1. Read the passage and answer the questions below. (2ms)
William Shakespeare is probably the most famous playwright in history. He was born on 23 April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon in England. He was one of eight brothers and sisters. His father, John Shakespeare, was a successful businessman. William went to school in Stratford and learnt Latin and Greek, but he didn’t go to university. At the age of fifteen he went straight to work in his father’s business. When he was eight, he met and fell in love with Anne Hathaway. She was eight years older than him. They got married in November 1582, and six months later their daughter Susanna was born. In 1585 they had twins, Hamnet and Judith. Little is known about the following seven years of his life. We only know that he moved to London, leaving Anne and the children in Stratford, and that by 1592 he was writing plays and working as an actor.
His plays were very popular and he made a lot of money. In 1597, he bought a big house in Stratford for his family, but he stayed in London for further 13 years. He continues to write and act and also bought a theater. In 1611, he finally retired and moved back to Stratford. In total, Shakespeare wrote 37 plays and 154 sonnets (fourteen-line poems). He died in Stratford on his birthday, on 23 April 1616, and was buried in the church where he had been christened 52 years earlier.
1. Apart from writing plays, what did Shakespeare also do? _____________________________________________
2. How many plays did Shakespeare write?
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3. Did he spend all his life in Stratford?
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4. When did he die?
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