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Shakespeare: The Biography
A TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
Drawing on an exceptional combination of skills as literary biographer, novelist, and chronicler of London history, Peter Ackroyd surely re-creates the world that shaped Shakespeare--and brings the playwright himself into unusually vivid focus. With characteristic narrative panache, Ackroyd immerses us in sixteenth-century Stratford and the rural landscape–the industry, the animals, even the flowers–that would appear in Shakespeare’s plays. He takes us through Shakespeare’s London neighborhood and the fertile, competitive theater world where he worked as actor and writer. He shows us Shakespeare as a businessman, and as a constant reviser of his writing. In joining these intimate details with profound intuitions about the playwright and his work, Ackroyd has produced an altogether engaging masterpiece.
Drawing on an exceptional combination of skills as literary biographer, novelist, and chronicler of London history, Peter Ackroyd surely re-creates the world that shaped Shakespeare--and brings the playwright himself into unusually vivid focus. With characteristic narrative panache, Ackroyd immerses us in sixteenth-century Stratford and the rural landscape–the industry, the animals, even the flowers–that would appear in Shakespeare’s plays. He takes us through Shakespeare’s London neighborhood and the fertile, competitive theater world where he worked as actor and writer. He shows us Shakespeare as a businessman, and as a constant reviser of his writing. In joining these intimate details with profound intuitions about the playwright and his work, Ackroyd has produced an altogether engaging masterpiece.
572 pages, Paperback
First published September 26, 2005
About the author
Peter Ackroyd
188 books1,421 followersPeter Ackroyd CBE is an English novelist and biographer with a particular interest in the history and culture of London.
Peter Ackroyd's mother worked in the personnel department of an engineering firm, his father having left the family home when Ackroyd was a baby. He was reading newspapers by the age of 5 and, at 9, wrote a play about Guy Fawkes. Reputedly, he first realized he was gay at the age of 7.
Ackroyd was educated at St. Benedict's, Ealing and at Clare College, Cambridge, from which he graduated with a double first in English. In 1972, he was a Mellon Fellow at Yale University in the United States. The result of this fellowship was Ackroyd's Notes for a New Culture, written when he was only 22 and eventually published in 1976. The title, a playful echo of T. S. Eliot's Notes Towards the Definition of Culture (1948), was an early indication of Ackroyd's penchant for creatively exploring and reexamining the works of other London-based writers.
Ackroyd's literary career began with poetry, including such works as London Lickpenny (1973) and The Diversions of Purley (1987). He later moved into fiction and has become an acclaimed author, winning the 1998 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for the biography Thomas More and being shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1987.
Ackroyd worked at The Spectator magazine between 1973 and 1977 and became joint managing editor in 1978. In 1982 he published The Great Fire of London, his first novel. This novel deals with one of Ackroyd's great heroes, Charles Dickens, and is a reworking of Little Dorrit. The novel set the stage for the long sequence of novels Ackroyd has produced since, all of which deal in some way with the complex interaction of time and space, and what Ackroyd calls "the spirit of place". It is also the first in a sequence of novels of London, through which he traces the changing, but curiously consistent nature of the city. Often this theme is explored through the city's artists, and especially its writers.
Ackroyd has always shown a great interest in the city of London, and one of his best known works, London: The Biography, is an extensive and thorough discussion of London through the ages.
His fascination with London literary and artistic figures is also displayed in the sequence of biographies he has produced of Ezra Pound (1980), T. S. Eliot (1984), Charles Dickens (1990), William Blake (1995), Thomas More (1998), Chaucer (2004), William Shakespeare (2005), and J. M. W. Turner. The city itself stands astride all these works, as it does in the fiction.
From 2003 to 2005, Ackroyd wrote a six-book non-fiction series (Voyages Through Time), intended for readers as young as eight. This was his first work for children. The critically acclaimed series is an extensive narrative of key periods in world history.
Early in his career, Ackroyd was nominated a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1984 and, as well as producing fiction, biography and other literary works, is also a regular radio and television broadcaster and book critic.
In the New Year's honours list of 2003, Ackroyd was awarded the CBE.
Peter Ackroyd's mother worked in the personnel department of an engineering firm, his father having left the family home when Ackroyd was a baby. He was reading newspapers by the age of 5 and, at 9, wrote a play about Guy Fawkes. Reputedly, he first realized he was gay at the age of 7.
Ackroyd was educated at St. Benedict's, Ealing and at Clare College, Cambridge, from which he graduated with a double first in English. In 1972, he was a Mellon Fellow at Yale University in the United States. The result of this fellowship was Ackroyd's Notes for a New Culture, written when he was only 22 and eventually published in 1976. The title, a playful echo of T. S. Eliot's Notes Towards the Definition of Culture (1948), was an early indication of Ackroyd's penchant for creatively exploring and reexamining the works of other London-based writers.
Ackroyd's literary career began with poetry, including such works as London Lickpenny (1973) and The Diversions of Purley (1987). He later moved into fiction and has become an acclaimed author, winning the 1998 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for the biography Thomas More and being shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1987.
Ackroyd worked at The Spectator magazine between 1973 and 1977 and became joint managing editor in 1978. In 1982 he published The Great Fire of London, his first novel. This novel deals with one of Ackroyd's great heroes, Charles Dickens, and is a reworking of Little Dorrit. The novel set the stage for the long sequence of novels Ackroyd has produced since, all of which deal in some way with the complex interaction of time and space, and what Ackroyd calls "the spirit of place". It is also the first in a sequence of novels of London, through which he traces the changing, but curiously consistent nature of the city. Often this theme is explored through the city's artists, and especially its writers.
Ackroyd has always shown a great interest in the city of London, and one of his best known works, London: The Biography, is an extensive and thorough discussion of London through the ages.
His fascination with London literary and artistic figures is also displayed in the sequence of biographies he has produced of Ezra Pound (1980), T. S. Eliot (1984), Charles Dickens (1990), William Blake (1995), Thomas More (1998), Chaucer (2004), William Shakespeare (2005), and J. M. W. Turner. The city itself stands astride all these works, as it does in the fiction.
From 2003 to 2005, Ackroyd wrote a six-book non-fiction series (Voyages Through Time), intended for readers as young as eight. This was his first work for children. The critically acclaimed series is an extensive narrative of key periods in world history.
Early in his career, Ackroyd was nominated a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1984 and, as well as producing fiction, biography and other literary works, is also a regular radio and television broadcaster and book critic.
In the New Year's honours list of 2003, Ackroyd was awarded the CBE.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews
August 6, 2016
“Shakespeare is the only biographer of Shakespeare.
So far from Shakespeare’s being the least known, he is the one person in all modern history fully known to us.”
~ Emerson
The Obscure & The Elusive
This ‘biography’ that Ackroyd strings together is mostly tedious, though it has a few really good moments and it has to be admitted that it presents most of the facts that is known of the great Bard. In spite of this, I think it is a mistake to pick up this bio unless one is familiar with ALL the plays of Shakespeare, including the controversially attributed ones - since Ackroyd constructs the bio mostly through the plays and the lines and extrapolating form them, tying together with some skill the fragmentary traces Shakespeare left in the world outside the stage.
The fact that whatever is pieced together from outside plays is from the patchy legal records of Shakespeare’s land dealings, taxes paid, borrowings/lendings, cases filed, and so on, should give an idea of the tedium involved. The saving grace is when Shakespeare’s contemporary critics step in to spice it up by naive statements that posterity was destined to have hearty laughs at.
Also, Ackroyd tries to do it both ways - understand the life through the plays and then understand the plays through the life. Which makes a bit of a mess in figuring out where the circle closes. Also, Ackroyd seems to lean towards reading the life into the work when the life can be read out of the work.
Maybe, much of Shakespeare’s existence was the very construction of his plays, and these in turn might tell us more about him than can the set of random anecdotes that have escaped the distortions of history and Shakespeare’s own efforts to maintain a private life, that Ackroyd tires so hard to dig out. If Ackroyd had stuck to a consistent plan either way, we might have had a much more coherent work.
