WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, THE BARD

Hello Readers:

Happy New Year to you all.

I think I am going to start my New Year’s Blog talking about The Bard. “Who is that”?, you might ask; well, it is England’s greatest playwright, poet, and sonnet writer, William Shakespeare.

William Shakespeare was a renowned English poet, playwright, and actor born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. Shakespeare was a prolific writer during the Elizabethan and Jacobean ages of British theatre (sometimes called the English Renaissance or the Early Modern Period). He is often called England’s national poet and the “Bard of Avon”.

Shakespeare was very prolific. His works include 38 plays, 2 narrative poems, 154 sonnets, and a variety of other poems. No original manuscripts of Shakespeare’s plays are known to exist today. It is actually thanks to a group of actors from Shakespeare’s company that we have about half of the plays at all. They collected them for publication after Shakespeare died, preserving the plays. These writings were brought together in what is known as the First Folio (‘Folio’ refers to the size of the paper used). It contained 36 of his plays, but none of his poetry.

Shakespeare left a rich diverse legacy. His plays have spawned countless adaptations across multiple genres and cultures. His plays have had an enduring presence on stage and film. His writings have been compiled in various iterations of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, which include all of his plays, sonnets, and other poems. William Shakespeare continues to be one of the most important literary figures of the English language.

There are many every day phrases that we use today, that come straight from Shakespeare’s plays. For instance: “Vanish into thin air,” “wild-goose chase,” “wear my heart upon my sleeve,” and so on. Also, he created many new words and used them in his plays.

If you are interested in this great man, William Shakespeare, then please do some research. Going to any of his plays in Stratford-upon-Avon, where he was born, as I did when I was young, gives his plays a whole new meaning. One falls in love with his work, it is captivating, and so clever.

I have written a little poetry through the years, and recently, I put together a collection of poems. My poetry book, ‘The Mists of Time’, was published by Austin Macauley Publishers, April 30, 2021, You can buy it, or the e-book format, online and on  Austin Macauley’s website:https://www.austinmacauley.com/book/mists-time. It’s also available in bookstores or online.

Perhaps you may like to write a review too.

Best wishes,

Anne

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