Who was Shakespeare

Mozilla firefox search (google)
funny that in google this is the first thing on the list for me... it is a lot of general information on what i searched.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/merchant/shakespeare.html\
-Little is actually known for sure about the man we call William Shakespeare, although his is a name familiar to nearly every English speaking person. His birthday is a guess, and just what he looked like is a mystery. Even his identity itself is sometimes disputed. But most people today consider Shakespeare the greatest of all dramatists. His plays demonstrate a profound understanding of the nature of humanity. His skill with language and his ability to construct a story through dramatic and poetic means is unequaled.

The generally accepted facts are as follows: Shakespeare was born in 1564, the third child and first son of John Shakespeare and his wife Mary Arden, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. John Shakespeare was a landowner, a merchant, a glovemaker, and a man on a political track. In 1567 he became "high bailiff," the highest elected office in Stratford, equivalent to a mayor today.

William was baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon on April 23, 1564. The exact date is known from town records. He most likely attended the local grammar school, the King's New School, where his teachers held Oxford degrees and taught a rigorous program of study.

In 1582, at the age of eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway, the daughter of a farmer from the nearby village of Shottery. In 1583, they had a daughter, Susanna, and then twins, Hamnet and Judith, in 1585. (Hamnet died at age eleven).

Around 1588 Shakespeare and his family moved to London and within a few years he had achieved some success as an actor, a poet and a playwright. The Sonnets especially established his reputation as a gifted and popular poet, but it is the 38 plays he wrote or collaborated on that have firmly established his reputation as the greatest dramatist who ever lived.

Shakespeare became a charter member of a theatrical company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men, in 1594. He first worked in theatres owned by James Burbage northeast of London, the Theatre and the Curtain. In 1598 Burbage moved to Bankside, along the Thames River, and built the Globe Theatre. As a partner in the Globe, (and later the Blackfriars Theatre, acquired in 1608), Shakespeare profited from its success. His plays were performed at the courts of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I, who became sponsor of his theatrical troupe in 1603. Its name was changed to the King's Men.

After 1608 Shakespeare's creative output lessened and he returned to Stratford. He settled his family in one of the town's finest homes and became a prominent local citizen. He died in 1616 at the age of 52 and was buried in the chancel of the Church of the Holy Trinity in Stratford. His tomb's elegy, allegedly written by him, reads:

Good friend, for Jesus' sake forbear
To dig the dust enclosed here.
Blessed be the man that spares these stones
And cursed be he that moves my bones.


this is basically who shakespeare is... from what i read on other sources this seemed to summarize it about the best. except some only called him a playwrite while other sources also called him a poet. We know that shakespeare was brilliant when it came to entertainment and now thanks to the info i read i know a little about his life and how he came to be. We are left to wonder though what other things did he go through to make him such a brilliant playwrite? What was his inspiration and what made his diction and style full of so much meaning that is blind to the common eye?
Shakespeare is percieved by students in either a positive or negative way. I'd say to those that dont realize what a mastermind he really was would say reading shakespeare is a "drag" and they would not want to do it. Then there are those that take shakespeare seriously knowing that just about every word has a purpose. The name Shakespeare actually comes to me as an inspiration. If you can interperate what this mans purposes and meanings are behind his diction you can call yourself an avid reader of comprehension. I understand now that Shakespeares words they all have a purpose to his masterpiece, i know to pay attention because if I dont comprehend a chunk of shakespeares writing i might as well throw in the towel. Still though it is a struggle just to try and comprehend what your reading, especially when you author is Shakespeare. It takes time and long thought to get the full meaning of shakespeare, what he wanted us to really see behind just some words in a play.
 
 

Duck duck go
Wikipedia was actually 1st on the list in duck duck go.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_ShakespeareWiki seemed to have a few more facts on who shakespeare is...and didnt have some of the facts pbs did.


Bing
led me to the same results as the google search did...