In the end, the ‘bio’ is definitely useful in understanding Shakespeare’s London (which included the audiences, stage, limitations of the stage, audience expectations), what is known of his life (with shadings of childhood influences, dramatic/poetic progress, worldly progress, family troubles/tragedies/ambitions), and the London Stage itself (including economic conditions and preoccupations, major rivals, the dramatic scene of the time, the actors, the interaction b/w actors and characters).
This is all very admirable, but the question is how much of all this information is needed for understanding his plays - especially when his greatest genius was apparently in being conspicuous by his absence in his works! Ackroyd asserts this himself and thus nullifies his entire effort, in one fell swoop. (if you detect a contradiction in the review here, it is intended to show the same contradiction apparent in the book)
In addition Ackroyd is known to present speculation as concluded fact and reader has to keep his guard up throughout the book, which is very tiring to be honest, and not quite worth the effort.
October 3, 2017
Very worthwhile book on Shakespeare! Although he is still ‘the mystery man’, the author has researched the era, his family, theatre life, religious differences and the locales of London and Stratford and presents the known facts—as well as the gaping holes—as Shakespeare’s life unfolds.
It is not difficult to see, thanks to Ackroyd’s explanations, why Shakespeare remains such an elusive figure.
There are reasons. It was a dangerous time for one, especially with respect to which side of the religious street you happened to be standing on when. England went back and forth between Catholic, Protestant, back to Catholic and then finally to remain Protestant all in less than 50 years—the span of one man’s lifetime. Who knew if that might change again?
Shakespeare’s own father suffered most of his life for his determination to hang on to the ‘Old Faith’—something which could have made his son more cautious in allowing himself private beliefs and thoughts much less being forthright about them.
Ackroyd also gave the ins and outs of the dangers inherent in theatre life, something still novel in late 16th, early 17th Century Britain. The risks were greatest for playwrights, who might write something heretical or treasonous, intentionally or no. Shakespeare’s contemporary and competitor, Christopher Marlowe, died at 29 (stabbed to death) under mysterious circumstances, something which no doubt would have affected WS.
Shakespeare’s own death at 53 in Stratford-on-Avon was unremarkable and unattended except for family and some friends. Even his cause of death remains a mystery. For such a great man, so much remains conjecture. And yet, we love his words and it is those we know so well!
Ackroyd focuses on the plays, characters, and memorable dialogue throughout, something akin to a tour through a bakery. Let me out of here or let me eat one of everything! At least…!
Most enjoyable and most frustrating! Bring on those plays…!
==============================================
October 1, 2017: We are almost finished! One CD (out of 16) left. Normally audiobooks don’t take us so long. This one has taken longer, no doubt because of our frequent breaks for discussion. Dear husband has no familiarity with Shakespeare which has led to many interesting conversations. Also, the CDs are very long so we are reluctant to start another unless early in evening.
August 18, 2017: I am a fan of Ackroyd bios... Have been wanting to read this one on the Bard for a long time.
It is not difficult to see, thanks to Ackroyd’s explanations, why Shakespeare remains such an elusive figure.
There are reasons. It was a dangerous time for one, especially with respect to which side of the religious street you happened to be standing on when. England went back and forth between Catholic, Protestant, back to Catholic and then finally to remain Protestant all in less than 50 years—the span of one man’s lifetime. Who knew if that might change again?
Shakespeare’s own father suffered most of his life for his determination to hang on to the ‘Old Faith’—something which could have made his son more cautious in allowing himself private beliefs and thoughts much less being forthright about them.
Ackroyd also gave the ins and outs of the dangers inherent in theatre life, something still novel in late 16th, early 17th Century Britain. The risks were greatest for playwrights, who might write something heretical or treasonous, intentionally or no. Shakespeare’s contemporary and competitor, Christopher Marlowe, died at 29 (stabbed to death) under mysterious circumstances, something which no doubt would have affected WS.
Shakespeare’s own death at 53 in Stratford-on-Avon was unremarkable and unattended except for family and some friends. Even his cause of death remains a mystery. For such a great man, so much remains conjecture. And yet, we love his words and it is those we know so well!
Ackroyd focuses on the plays, characters, and memorable dialogue throughout, something akin to a tour through a bakery. Let me out of here or let me eat one of everything! At least…!
Most enjoyable and most frustrating! Bring on those plays…!
==============================================
October 1, 2017: We are almost finished! One CD (out of 16) left. Normally audiobooks don’t take us so long. This one has taken longer, no doubt because of our frequent breaks for discussion. Dear husband has no familiarity with Shakespeare which has led to many interesting conversations. Also, the CDs are very long so we are reluctant to start another unless early in evening.
August 18, 2017: I am a fan of Ackroyd bios... Have been wanting to read this one on the Bard for a long time.
March 12, 2021
I have read many books about Shakespeare and his times, but none have provoked a more ambivalent and varying reaction in me than Peter Ackroyd's "Shakespeare: The Biography". There are some nice strengths to this text, and there are some great weaknesses. There are too may dull and/ or redundant sections in the text for it to rate as one of the best books on Shakespeare. There are much more engaging and interesting biographies of the Bard out there than this one.
One strength of the text is that, unlike many Shakespeare biographies, Ackroyd goes into great depth about Shakespeare's ancestors and his early life in Stratford, more than any other writer I have yet encountered. It is interesting and well done, and he makes some compelling arguments about how Shakespeare's childhood shaped the man he became.
Another very good section of the book is chapter 45, where Ackroyd spends a bit of time insightfully discussing Shakespearian characterization. This might not be interesting for readers who don't like analyzing characters, but I do, and found it intriguing and thoughtful.
A huge annoyance for me is Ackroyd's insistence on using the original Elizabethan spellings and grammar when quoting from primary sources of the period, including Shakespeare's plays. This adds unneeded confusion and difficulty to the text, and serves no purpose other than to create hindrances for the reader. Making the words more difficult to decipher does not change their meaning, it just gives the reader a reason to put the book down. Why would a writer do that?
This text is also highly speculative, as any book on Shakespeare's life must be, but Ackroyd goes to great lengths to say that this or that idea is not worth speculating about... and then he does just that. Speculate away sir, give us reasons for your insights and thoughts and lets us decide for ourselves. But don't pretend that you are not doing it. It is a cloying device and detracts from the work.
In an idea that he surely lifted from Harold Bloom, Mr. Ackroyd writes, "It could be said that Shakespeare was present at the invention of human motive and human purpose in English history." One only need read Shakespeare to see how accurate a statement this is, and in this text's better moments it shows how Shakespeare did just that in his life's writings.
One strength of the text is that, unlike many Shakespeare biographies, Ackroyd goes into great depth about Shakespeare's ancestors and his early life in Stratford, more than any other writer I have yet encountered. It is interesting and well done, and he makes some compelling arguments about how Shakespeare's childhood shaped the man he became.
Another very good section of the book is chapter 45, where Ackroyd spends a bit of time insightfully discussing Shakespearian characterization. This might not be interesting for readers who don't like analyzing characters, but I do, and found it intriguing and thoughtful.
A huge annoyance for me is Ackroyd's insistence on using the original Elizabethan spellings and grammar when quoting from primary sources of the period, including Shakespeare's plays. This adds unneeded confusion and difficulty to the text, and serves no purpose other than to create hindrances for the reader. Making the words more difficult to decipher does not change their meaning, it just gives the reader a reason to put the book down. Why would a writer do that?
This text is also highly speculative, as any book on Shakespeare's life must be, but Ackroyd goes to great lengths to say that this or that idea is not worth speculating about... and then he does just that. Speculate away sir, give us reasons for your insights and thoughts and lets us decide for ourselves. But don't pretend that you are not doing it. It is a cloying device and detracts from the work.
In an idea that he surely lifted from Harold Bloom, Mr. Ackroyd writes, "It could be said that Shakespeare was present at the invention of human motive and human purpose in English history." One only need read Shakespeare to see how accurate a statement this is, and in this text's better moments it shows how Shakespeare did just that in his life's writings.
