Shotgun Wedding
Shakespeare married Ann Hathaway when he was 18-she was 24. Six months
later Elizabeth, their first daughter, was born. It was not unusual in
those days for 'shotgun weddings'.
Shakespeare in Space
All Uranus' satelites are named after Shakespearean characters.
The eloquent bard
The average American's vocabulary is around 10,000 words - 15,000 if you
are REALLY smart. Shakespeare had a vocabluary of over 29,000 words.
From humble beginnings
Although universally regarded as a genius, William Shakespeare was the
son of a globemaker and was given only an average education. Always
intensely curious about the world around him, Shakespeare would later
rely on scenes remembered from his childhood, common country customs and
superstitions, fairs and other popular entertainments as raw material
for his plays.
Shakespearean words
The words "assassination"and "bump" were invented by Shakespeare. If you
say "laugh it off" you are also quoting shakespeare. Other inventions
included 'puke' and 'bedroom'.
Tombstone trivia
Shakespeare's tombstone in Stratford's Holy Trinity Church bears this
inscription, said to have been written by him: Good friend, for Jesus'
sake forbear to dig the dust enclosed here. Blest be the man that spares
these stones, and curst be he that moves my bones.
If I could talk to the animals
The animal world is well represented in Shakespeare's works. Over 3,000
references to some 180 difference species of animals--both real and
imaginary--have been identified in the plays. Everything from simple
country wildlife--birds, bats, hedgehogs, insects, wild boar and
deer--to more exotic species--rhinoceros, tiger, elephant and bear, as
well as the mythical unicorn, phoenix, and dragon.
Insults
The most insulting insult that Shakespeare used was 'You Bulls Pizzle'
Hidden message
When reading horizontally from Shakespeare's original published copy of
Hamlet, the furthest left hand side reads 'I am a homosexual' in the
last 14 lines of the book. Was this a message, or just a coincidence? |
