more photos (3)

William Shakespeare’s Followers (47,082)

Add New
Videos

2 comments

Add a comment

William Shakespeare

Born

in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England

March 14, 1564

Died

April 23, 1616

Website

https://www.shakespeare.org.uk/

Genre

Theatre, Classics, Poetry

Influences

Ovid, Homer, Thomas Kyd, Christopher Marlowe, Lucius Annaeus Seneca, R ...more

edit data

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "the Bard"). His extant works, including collaborations, consist of some 39 plays, 154 sonnets, three long narrative 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 remains arguably the most influential writer in the English language, and his works continue to be studied and reinterpreted.
Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, W William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "the Bard"). His extant works, including collaborations, consist of some 39 plays, 154 sonnets, three long narrative 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 remains arguably the most influential writer in the English language, and his works continue to be studied and reinterpreted.
Shakespeare was born and raised 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 ("sharer") of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men after the ascension of King James VI and I of Scotland to the English throne. At age 49 (around 1613), he appears to have retired to Stratford, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive; this has stimulated considerable speculation about such matters as his physical appearance, his sexuality, his religious beliefs, and even certain fringe theories as to whether the works attributed to him were written by others.
Shakespeare produced most of his known works between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were primarily comedies and histories and are regarded as some of the best works produced in these genres. He then wrote mainly tragedies until 1608, among them Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth, all considered to be among the finest works in the English language. In the last phase of his life, he wrote tragicomedies (also known as romances) and collaborated with other playwrights.
Many of Shakespeare's plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime. However, in 1623, John Heminge and Henry Condell, two fellow actors and friends of Shakespeare's, published a more definitive text known as the First Folio, a posthumous collected edition of Shakespeare's dramatic works that includes 36 of his plays. Its Preface was a prescient poem by Ben Jonson, a former rival of Shakespeare, that hailed Shakespeare with the now famous epithet: "not of an age, but for all time". ...more

Combine Editions
William Shakespeare’s books

Average rating: 3.86 · 8,557,085 ratings · 230,439 reviews · 27,711 distinct works • Similar authors

	Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Paul Werstine (Editor), Barbara A. Mowat (Editor) 3.74 avg rating — 2,820,594 ratings — published 1590 — 9949 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hamlet 4.03 avg rating — 1,049,736 ratings — published 1601 — 2616 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Macbeth by William Shakespeare, Carmen Kahn (Contributor), Jack Armstrong (Contributor) 3.89 avg rating — 1,019,366 ratings — published 1623 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Midsummer Night’s Dream 3.94 avg rating — 578,136 ratings — published 1595 — 615 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Othello 3.89 avg rating — 436,383 ratings — published 1603	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Much Ado About Nothing 4.06 avg rating — 258,407 ratings — published 1598 — 3244 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	King Lear 3.91 avg rating — 237,279 ratings — published 1605 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Tempest 3.78 avg rating — 227,213 ratings — published 1611	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Julius Caesar 3.71 avg rating — 219,233 ratings — published 1599 — 4344 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Twelfth Night 3.96 avg rating — 194,477 ratings — published 1623 — 3127 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by William Shakespeare…

Series by William Shakespeare

The Signet Classic Shakespeare (1 book)
by

William Shakespeare,

Paul Werstine (Editor),

Gail Kern Paster (Contributor),

Henry Irving (Arrangement),

Barbara A. Mowat (Editor),

Henry Norman Hudson (Introduction & Notes),

Frederick S. Boas (Introduction & Notes),

F.H. Mares (Editor),

more…
4.06 avg rating — 258,380 ratings

The Signet Classic Shakespeare (1 book)
by

William Shakespeare,

Paul Werstine (Editor),

Gail Kern Paster (Contributor),

Henry Irving (Arrangement),

Barbara A. Mowat (Editor),

Henry Norman Hudson (Introduction & Notes),

Frederick S. Boas (Introduction & Notes),

F.H. Mares (Editor),

more…
4.06 avg rating — 258,380 ratings

The Signet Classic Shakespeare (1 book)
by

William Shakespeare,

Paul Werstine (Editor),

Gail Kern Paster (Contributor),

Henry Irving (Arrangement),

Barbara A. Mowat (Editor),

Henry Norman Hudson (Introduction & Notes),

Frederick S. Boas (Introduction & Notes),

F.H. Mares (Editor),

more…
4.06 avg rating — 258,380 ratings

The Signet Classic Shakespeare (1 book)
by

William Shakespeare,

Paul Werstine (Editor),

Gail Kern Paster (Contributor),

Henry Irving (Arrangement),

Barbara A. Mowat (Editor),

Henry Norman Hudson (Introduction & Notes),

Frederick S. Boas (Introduction & Notes),

F.H. Mares (Editor),

more…
4.06 avg rating — 258,380 ratings

The Signet Classic Shakespeare (1 book)
by

William Shakespeare,

Paul Werstine (Editor),

Gail Kern Paster (Contributor),

Henry Irving (Arrangement),

Barbara A. Mowat (Editor),

Henry Norman Hudson (Introduction & Notes),

Frederick S. Boas (Introduction & Notes),

F.H. Mares (Editor),

more…
4.06 avg rating — 258,380 ratings

More series by William Shakespeare…

Imagine a Shakespearean retelling of The Godfather set in a small Southern town, and you’ll have an idea about what to expect in Shawn Andre...

Polls

March 2018 Revisit the Shelf Reread

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, 489 pages, 1859, Last Read November 2014

45 votes, 12.2%

1984 by George Orwell, 328 pages, 1949, Last Read November 2015

32 votes, 8.6%

Persuasion by Jane Austen, 256 pages, 1817, Last Read August 2015

29 votes, 7.8%

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, 449 pages, 1938, Last Read May 2015

28 votes, 7.6%

The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro, 258 pages, 1989, Last Read January 2017

27 votes, 7.3%

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, 671 pages, 1866, Last Read June 2014

25 votes, 6.8%

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë, 542 pages, 1848, Last Read April 2015

24 votes, 6.5%

Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray, 867 pages, 1847, Last Read October 2011

24 votes, 6.5%

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, 254 pages, 1890, Last Read November 2016

23 votes, 6.2%

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, 505 pages, 1853, Last Read August 2014

20 votes, 5.4%

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, 343 pages, 1966, Last Read November 2016

18 votes, 4.9%

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque, 296 pages, 1929, Last Read September 2015

17 votes, 4.6%

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, 154 pages, 1900, Last Read February 2012

15 votes, 4.1%

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, 146 pages, 1962, Last Read September 2016

12 votes, 3.2%

The Iliad by Homer, 683 pages, -750, Last Read July 2012

11 votes, 3.0%

King Lear by William Shakespeare, 316 pages, 1603, Last Read October 2012

11 votes, 3.0%

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell, 251 pages, 1853, Lasr Read January 2015

9 votes, 2.4%

370 total votes

9 comments

More...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
European Royalty: Dec. 1 - Jan. 1 - Nomination	12	95	16 nov. 2008 04:32
YA Book Council: The Willoughbys by Lois Lowry	49	275	19 nov. 2008 10:09
European Royalty: Dec. 1 - Jan. 1 - Voting	10	102	21 nov. 2008 16:09
Romance and Paran...: Victoria Alexander	1	52	25 nov. 2008 17:21
Romance and Paran...: Julia London	1	18	08 déc. 2008 02:39
The Book Challenge: Samantha's 2008 Book Challenge	35	330	31 déc. 2008 08:29

More…