October 11, 2012
At predictable intervals over the course of the last four centuries, some cynical iconoclast has suggested that William Shakespeare was a simple-minded actor from the hinterlands who was hired by an Oxford-educated aristocrat to serve as the public face for his plays. The latest incarnation of this hackneyed libel against Shakespeare is last year's box office bomb ANONYMOUS, which rather shamelessly attributes Shakespeare's canon to the Earl of Oxford. These Anti-Stratfordists are, of course, the very worst sort of intellectual elitists who indulge themselves in the most juvenile sort of contempt for history and historical method. But they almost always get noticed by the popular press and their claptrap is usually successful at muddying the waters and undermining the reputation of England's greatest literary figure.
Ackroyd, like Schoenbaum a generation ago, goes to great lengths to present the wealth of records extant from Shakespeare's life. William Shakespeare left a rather substantial historical footprint. He was not some bucolic rube from a provincial backwater, but instead was the well-educated, bourgeois firstborn son of the Mayor of Stratford-Upon-Avon. Shakespeare's father John, as well as his mother Mary Arden, left a rather huge footprint in the records of their time. The same is true for John Shakespeare's neighbors, brothers and business associates. These were serious and substantial people. The fact that they were Recusivists (Catholic stalwarts during the time of emergent Anglicanism) insured that that their footprints would be subtle, but they were undeniable.
Shakespeare himself appears to have been indifferent to religion. His familiarity with the ritual of the mass, as well as his acquaintance with the cycle of medieval morality plays and his contacts in the Recusivist underground, gave him access to the nascent world of the Elizabethan stage. Ironically, Shakespeare was very much like the way Joseph Finnes portrayed him in SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE. He was very young (22), extremely good looking and thoroughly competent as both a player and a playwright. He intuitively understood how to please huge crowds in this egalitarian new medium, and the convergence of his personal talent with the times, the technology and the emerging industry of mass entertainment combined into a synergy of genius.
Unlike his friends and rivals. most notably Jonson and Marlowe, Shakespeare never aspired to be England's preeminent playwright. His obsession appears to have been with becoming a "gentleman". To this end, he was meticulous about his investments, and he was purposeful and deliberate in his associations. When he died of typhoid fever in 1616, he was one of the best known celebrities in England and was the wealthiest landowner in Warwickshire. He was also, by the standards of the day, an old man -- having reached the age of 52 in an era when 40 was considered old.
Ackroyd goes to great lengths to provide evidence for the provenance of each and every word attributed to Shakespeare. While the contemporaneous citations of his works are abundant and conclusive, the real bona fides for the Shakespearean corpus lies in the words themselves. Shakespeare's language is the dialect of his native Warckickshire, a fact now lost to modern audiences simply because of Shakespeare's success. His provincial patois became the standard for modern English, but it is an easy leap to recover the lyrical west county lilt in his elegant iambs.
This biography is well worth your time. You will walk away from it with a better appreciation for the role individuals have played in the epic history of the world. This winsome youth with a pleasing accent, by dogged persistence in his trade, created something wonderful and rare. Along the way, he unintentionally earned a place beside Homer, Vergil and Dante as the one of the great poets of mankind.
The closest I personally have ever come to a mystical experience was when, as very earnest and guileless twenty-two year old, I first knelt alone and in silence at the chancel of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-Upon-Avon. I remember feeling subsumed in an almost dissociative reaction to the overwhelming humanity and dignity of this eternal place. It was so simple, so pure, so unassuming. In short, it was so very human, a timeless reminder of everything awesome and miraculous about just being human.
That, in the end, is the essence of Shakespeare's greatness. He spent his entire life trying to become an English gentleman. Quite by accident, he became one of the immortal voices of mankind. That is a magic you cannot learn at Oxford.
Ackroyd, like Schoenbaum a generation ago, goes to great lengths to present the wealth of records extant from Shakespeare's life. William Shakespeare left a rather substantial historical footprint. He was not some bucolic rube from a provincial backwater, but instead was the well-educated, bourgeois firstborn son of the Mayor of Stratford-Upon-Avon. Shakespeare's father John, as well as his mother Mary Arden, left a rather huge footprint in the records of their time. The same is true for John Shakespeare's neighbors, brothers and business associates. These were serious and substantial people. The fact that they were Recusivists (Catholic stalwarts during the time of emergent Anglicanism) insured that that their footprints would be subtle, but they were undeniable.
Shakespeare himself appears to have been indifferent to religion. His familiarity with the ritual of the mass, as well as his acquaintance with the cycle of medieval morality plays and his contacts in the Recusivist underground, gave him access to the nascent world of the Elizabethan stage. Ironically, Shakespeare was very much like the way Joseph Finnes portrayed him in SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE. He was very young (22), extremely good looking and thoroughly competent as both a player and a playwright. He intuitively understood how to please huge crowds in this egalitarian new medium, and the convergence of his personal talent with the times, the technology and the emerging industry of mass entertainment combined into a synergy of genius.
Unlike his friends and rivals. most notably Jonson and Marlowe, Shakespeare never aspired to be England's preeminent playwright. His obsession appears to have been with becoming a "gentleman". To this end, he was meticulous about his investments, and he was purposeful and deliberate in his associations. When he died of typhoid fever in 1616, he was one of the best known celebrities in England and was the wealthiest landowner in Warwickshire. He was also, by the standards of the day, an old man -- having reached the age of 52 in an era when 40 was considered old.
Ackroyd goes to great lengths to provide evidence for the provenance of each and every word attributed to Shakespeare. While the contemporaneous citations of his works are abundant and conclusive, the real bona fides for the Shakespearean corpus lies in the words themselves. Shakespeare's language is the dialect of his native Warckickshire, a fact now lost to modern audiences simply because of Shakespeare's success. His provincial patois became the standard for modern English, but it is an easy leap to recover the lyrical west county lilt in his elegant iambs.
This biography is well worth your time. You will walk away from it with a better appreciation for the role individuals have played in the epic history of the world. This winsome youth with a pleasing accent, by dogged persistence in his trade, created something wonderful and rare. Along the way, he unintentionally earned a place beside Homer, Vergil and Dante as the one of the great poets of mankind.
The closest I personally have ever come to a mystical experience was when, as very earnest and guileless twenty-two year old, I first knelt alone and in silence at the chancel of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-Upon-Avon. I remember feeling subsumed in an almost dissociative reaction to the overwhelming humanity and dignity of this eternal place. It was so simple, so pure, so unassuming. In short, it was so very human, a timeless reminder of everything awesome and miraculous about just being human.
That, in the end, is the essence of Shakespeare's greatness. He spent his entire life trying to become an English gentleman. Quite by accident, he became one of the immortal voices of mankind. That is a magic you cannot learn at Oxford.
May 1, 2023
Beautifully written and documented having seen the biopic and studied his work I was interested to read this book RIP to one of the greats
September 25, 2016
Hands down, one of the best biographies I've ever read. So engaging and enthralling; I learnt SO much and couldn't put it down. Definitely recommend for fans of The Bard & his works.
March 23, 2011
You'd think by now there'd be nothing new to say on Shakespeare, no more interesting insights to make, no way to take what little we know of him and make it justify yet another biography - and yet this book succeeds marvellously. Peter Ackroyd is a wonderful biographer - his biography of London is a triumph - and he always manages to make his material come alive, which to be fair is not hard when you're dealing with the words of Master Shakespeare.
I think I've yet to read a bad biography of Shakespeare - and there's a reason for that. Any biography of Shakespeare is as much as biography of the plays as it is the man himself, and with such material to work with how can you go wrong? It's partly why I've...to say I've not been interested is the wrong word, because if it's Shakespeare of course I'm interested...let's say I've been somewhat aloof from the arguments that continue to rage about whether Shakespeare really wrote Shakespeare. As the man himself said, 'the play's the thing'. Someone wrote these plays and we might as well call that someone Shakespeare for lack of anything else.
