise his works. Dramatists for generations have studied his works in an attempt to capture his literary temperament. It is precisely because of Shakespeare's huge influence on other writers and his continued appreciation by the public that he receives a fairly high ranking in this book.

Shakespeare's famous sayings

Do not, for one repulse, give up the purpose that you resolved to effect. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

Don't just because Once you fail, you give up on what you were originally determined to achieve. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

A light heart lives long. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

A light heart lives long. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

In delay there lies no plenty, Then come kiss me, sweet and twenty, Youth's a stuff that will not endure. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

Procrastination is wasted, there is not much to come, twenty beautiful plants, please come and kiss me, the grass is withered and the poplars are withered, youth is easy to pass. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

The time of life is short; to spend that shortness basely, it would be too long. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

Life Bitterness is short, and if you waste your time, your short life will be too long. (English playwright Shakespeare. W.)

Don't gild the lily.

Don't gild the lily. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

The empty vessels make the greatest sound. (William Shakespeare, British dramatist)

The empty vessels make the greatest sound. (British playwright Shakespeare. W.)