Nine Little-Known Facts About the Personal Life of William Shakespeare

These will probably change the way you think about him.

Sal
Lessons from History
7 min readAug 19, 2022

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William Shakespeare | Photo Credits: Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain)

William Shakespeare is generally regarded as the greatest dramatist who ever lived and the author who has had the most profound effect on the development of the English language throughout history. He was the originator of hundreds of terms and phrases that are still in use by native English speakers today.

The Bard of Avon” was an English playwright who came from a family of humble means during the Elizabethan era. He is credited with penning at least 37 plays, compiling a collection of sonnets, founding the illustrious Globe theater, and contributing to the evolution of the English language.

1. Humble Beginnings

It is highly possible that John and Mary Shakespeare were illiterate, as this was quite common for people of their social status in England during the Elizabethan age because reading and writing were considered to be beneath their station.

Some people have theorized that John should have been obliged to have a certain level of reading in order to fulfill his civic responsibilities; nonetheless, regardless of this, he always signed his name with a mark. On the other hand, William received his literacy and…

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Sal
Lessons from History

I am a History Educator and a Lifelong Learner with a Masters in Global History.