Because material on Shakespeare himself is so scarce, so much of this biography is populated with information about the era, the politics, the fashions, the fads, the personalities at Court and in the streets, Shakespeare's friends and his rivals, and all of that is just as interesting as Shakespeare, perhaps if I dare say even more so. Perhaps the reason there is so little information on Shakespeare is because Shakespeare was not all that interesting as a person? After all, we assume that geniuses must be towering figures, but perhaps he was just a small ordinary man with an extraordinary gift. We should treasure the fact we have the pleasure of that gift and not bemoan the lack of the man himself.
I think I've yet to read a bad biography of Shakespeare - and there's a reason for that. Any biography of Shakespeare is as much as biography of the plays as it is the man himself, and with such material to work with how can you go wrong? It's partly why I've...to say I've not been interested is the wrong word, because if it's Shakespeare of course I'm interested...let's say I've been somewhat aloof from the arguments that continue to rage about whether Shakespeare really wrote Shakespeare. As the man himself said, 'the play's the thing'. Someone wrote these plays and we might as well call that someone Shakespeare for lack of anything else.
Because material on Shakespeare himself is so scarce, so much of this biography is populated with information about the era, the politics, the fashions, the fads, the personalities at Court and in the streets, Shakespeare's friends and his rivals, and all of that is just as interesting as Shakespeare, perhaps if I dare say even more so. Perhaps the reason there is so little information on Shakespeare is because Shakespeare was not all that interesting as a person? After all, we assume that geniuses must be towering figures, but perhaps he was just a small ordinary man with an extraordinary gift. We should treasure the fact we have the pleasure of that gift and not bemoan the lack of the man himself.
December 17, 2015
Consegui unir muitas "pontas soltas" sobre Shakespeare mas, ainda assim, sob muitos aspectos continua a ser invisível... Quase parece uma criação de um dramaturgo Isabelino. Uma personagem.
August 4, 2008
The definite article in the title seems a little hubristic. I don't know if this is the definitive biography of Shakespeare — haven't read any of the hundreds of others — but I certainly enjoyed it.
I don't know if I completely trust Ackroyd as a historian; it's probably unfair, but I just get a nagging sense sometimes that he's a bit too fond of a good story. He has clearly done a ton of research, though, and as you'd expect he's very good at providing historical context. And he writes well.
There's a perception, perhaps, that we have very little historical record of Shakespeare other than the plays themselves, so if anything I was surprised by how much material there was: legal stuff, references to him in other people's writing and so on. Certainly there's enough to build up a broad-brush picture of his life. What there isn't is much that is truly personal: no letters back and forth between London and Stratford, no learned essays on theatrical technique, no gossipy personal journal.
So instead of the common pattern of literary biographies, where the biographer tries to use the details of the life to shed light on the work, here it's more often the other way round: trying to mine the plays and poems for details that might tell us something about his life. It's all hints and scraps, and any conclusions are tentative and contingent, but it's all quite interesting even so.
In the end, I think Shakespeare remains elusive: but then, if we knew every moment of his life, I suspect it would only serve to emphasise the fundamental mysteriousness of genius. What biographical detail could possibly be adequate as an explanation?
I don't know if I completely trust Ackroyd as a historian; it's probably unfair, but I just get a nagging sense sometimes that he's a bit too fond of a good story. He has clearly done a ton of research, though, and as you'd expect he's very good at providing historical context. And he writes well.
There's a perception, perhaps, that we have very little historical record of Shakespeare other than the plays themselves, so if anything I was surprised by how much material there was: legal stuff, references to him in other people's writing and so on. Certainly there's enough to build up a broad-brush picture of his life. What there isn't is much that is truly personal: no letters back and forth between London and Stratford, no learned essays on theatrical technique, no gossipy personal journal.
So instead of the common pattern of literary biographies, where the biographer tries to use the details of the life to shed light on the work, here it's more often the other way round: trying to mine the plays and poems for details that might tell us something about his life. It's all hints and scraps, and any conclusions are tentative and contingent, but it's all quite interesting even so.
In the end, I think Shakespeare remains elusive: but then, if we knew every moment of his life, I suspect it would only serve to emphasise the fundamental mysteriousness of genius. What biographical detail could possibly be adequate as an explanation?
February 6, 2012
I find the writings of Peter Ackroyd to be veritable delights. I have read 'London-The Biography' as well as 'Thames:Sacred River' and this author simply oozes with a profound knowledge of 'the smoke', it's environs and it's populace. Although these books are quite hefty volumes, his writing is extremely erudite and set out in short chapters that make his tomes hard to put down.
'Shakespeare-The Biography' takes bardolatry up to a whole new level. In view of the fact that personal records of Will o' the wisp are like gold dust and that even the dramatists works provoke debates regarding authenticity, any biography at all seems beyond reach, or as Ackroyd so eloquently puts it, 'lost in the voracious maw of time and forgetfulness'.
Yet, such is the unique expertise of Ackroyd's grasp of Elizabethan London, coupled with a professorial perception of the Shakespearian canon, the mists of four hundred years are lifted to produce a portrait of fantastic clarity.
Certainly this work on the Bard of Avon has been produced by some imaginative reading between the lines, with many anomalous or intuitive perceptions that side step the ambiguous and scant records. None the less, I was transported back in time in a Wellsian machine, and any thoughts of disputed authorship with Kyd, Marlowe, Wriothesley, deVere etc., can be discounted.
'Shakespeare-The Biography' takes bardolatry up to a whole new level. In view of the fact that personal records of Will o' the wisp are like gold dust and that even the dramatists works provoke debates regarding authenticity, any biography at all seems beyond reach, or as Ackroyd so eloquently puts it, 'lost in the voracious maw of time and forgetfulness'.
Yet, such is the unique expertise of Ackroyd's grasp of Elizabethan London, coupled with a professorial perception of the Shakespearian canon, the mists of four hundred years are lifted to produce a portrait of fantastic clarity.
Certainly this work on the Bard of Avon has been produced by some imaginative reading between the lines, with many anomalous or intuitive perceptions that side step the ambiguous and scant records. None the less, I was transported back in time in a Wellsian machine, and any thoughts of disputed authorship with Kyd, Marlowe, Wriothesley, deVere etc., can be discounted.
April 4, 2022
მთელი სამყარო თეატრია, შექსპირი კი - მსახიობი, რომელმაც გადასარევად შეასრულა დრამატურგის როლი სცენაზე... იმდენად დიდებულად, რომ მისი პიესები საუკუნეების შემდეგაც კი არ დაკარგულა და ახლა უკვე მის ბუნდოვან, თუმცა კი ძალიან საინტერესო ეპოქაში განვლილ ძალიან საინტერესო ცხოვრებაზე იწერება წიგნები.
November 17, 2020
شكسبير ( السيرة الذاتية ) ..
بيتر ألكرويد ..
بريطانيا ..
ولد شكسبير عام ١٥٦٤ .. في عهد الملكة إليزابيث الأولى .. ولد في مدينة ستراتفورد ألون آفون في مقاطعة وارويكشير .. ولاسم شكسبير عشرين هجاءً مختلفاً كما بينته وثائق ستراتفود .. جده مزارع غني .. أما والده فقد شغل في صناعة القفازات وبيعها .. كذلك عمل في تجارة الصوف .. والمضاربة بالعقارات .. وقد تقلد المناصب الحكومية وارتقى فيها حتى انتخب عمدة ستراتفورد .. أما والدته فهي ماري آردان ..تنحدر من عائلة مزارعين عريقة .. عمل في شبابة معلماً ثم كاتباً في مكتب محاماة .. تزوج من ابنة مزارع من الأسر العريقة .. هي آن هاثاوي تكبره سناً .. حيث كان في الثامنة عشر وهي تبلغ السادسة والعشرون .. ورزق منها بثلاثة أطفال .. وبعد أن انتقل إلى لندن اتجه شكسبير للشعر والتمثيل ..
اتهم معاصريه شكسبير بسرقة أعمال أدبية .. إلا إن شكسبير وفي بداية كتاباته اقتبس من الكاتب المسرحي مارلو .. لشدة تأثره به .. كان متحمساً للدين القديم الكاثوليكي .. وهو يعد جريمة عقابه الموت في دولة تدين بالبروتستانية ..
