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Shakespeare's environment

  • Free to read
  • 8 hours to read
  • 31 chapters
  • Reading level: 8th & 9th grade

"Shakespeare's Environment" by C. C. Stopes is a historical account written in the early 20th century. The book examines the various influences and circumstances surrounding William Shakespeare that contributed to shaping his life and work, focusing on the socio-economic, familial, and educational aspects of his environment. Through meticulous research, the author aims to provide insights into Shakespeare’s immediate predecessors, contemporaries, and the context in which he lived and created. The opening of the book begins with a preface where Stopes outlines her purpose and methodology, stating her intention to gather various papers that shed light on Shakespeare's life. She emphasizes the importance of not only Shakespeare's apparent misfortunes but also the fortunes that shaped him, such as his gratefulness for the circumstances of his birth in a historically rich region. Furthermore, she discusses Shakespeare's educational background and familial connections, laying the foundation for a deeper analysis of how these factors intertwined to influence the renowned playwright's genius and his legacy. This introduction sets the stage for a more detailed exploration of Shakespeare’s life, interactions with powerful contemporary figures, and his evolving place within the societal framework of 16th-century England.

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  • Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 · Homes and haunts
  • Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 · Contemporary England
  • Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 · Friends and associates

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Chapter I

INTRODUCTORY

THE FORTUNES OF SHAKESPEARE

IN REMEMBRANCE OF 23RD APRIL 1564-1616

It is so much the fashion to write and speak of Shakespeare’s misfortunes, his disabilities, disadvantages, and lack of preparedness for becoming great, that perhaps I may best fit my opportunity by touching upon what I believe to be his good fortunes. It is all very true to say, that “poets are born, not made,” but there is a converse possibility, too finely expressed in Gray’s elegy to need repeating. Shakespeare might have been born a poet, and he might have been drowned in the Avon, as his contemporary of the same name was drowned in 1575; or he might have been carried by compelling currents of his life, away from the fruition of the high possibilities of his genius, instead of directly towards them. The whole truth is, that great poets are both born and made, and it is worth pausing to dwell on some of the steps in the making of this “Maker.” In no life is it more clear than in his that

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Contents

Show all 31 chapters
  1. Preface
  2. Chapter I
  3. Chapter II
  4. Chapter III
  5. Chapter IV
  6. Chapter V: Stratford’s “Bookless Neighbourhood”
  7. Chapter VI: “Mr. Shaxpere, One Book,” 1595
  8. Chapter VII
  9. Chapter VIII
  10. Chapter IX: “Mrs. Shaxspere” in the Law Courts
  11. Chapter X: “Honorificabilitudinitatibus” in Warwickshire
  12. Chapter XI
  13. Chapter XII
  14. Chapter XIII
  15. Chapter XIV
  16. Chapter XV
  17. Chapter XVI
  18. Chapter XVII: Burbage’s “Theatre”
  19. Chapter XVIII: The Transportation of Burbage’s “Theatre”
  20. Chapter XIX
  21. Chapter XX
  22. Chapter XXI
  23. Chapter XXII: “Mr. Shakspeare About My Lorde’s Impreso”
  24. Chapter XXIII: “The Queen’s Players” in 1536
  25. Chapter XXIV
  26. Chapter XXV
  27. Chapter XXVI
  28. Chapter XXVII
  29. Chapter XXVIII
  30. Chapter XXIX
  31. Chapter XXX

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About this edition

This free edition of Shakespeare's environment by C. C. Stopes comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #70835, released 2023-05-22. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: History - British.

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