"Cliff Notes - King Lear" - читать интересную книгу автора (Cliff Notes)

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE: THE AUTHOR AND HIS TIMES

It would be nice if we could say that William Shakespeare wrote
King Lear when he himself was at an advanced age. We could
picture him becoming concerned with retirement and the disposal
of his property and goods. But the theory collapses when you
realize that Shakespeare was only 41 years old when the first
performance of King Lear was recorded in an official document.

Besides, the plot line, involving two older men and their
respective family problems, is only a small part of the play.
King Lear is about much, much more and undoubtedly reflects
deeper concerns that Shakespeare had developed in his already
considerable experience as a playwright.

By the time he wrote King Lear, this adventurous young man from
Stratford had led a remarkable life, even for Elizabethan times,
which we tend to think of as more exciting than our own. During
the reign of Elizabeth I, England experienced a period of
relative stability and, more important, prosperity. All the
arts flourished, but the growth of drama was nothing short of
phenomenal. At the zenith of Elizabeth's power and influence,
William Shakespeare came to London and wrote the 37 plays that
have established him as the greatest playwright in the English
language.

How did it all begin? What purpose drove him to produce this
incredible body of work? Where did his inspiration come from?

There are many theories about Shakespeare, but very little that
is known for certain. He was born in 1564 and raised in
Stratford-on-Avon, some 100 miles from London. His father was a
successful middle-class tradesman and had even held public
office. Young Will attended local schools, which means he
received a good, substantial education. It gave him a
background in the classics as well as proficiency in the three
"Rs."

At 18, William married Anne Hathaway, eight years his senior.
She subsequently bore a daughter, Susanna, and shortly
afterward, twins, Hamnet and Judith.

How the young husband provided for his family during the first
years of marriage is unknown. A strong tradition holds that he
was employed locally as a schoolteacher, but there is no
evidence to prove it.

We do know that he left Stratford sometime in his mid-20s and
settled in London. There he first came to notice as a poet, the