اشترك شكسبير في فرقة اللورد سترانج ثم اللورد بمبورك .. ثم لفترة وجيزة انتقل إلى رجال ساسكس .. وأخيراً انضم إلى فرقة اللورد شامبرلين .. مسرحياته أضاف لها مقاطع .. فالإصدار الأول يختلف عن الإصدار الثاني .. فمسرحياته تتغير تطول وتقصر بعد تنفيذ المسرحية .. حتى ينتقل إلى مشروع آخر ..
تقول بعض المصادر أن شكسبير كان يزور عائلته في ستراتفورد في السنة مرة واحدة .. فقد ابنه ووريثه الوحيد عن عمر الحادية عشر ..
بجانب مسرحياته .. كتب شكسبير أشعاراً أو ما يطلق عليه سوناتات .. جمعها ونشرها في كتاب عام ١٦٠٩ .. كثرت في سوناتات شكسبير التلميحات الجنسية .. كان من أكثر المسرحيين الإليزابيثيين عهراً .. هناك أكثر من ١٣٠٠ تلميح جنسي في مسرحياته .. فضلاً عن الاستخدام المتكرر للألفاظ الجنسية العامية .. حيث أنه عاش في عصر ينتشر فيه النشاط الجنسي .. يعتبر شكسبير أول كاتب مسرحي يدخل الأغنية والموسيقى في الدراما .. وفي نهاية حياته استبدلت مسارح الهواء الطلق بالمسارح الداخلية ..
أنشأ شكسبير مع غيره من نفس الوسط مسرح الغلوب .. فقد كان ما قبل الغلوب يعمل لدى شركات يكون فيها الكاتب والممثل .. تقول المصادر أن شكسبير يعتبر من الأثرياء ..
بع�� انتهاء العهد الإليزابيثي وموت الملكة إليزابيث .. تولى الحكم جيمس الأول الذي اهتم بالمسرح .. حيث صار شكسبير أحد المقربين من القصر الملكي ..
استأجر شكسبير وشركاؤه مسرح بلاكفيار لمدة خمسة عشر سنة بجانب الغلوب .. لم يكن شكسبير الكاتب الوحيد .. ولكنه تعاون مع كتاب مسرحيين آخرين وخاصة لعرضها في مسرح بلاكفيار ..
في عام ١٦١٠ ميلادي عاد شكسبير إلى موطنه ستراتفورد حيث أنه لم يعد ممثلاً .. فقط كاتباً ومالكا ..
تعتبر مسرحيته العاصفة هي المسرحية الأخيرة التي كتبها بنفسه .. فهو له مسرحيات بمشاركة أدباء آخرين .. يذكر أن كاتبنا تقاعد عن عمله ككاتب قبل وفاته بعدة سنوات .. حيث قضى آخر حياته في مسقط رأسه وبين أملاكه التي اشتراها ووسعها خلال حياته .. وذلك بعد احتراق مسرح الغلوب في عام ١٦١٣ .. حيث باع نصيبه في الغلوب وحصته في البلاكفريار .. ربما هذا أدى به إلى تقاعده عن الكتابه .. ترك جل ثروته لابنته المفضلة سوسانا وزوجها الطبيب المقرب جداً منه .. ابنه هامنت توفي في حياته وابنته جويديث أخذت قسطاً يسيراً من الورث ..
وأعطى من ورثه لأصدقائه المقربين وأهله ولإنقاذ الفقراء أورثهم مبلغ عشرة جنهيات ..
بقي أن نقول أن شكسبير توفي مريضاً عام ١٦١٦ عن عمر ناهز الثالثة والخمسين .. يذكر أن سبب وفاته هو حمى التيفوئيد .. ظهر الكتاب الأول لمسرحياته عن طريق صديقيه بعد تسع سنوات من وفاته .. حيث ضم الكتاب ستاً وثلاثين مسرحية مع استبعاد للمشاريع التعاونية ..
………………
الكتاب لا أصنفه كسيرة ذاتية لشكسبير .. بل هو بحث لإعادة تكويت حياة شكسبير التي غابت عن جمهوره وقراؤه .. أجزاء متناثرة جمعت من معاصريه وبعض الوثائق المتبقية في بلدية منشأه ..
وحاول الكاتب فيها معرفة وتكهن حياة شكسبير من خلال مسرحياته .. وربط مسرحياته بقصة حياته ..
عني كقارئة أحببت الكتاب واستمتعت به .. وأعادني الكتاب لقراءة بعضاً من مسرحياته ..
شكراً بيتر ألكرويد .. شكراً شكسبير ..
………………
ودمتم بحفظ الرحمن ..
بيتر ألكرويد ..
بريطانيا ..
ولد شكسبير عام ١٥٦٤ .. في عهد الملكة إليزابيث الأولى .. ولد في مدينة ستراتفورد ألون آفون في مقاطعة وارويكشير .. ولاسم شكسبير عشرين هجاءً مختلفاً كما بينته وثائق ستراتفود .. جده مزارع غني .. أما والده فقد شغل في صناعة القفازات وبيعها .. كذلك عمل في تجارة الصوف .. والمضاربة بالعقارات .. وقد تقلد المناصب الحكومية وارتقى فيها حتى انتخب عمدة ستراتفورد .. أما والدته فهي ماري آردان ..تنحدر من عائلة مزارعين عريقة .. عمل في شبابة معلماً ثم كاتباً في مكتب محاماة .. تزوج من ابنة مزارع من الأسر العريقة .. هي آن هاثاوي تكبره سناً .. حيث كان في الثامنة عشر وهي تبلغ السادسة والعشرون .. ورزق منها بثلاثة أطفال .. وبعد أن انتقل إلى لندن اتجه شكسبير للشعر والتمثيل ..
اتهم معاصريه شكسبير بسرقة أعمال أدبية .. إلا إن شكسبير وفي بداية كتاباته اقتبس من الكاتب المسرحي مارلو .. لشدة تأثره به .. كان متحمساً للدين القديم الكاثوليكي .. وهو يعد جريمة عقابه الموت في دولة تدين بالبروتستانية ..
اشترك شكسبير في فرقة اللورد سترانج ثم اللورد بمبورك .. ثم لفترة وجيزة انتقل إلى رجال ساسكس .. وأخيراً انضم إلى فرقة اللورد شامبرلين .. مسرحياته أضاف لها مقاطع .. فالإصدار الأول يختلف عن الإصدار الثاني .. فمسرحياته تتغير تطول وتقصر بعد تنفيذ المسرحية .. حتى ينتقل إلى مشروع آخر ..
تقول بعض المصادر أن شكسبير كان يزور عائلته في ستراتفورد في السنة مرة واحدة .. فقد ابنه ووريثه الوحيد عن عمر الحادية عشر ..
بجانب مسرحياته .. كتب شكسبير أشعاراً أو ما يطلق عليه سوناتات .. جمعها ونشرها في كتاب عام ١٦٠٩ .. كثرت في سوناتات شكسبير التلميحات الجنسية .. كان من أكثر المسرحيين الإليزابيثيين عهراً .. هناك أكثر من ١٣٠٠ تلميح جنسي في مسرحياته .. فضلاً عن الاستخدام المتكرر للألفاظ الجنسية العامية .. حيث أنه عاش في عصر ينتشر فيه النشاط الجنسي .. يعتبر شكسبير أول كاتب مسرحي يدخل الأغنية والموسيقى في الدراما .. وفي نهاية حياته استبدلت مسارح الهواء الطلق بالمسارح الداخلية ..
أنشأ شكسبير مع غيره من نفس الوسط مسرح الغلوب .. فقد كان ما قبل الغلوب يعمل لدى شركات يكون فيها الكاتب والممثل .. تقول المصادر أن شكسبير يعتبر من الأثرياء ..
بع�� انتهاء العهد الإليزابيثي وموت الملكة إليزابيث .. تولى الحكم جيمس الأول الذي اهتم بالمسرح .. حيث صار شكسبير أحد المقربين من القصر الملكي ..
