A text about William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare (bapt. 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616)^[a] was an English playwright, poet, and actor. He wrote 39 plays (with about half of them considered comedies) and two long poems in his lifetime. He lived in Stratford-upon-Avon, in Warwickshire, England. His plays are still performed today. He is often quoted in modern writing.

By 1594 he was an actor in The Chamberlain's Men acting company.

His plays are of different kinds, or genres. There are histories, tragedies and comedies. These plays are among the best known in English literature and are studied in schools around the world. Shakespeare wrote his works between about 1590 and 1613. He is considered the first writer who wrote a tragicomedy. (A tragicomedy is a play that mixes comedy and tragedy, with a happy ending.)

Shakespeare's plays are written in poetic language. Many of the plays are set in strange, distant places and times. They are still popular today. The stories are often exciting, very funny (in the comedies), or very sad (in the tragedies) and make people want to know what happens to his characters. He says much about things that are still important today, like love, sadness, hope, pride, hatred, jealousy, and foolishness.

Shakespeare added new words and phrases to the English language. He also made some words more popular.^[2] He created over 1,700 English words.^[3]

Read and the text about Shakespeare and answer the questions!

Read the text about William Shakespeare and write a short biography of his life. Write about his life and his work.