WEBQUEST ON WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE A ; Biography Go to http://www.gradesaver.com/classicnotes/titles/ and click on the letter M. Then scroll down to Midsummer Night's Dream and click on William Shakespeare. Question 1 : Read paragraph 1 and 2 :
What can you say about WS ‘s social background ? Justify.
Q.2 ; § 3 and 4 : When was he born ? when did he die ? What kind of schooling did he receive ? Justify . Q. 3 ; § 5 and 6 : What do we learn about his family life ?
Q. 4 ; § 8 : who were Lord’s Chamberlain’s Men ? What was WS’s social position as a playwright and actor ? Justify.
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B ; Shakespearean Theater Scroll down and click on Midsummer Night’s Dream, then on 'view all of the study guide', then on ‘About Shakespearian Theater’. Q.5 ; § 1 : When did the first theatres appear in England ? What was the actors’ lot before that date ?
Where were most of Shakespeare’s plays performed for the first time ?
Q. 6 ; §2 and 3 : What do we learn about the theaters in WS’s time ? (shape, number of levels, audience,etc ) What was called the ‘groundlings’ ?
- When did performances take place ? Why were stage directions and lines so important ? Justify.
Q. 7 ; § 4 and 5 : Why are there so many different versions of the same plays ? Who wrote them ?
Q. 8 ; § 6 : Why did WS’s plays appeal to all levels of society ? what makes of WS a unique playwright who is still so popular today ? Now, for more information about ‘groundlings’, you may go to : http://shakespeare.about.com/cs/homeworkhelp/a/audience.htm C ; Globe theater Virtual Tour

Now go to : http://smartlab.uk.com/QTVRShakesGlobe/ Click on the first link : ‘globe theater virtual tour’ and follow the instructions under Panorama 3 down to ‘… searches over the screen’.
Welcome to Shakespeare’s world ! and now, enjoy the tour ! :) sources illustrations :
http://pics.tech4learning.com/