استأجر شكسبير وشركاؤه مسرح بلاكفيار لمدة خمسة عشر سنة بجانب الغلوب .. لم يكن شكسبير الكاتب الوحيد .. ولكنه تعاون مع كتاب مسرحيين آخرين وخاصة لعرضها في مسرح بلاكفيار ..
في عام ١٦١٠ ميلادي عاد شكسبير إلى موطنه ستراتفورد حيث أنه لم يعد ممثلاً .. فقط كاتباً ومالكا ..
تعتبر مسرحيته العاصفة هي المسرحية الأخيرة التي كتبها بنفسه .. فهو له مسرحيات بمشاركة أدباء آخرين .. يذكر أن كاتبنا تقاعد عن عمله ككاتب قبل وفاته بعدة سنوات .. حيث قضى آخر حياته في مسقط رأسه وبين أملاكه التي اشتراها ووسعها خلال حياته .. وذلك بعد احتراق مسرح الغلوب في عام ١٦١٣ .. حيث باع نصيبه في الغلوب وحصته في البلاكفريار .. ربما هذا أدى به إلى تقاعده عن الكتابه .. ترك جل ثروته لابنته المفضلة سوسانا وزوجها الطبيب المقرب جداً منه .. ابنه هامنت توفي في حياته وابنته جويديث أخذت قسطاً يسيراً من الورث ..
وأعطى من ورثه لأصدقائه المقربين وأهله ولإنقاذ الفقراء أورثهم مبلغ عشرة جنهيات ..
بقي أن نقول أن شكسبير توفي مريضاً عام ١٦١٦ عن عمر ناهز الثالثة والخمسين .. يذكر أن سبب وفاته هو حمى التيفوئيد .. ظهر الكتاب الأول لمسرحياته عن طريق صديقيه بعد تسع سنوات من وفاته .. حيث ضم الكتاب ستاً وثلاثين مسرحية مع استبعاد للمشاريع التعاونية ..
………………
الكتاب لا أصنفه كسيرة ذاتية لشكسبير .. بل هو بحث لإعادة تكويت حياة شكسبير التي غابت عن جمهوره وقراؤه .. أجزاء متناثرة جمعت من معاصريه وبعض الوثائق المتبقية في بلدية منشأه ..
وحاول الكاتب فيها معرفة وتكهن حياة شكسبير من خلال مسرحياته .. وربط مسرحياته بقصة حياته ..
عني كقارئة أحببت الكتاب واستمتعت به .. وأعادني الكتاب لقراءة بعضاً من مسرحياته ..
شكراً بيتر ألكرويد .. شكراً شكسبير ..
………………
ودمتم بحفظ الرحمن ..
December 31, 2019
Подробно, добротно, но не слишком увлекательно.
March 10, 2018
Peter Ackroyd is a wordy writer. He's the same way as a biographer, as well. But he does a lot of research and provided a very detailed telling of the life of Shakespeare, or at least, as much as is known. It's a bit dry at times, and there's a lot of speculation, but then, there's a lot we don't know about Shakespeare's actual life.
There are some really interesting facts along the way, like a young woman in his town who fell into a river and drowned... unless it was suicide... and her family name was Hamlet. There is also a lot of detail about the events happening around Shakespeare put into historical perspective, like the persecution of Catholics at the time, or recurring outbreaks of plague forcing theaters to close.
Recommended to big fans of Shakespeare or history of that time.
There are some really interesting facts along the way, like a young woman in his town who fell into a river and drowned... unless it was suicide... and her family name was Hamlet. There is also a lot of detail about the events happening around Shakespeare put into historical perspective, like the persecution of Catholics at the time, or recurring outbreaks of plague forcing theaters to close.
Recommended to big fans of Shakespeare or history of that time.
April 19, 2024
..Šekspīrs bija mana pirmā īstā aizraušanās literatūras lauciņā. un tikai tāpēc, ka iedomājos, ka meitenei, kas man patika, patīk Šekspīrs, kaut tā bija tikai literatūras klade. bet es aizrāvos tā, ka vienu Kopoto rakstu sējumu pat pirku no drauga (par 50 santīmiem). vēlāk viņa ome atdeva man visus pārējos. aizrāvos ļoti un jau sen šo gribēju izlasīt. ļoooti plašs skats uz visu autora dzīvi.
August 10, 2019
Sarebbe erroneo identificare questa opera solo come una biografia di Shakespeare, ma è molto di più. Lo scrittore racconta la vita di Shakespeare, ma lo fa in un modo talmente atipico che il lettore si sente parte di ciò che legge e vive.
Ackroyd ci prende per mano portandoci, non solo nella vita di Shakespeare stesso, nella sua famiglia, ma è anche è un viaggio nella sua terra, nei luoghi in cui è nato e vissuto che lo hanno visto mettere i germogli per far sbocciare il suo talento.
Un viaggio nell'età Elisabettiana, nelle tragedie e commedie che ha scritto, nelle compagnie teatrali in cui ha recitato. Leggere questo libro è come percorrere ogni angolo, come assistere da spettatori alle varie rappresentazioni teatrali, innamorandosi ogni volta dei costumi e degli attori che recitano.
Un romanzo nel romanzo che permette di avvicinarsi, non solo a Shakespeare, ma anche al suo mondo di poesia, eleganza ed estrema classe, come i versi che ha regalato ai lettori.
Ackroyd ci prende per mano portandoci, non solo nella vita di Shakespeare stesso, nella sua famiglia, ma è anche è un viaggio nella sua terra, nei luoghi in cui è nato e vissuto che lo hanno visto mettere i germogli per far sbocciare il suo talento.
Un viaggio nell'età Elisabettiana, nelle tragedie e commedie che ha scritto, nelle compagnie teatrali in cui ha recitato. Leggere questo libro è come percorrere ogni angolo, come assistere da spettatori alle varie rappresentazioni teatrali, innamorandosi ogni volta dei costumi e degli attori che recitano.
Un romanzo nel romanzo che permette di avvicinarsi, non solo a Shakespeare, ma anche al suo mondo di poesia, eleganza ed estrema classe, come i versi che ha regalato ai lettori.
December 27, 2022
Вместо тысячи томов о Шекспире.
April 19, 2016
There is a lot that has been said about William Shakespeare. Everyone has an opinion on who he was, who he was not, what he wrote etc. The debate goes on, even after 400 years of his passing in 1616. Therein lies the true brilliance of literature – the compelling force to continue the conversation.
Goodreads is celebrating Shakespeare Week (August 18 – 23, 2016), which includes quizzes, book lists and an invitation to write a “deleted scene” from one of the Bard’s plays. Shakespeare would be pleased, no doubt.
I first met Shakespeare when I read Macbeth and confess that I had a partiality to the unfortunate Lady Macbeth.
“But screw your courage to the sticking place, and we’ll not fail.”
William Shakespeare, Macbeth
Then came The Taming of the Shrew (wasn’t Elizabeth Taylor magnificent):
“Sit by my side, and let the world slip: we shall ne’er be younger.”
William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
Followed thereafter by Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, Twelve Night, King Lear, Julius Caesar, and Henry V:
“We few. We happy few.
We band of brothers, for he today
That sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother.”
William Shakespeare, Henry V
Peter Ackroyd’s, Shakespeare, the Biography brought it all together for me. This is not an easy read, by any stretch of the imagination, but after all, he is writing about William Shakespeare. My husband, my son and I listened to the audio-book version while driving in the car, which allowed us to integrate knowledge incrementally. We were taken back to the sixteen century and imagined that we were part of the audience. Even more exciting, we followed William from his childhood to his final night, when he met with friends for the last celebration before the curtain closed on a life well-lived.
This last quote is one that I embrace as I move forward in my timeline…
“With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.”
William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice
https://ontheroadbookclub.com/2016/04...
Goodreads is celebrating Shakespeare Week (August 18 – 23, 2016), which includes quizzes, book lists and an invitation to write a “deleted scene” from one of the Bard’s plays. Shakespeare would be pleased, no doubt.
