William Shakespeare
Key Facts
- Acteur et dramaturge à Londres dès 1592, co-fondateur et copropriétaire du Globe Theatre (1599)
- Auteur de 37 pièces couvrant tragédies, comédies et chroniques historiques, dont Hamlet, Macbeth et Roméo et Juliette
- 154 sonnets publiés en 1609 : l'une des oeuvres poétiques les plus influentes de la littérature mondiale
- Inventeur d'environ 1 700 mots anglais encore en usage : 'bedroom', 'lonely', 'generous', 'uncomfortable'...
- Ses pièces sont traduites dans toutes les langues et jouées sans interruption depuis plus de 400 ans
- Meurt le 23 avril 1616 à Stratford, le même jour que Cervantes selon le calendrier julien
- Son oeuvre a inspiré plus de 400 adaptations cinématographiques, plus que tout autre écrivain
Biography
William Shakespeare was born on 23 April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, in Warwickshire, England. Son of a prosperous glover and tradesman, he received a solid classical education at the local Grammar School, where he read Ovid, Virgil, and Latin playwrights. His life remains largely mysterious — no journals, no personal correspondence survive, and civil records concerning him can be counted on one hand, fuelling theories since the nineteenth century about his true identity.
Around 1585, Shakespeare moved to London, leaving behind his wife Anne Hathaway and three children. By 1592 his name appeared in London theatrical circles, where he was simultaneously an actor, playwright, and soon co-owner of the Lord Chamberlain's Men. This company, placed under the protection of the Lord Chamberlain and then King James I (King's Men from 1603), was England's most renowned. In 1599, Shakespeare participated in the construction and management of the Globe Theatre on the south bank of the Thames.
Between 1590 and 1613, Shakespeare wrote thirty-seven plays covering all registers: the great tragedies (Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth), light poetic comedies (A Midsummer Night's Dream, Much Ado About Nothing), romance plays (The Tempest, The Winter's Tale), and historical chronicles (Richard III, Henry V). His 154 sonnets, published in 1609, display unmatched poetic mastery. He is credited with inventing approximately 1,700 English words and expressions still in use today.
In 1613 a fire destroyed the Globe, and Shakespeare retired to Stratford. He died on 23 April 1616 — the same day as Cervantes by the Julian calendar — aged fifty-two. His plays are translated into every language and constantly adapted in film, opera, and theatre. He is the most performed playwright in history, and his language shaped modern English as few authors have.