William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare(/ˈʃeɪkspɪər/; 26 April 1564 (baptised) – 23 April 1616)[nb 1]was an English poet,play wright, and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England 'snational poet, and the "Bard of Avon".[nb 2]His extant works, including collaborations, consist of approximately38 plays,[nb 3]154 sonnets, two longnarrative poems, and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright. Shakespeare was born and brought up in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children:Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner of aplaying companycalled theLord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men. He appears to have retired to Stratford around 1613, at age 49, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive, which has stimulated considerable speculation about such matters ashis physical appearance, sexuality,and religious beliefsand whether the works attributed to him werewritten by others.Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1589 and 1613.[nb 4]His early plays were primarily comedies and histories, and theseare regarded as some of the best work ever produced in these genres. He then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth, considered some of the finest works in the English language.In his last phase, he wrote tragicomedies, also known asromances, and collaborated with other playwrights.Many of his plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime. In 1623, however, John Heminges and Henry Condell, two friends and fellow actors of Shakespeare, published a more definitive text known as the First Folio, a posthumous collectededition of his dramatic works that included all buttwo of the plays now recognised as Shakespeare's.It was prefaced with a poem byBen Jonson, in which Shakespeare is hailed, presciently, as "not of an age, but for all time".

In the 20th and 21st centuries, his works have been repeatedly adapted and rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance. His plays remain highly popular, and are constantly studied, performed, and reinterpreted in diverse cultural and political contexts throughout the world.