I first met Shakespeare when I read Macbeth and confess that I had a partiality to the unfortunate Lady Macbeth.
“But screw your courage to the sticking place, and we’ll not fail.”
William Shakespeare, Macbeth
Then came The Taming of the Shrew (wasn’t Elizabeth Taylor magnificent):
“Sit by my side, and let the world slip: we shall ne’er be younger.”
William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew
Followed thereafter by Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet, Twelve Night, King Lear, Julius Caesar, and Henry V:
“We few. We happy few.
We band of brothers, for he today
That sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother.”
William Shakespeare, Henry V
Peter Ackroyd’s, Shakespeare, the Biography brought it all together for me. This is not an easy read, by any stretch of the imagination, but after all, he is writing about William Shakespeare. My husband, my son and I listened to the audio-book version while driving in the car, which allowed us to integrate knowledge incrementally. We were taken back to the sixteen century and imagined that we were part of the audience. Even more exciting, we followed William from his childhood to his final night, when he met with friends for the last celebration before the curtain closed on a life well-lived.
This last quote is one that I embrace as I move forward in my timeline…
“With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.”
William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice
https://ontheroadbookclub.com/2016/04...
May 22, 2012
I am so sick of reading "biographies" that are basically glorified fiction. The amount of factual information that scholars know about Shakespeare from Statford on Avon could fit into this review box! The other 588 pages of this '"biography" is filler: guesses, conjectures and basic bs.
The author himself says that many biographers will assume Shakespeare was a sailor because he uses so many technical sailing terms in his works, but the author decides instead that Shakespeare came from a farming background, based on his use of so many technical farming terms in his works. Seriously? You use the same basic litmus test to decide he's a farmer that you used to bash anyone who thought he was a sailor? That's when I gave up.
Forget that the author doesn't even stop to mention that the Shakespeare he's biographing up to this point, the Shakespeare from Stratford on Avon, may not even be the same guy that wrote all the plays and poems. He doesn't mention that there are all of five actual examples of this Shakespeare's handwriting and that ~none~ of them match the handwriting we have of bard's plays or poems or various other works.
This is just lazy fiction disguised as fact.
The author himself says that many biographers will assume Shakespeare was a sailor because he uses so many technical sailing terms in his works, but the author decides instead that Shakespeare came from a farming background, based on his use of so many technical farming terms in his works. Seriously? You use the same basic litmus test to decide he's a farmer that you used to bash anyone who thought he was a sailor? That's when I gave up.
Forget that the author doesn't even stop to mention that the Shakespeare he's biographing up to this point, the Shakespeare from Stratford on Avon, may not even be the same guy that wrote all the plays and poems. He doesn't mention that there are all of five actual examples of this Shakespeare's handwriting and that ~none~ of them match the handwriting we have of bard's plays or poems or various other works.
This is just lazy fiction disguised as fact.
August 1, 2018
This just feels like the definitive book on Shakespeare.
Ackroyd moves chronologically through Shakespeare's life, from birth to death, breaking the book into short chapters (which make reading easier), and tying together what is known about Shakespeare from his plays and from the world beyond the stage. It's a fascinating book, which immerses the reader in Shakespeare's world, although it might be worth noting that this biography is probably best enjoyed by a reader with a reasonable knowledge of Shakespeare's plays.
Ackroyd moves chronologically through Shakespeare's life, from birth to death, breaking the book into short chapters (which make reading easier), and tying together what is known about Shakespeare from his plays and from the world beyond the stage. It's a fascinating book, which immerses the reader in Shakespeare's world, although it might be worth noting that this biography is probably best enjoyed by a reader with a reasonable knowledge of Shakespeare's plays.
January 23, 2020
Exceptional biography, taking what we know for sure about Shakespeare and his times, and distilling it in a compelling narrative. It was an education for me, because I didn't know there were as many concrete facts that know about his real life. Just the kind of work you would expect from Ackroyd.
September 29, 2024
such fun
November 7, 2022
ma anche dieci stelle ti dò, mio caro ackroyd, per il viaggiatore meraviglioso che mi hai fatto fare nel tempo, nello spazio e nella letteratura 😍
July 10, 2017
It is O'dark thirty in the morning and I have just finished this Marvelous Book. You'll note I used capitals which I did on purpose because this book is something very special. It is hard to find non-fiction which reads lyrically like poetry. Some very fine authors, most of them British, do manage this feat and Peter Ackroyd has done it here. Perhaps he was inspired by his great subject matter.
For a brief disclaimer I'll admit up front that I worship every syllable Shakespeare ever wrote. I have been privileged in the past to enact some of his plays and there is no magic quite like that. When the lines begin to flow, I'll swear you can SEE the energy flowing from stage to audience and back. It's SSOOOOO good!
Some of that energy seems to have osmosed into Ackroyd's high-spirited bio. He deals evocatively with Shakespeare's youth, of his apparent love of nature and the countryside, of the possible ways he spent the so-called lost years, of his family etc, etc. He deftly presents issues that have been debated for hundreds of years, such as was Shakespeare a crypto-Catholic? Did he have marital troubles? How did he think and feel about his writings? Which plays were written when? Ackroyd addresses them all with style and gusto. I'm so impressed with amount of research he had to have done to write this; his bibliography is eleven pages long. Whoo dogies! That's a lot of reading! Along the way somewhere he seems to have absorbed ton of data about the Elizabethan world in much the way Shakespeare himself seems to have done. There are juicy bits about legal matters, courts, deeds, fines and the training of lawyers. There is herb-craft and other medicine, music and dance, daily manners and courtly behavior, and a funny bit with a dog. (OK, I stole that last bit, but so did Shakespeare and Jonson and Marlowe and Kyd!) And did you know that at one time Will lodged at the corner of Silver and Muggle streets? Ya gotta love it! Coming in at a hefty 518 pages, there's a lot to love here.
This wonderful bio will appeal to those who love Tudor and Stuart England as well as to lovers of the Bard and literature in general.
For a brief disclaimer I'll admit up front that I worship every syllable Shakespeare ever wrote. I have been privileged in the past to enact some of his plays and there is no magic quite like that. When the lines begin to flow, I'll swear you can SEE the energy flowing from stage to audience and back. It's SSOOOOO good!
Some of that energy seems to have osmosed into Ackroyd's high-spirited bio. He deals evocatively with Shakespeare's youth, of his apparent love of nature and the countryside, of the possible ways he spent the so-called lost years, of his family etc, etc. He deftly presents issues that have been debated for hundreds of years, such as was Shakespeare a crypto-Catholic? Did he have marital troubles? How did he think and feel about his writings? Which plays were written when? Ackroyd addresses them all with style and gusto. I'm so impressed with amount of research he had to have done to write this; his bibliography is eleven pages long. Whoo dogies! That's a lot of reading! Along the way somewhere he seems to have absorbed ton of data about the Elizabethan world in much the way Shakespeare himself seems to have done. There are juicy bits about legal matters, courts, deeds, fines and the training of lawyers. There is herb-craft and other medicine, music and dance, daily manners and courtly behavior, and a funny bit with a dog. (OK, I stole that last bit, but so did Shakespeare and Jonson and Marlowe and Kyd!) And did you know that at one time Will lodged at the corner of Silver and Muggle streets? Ya gotta love it! Coming in at a hefty 518 pages, there's a lot to love here.
This wonderful bio will appeal to those who love Tudor and Stuart England as well as to lovers of the Bard and literature in general.
June 3, 2018
It's not too bold to suggest that the man or woman who approaches writing the biography of William Shakespeare begins with a target on their head. Shakespeare IS the Western Canon of literature, and the vagaries of records that do exist about this individual who has shaped the world so dramatically makes attempts at biography seem like a fool's melody. And yet Peter Ackroyd accomplishes something incredible for, by the end of this book, I felt as if I knew at least something of the nature and essence of the man who has come to mean so much to me.
This is not to say that Ackroyd completely succeeds. One of the 5 Rules of the biography as a genre Christopher Hitchens wrote so beautifully is that:
4) That the private person be allowed to appear in all his idiosyncrasy, and not as a mere reflection of the correspondence or reminiscences of others, or as a subjective projection of the mind of the biographer.
Ackroyd does succeed much in this endeavor, but I believe the reader should offer the man some forgiveness. Shakespeare is an enigma largely because there are so few records of the man, and those that are are few and far between. Still despite this absence of material Ackroyd manages to make Shakespeare into a human being with dreams and aspirations, and a figure who achieved a great body of work.
Ackroyd's biography is, above all else, an approachable volume that makes Shakespeare feel like something that is not only relevant, but easy and open to all. Reading this biography I felt inspired to read more about the man and his world, and I suppose it didn't;'t help that most of the chapters in this time were at most, six or seven pages long. The reader who has no interest in Shakespeare, or perhaps at least a small revulsion of this work, will find in this wonderful book an ease of step and by the end they will find they have learned so much.
Ackroyd had performed a service to Shakespeare studies, but to readers everywhere by making one of the most difficult and mysterious subjects something easily acceptable. Shakespeare lives on, and those of us who choose to read about his life and work are better for having a biography like this on our shelves.
This is not to say that Ackroyd completely succeeds. One of the 5 Rules of the biography as a genre Christopher Hitchens wrote so beautifully is that:
4) That the private person be allowed to appear in all his idiosyncrasy, and not as a mere reflection of the correspondence or reminiscences of others, or as a subjective projection of the mind of the biographer.
Ackroyd does succeed much in this endeavor, but I believe the reader should offer the man some forgiveness. Shakespeare is an enigma largely because there are so few records of the man, and those that are are few and far between. Still despite this absence of material Ackroyd manages to make Shakespeare into a human being with dreams and aspirations, and a figure who achieved a great body of work.
Ackroyd's biography is, above all else, an approachable volume that makes Shakespeare feel like something that is not only relevant, but easy and open to all. Reading this biography I felt inspired to read more about the man and his world, and I suppose it didn't;'t help that most of the chapters in this time were at most, six or seven pages long. The reader who has no interest in Shakespeare, or perhaps at least a small revulsion of this work, will find in this wonderful book an ease of step and by the end they will find they have learned so much.
Ackroyd had performed a service to Shakespeare studies, but to readers everywhere by making one of the most difficult and mysterious subjects something easily acceptable. Shakespeare lives on, and those of us who choose to read about his life and work are better for having a biography like this on our shelves.
November 13, 2010
Emerson said, according to Peter Ackroyd, that "Shakspeare is the only biographer of Shaksepeare." Ackroyd himself said this about Shakespeare:
He is one of those rare cases of a writer whose work is singularly important and influential, yet whose personality was not considered to be of any interest at all. He is obscure and elusive precisely to the extent that nobody bothered to write about him."
Throughout Ackroyd's biography, however, runs the theme of Shakespeare's intensely private nature. Unlike other playwrights and poets of his day, Shakespeare left behind no other writings beyond his sonnets, his plays, and a few legal documents. When I read the above quote in the biography, I couldn't help think about my own situation as a novelist promoting my book through social media. How would Shakespeare fare in the current climate of Twitter/Facebook/blogging? He was by all accounts a charming and pragmatic man -- as well as driven and ambitious -- so I believe that he'd manage to use all the current tools to promote himself. But I very much doubt we'd know any more about him, no matter how obsessive his readers would be.
Writing in short segments, Ackroyd slowly layers up the known facts about Shakespeare's life and milieu like a painter dabbing oil onto a canvas. While there can never be more than a thin outline filled in with broad strokes and only a few details, nevertheless Ackroyd's instincts as a novelist and as an historian of London and the era in which Shakespeare lived create a reasonably interesting portrait of the man.
Readers looking for something definitive, a narrative, or a discussion of whether Shakespeare actually lived as opposed to being a persona adopted by any number of other Elizabethans should look elsewhere. Those looking for an intriguing look at the life of the greatest English writer who ever lived should read Ackroyd's biography.
He is one of those rare cases of a writer whose work is singularly important and influential, yet whose personality was not considered to be of any interest at all. He is obscure and elusive precisely to the extent that nobody bothered to write about him."
Throughout Ackroyd's biography, however, runs the theme of Shakespeare's intensely private nature. Unlike other playwrights and poets of his day, Shakespeare left behind no other writings beyond his sonnets, his plays, and a few legal documents. When I read the above quote in the biography, I couldn't help think about my own situation as a novelist promoting my book through social media. How would Shakespeare fare in the current climate of Twitter/Facebook/blogging? He was by all accounts a charming and pragmatic man -- as well as driven and ambitious -- so I believe that he'd manage to use all the current tools to promote himself. But I very much doubt we'd know any more about him, no matter how obsessive his readers would be.
Writing in short segments, Ackroyd slowly layers up the known facts about Shakespeare's life and milieu like a painter dabbing oil onto a canvas. While there can never be more than a thin outline filled in with broad strokes and only a few details, nevertheless Ackroyd's instincts as a novelist and as an historian of London and the era in which Shakespeare lived create a reasonably interesting portrait of the man.
Readers looking for something definitive, a narrative, or a discussion of whether Shakespeare actually lived as opposed to being a persona adopted by any number of other Elizabethans should look elsewhere. Those looking for an intriguing look at the life of the greatest English writer who ever lived should read Ackroyd's biography.
May 23, 2011
A fascinating, masterful, and detailed look into the life of the greatest figure in English literature. Any such biographical endeavor would be a daunting task, but Ackroyd handles it beautifully and, surprisingly, more than adeptly. Despite its length, taking the reader from the playwright's birth in Stratford-upon-Avon (even going backward and glancing into a brief history of his parents) to his childhood, and then his rich adulthood, it is a very satisfying read. Ackroyd very creatively takes a line here and there from Shakespeare's plays and applies it to a particular instance in the man's life; each play, in fact, gets its own bit of time in the limelight. I think, more important than anything else, Ackroyd recognized the RESPONSIBILITY that came with taking on a book of this magnitude and of this subject--and he doesn't let us down, doesn't disappoint by any means.
October 7, 2016
Reading through what other reviewers have said summarises what my own thoughts on this one. Worth reading for the background to Shakespeare and his life but as infuriating and grasping as most biographies of the bard when trying to pin down the details. Calling any book a biography of Shakespeare should be a violation of the Trades Description Act as there´s simply not much to know about him: scholars have even picked to bits the first so-called biographies written only a generation after he lived. Having said this, though, this book - and all the others - do provide colour and context and interesting information to anyone interested in Shakespeare, the times or the plays. As far as a good reading experience goes, this one is rather uneven. Felt a wee bit of a chore at times.
March 25, 2012
not bad...my one complaint would be there doesn't seem to be a lot of original work here...
ackroyd basically took all the bios that were written in the past decade or so and aggregated them into one volume...i read greenblatt's 'will in the world' a few years back and could readily pick out passages that were re-produced here almost verbatim...his photographs were also culled from other recent texts...not a big problem, but there it is...
if you haven't read any of the the other recent works then by all means pick this up...it's engaging and erudite...
Just read it again. I don't really know why.
I really like the cover.
ackroyd basically took all the bios that were written in the past decade or so and aggregated them into one volume...i read greenblatt's 'will in the world' a few years back and could readily pick out passages that were re-produced here almost verbatim...his photographs were also culled from other recent texts...not a big problem, but there it is...
if you haven't read any of the the other recent works then by all means pick this up...it's engaging and erudite...
Just read it again. I don't really know why.
I really like the cover.
December 20, 2007
Leaving aside the inherent pretentiousness of calling any work on Shakespeare "the" biography, this book does show painstaking research into not just Shakespeare's life, but his time, environs, social circles, etc. It does weave together to form a coherent narrative, and Ackroyd does sometimes offer up various interpretations of particular information, but equally often he simply asserts his theory as "likely." Despite being a Shakespeare fan, I wasn't very engaged by this.
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