ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -William Shakespeare ( bapt. 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world’s pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England’s national poet and the “Bard of Avon” (or simply “the Bard").

Detailed explanation-2: -William Shakespeare: so called from his birthplace, Stratford-on-Avon.

Detailed explanation-3: -He is popularly called the Bard of Avon since he was born and raised in Stratford upon Avon, Warwickshire. Shakespeare’s birth date, however, is highly debatable as he is said to have been baptised on April 26, 1564, and born on April 23, which also coincides with his death date (as per the Julian calendar).

Detailed explanation-4: -Shakespeare was a prolific writer during the Elizabethan and Jacobean ages of British theatre (sometimes called the English Renaissance or the Early Modern Period). Shakespeare’s plays are perhaps his most enduring legacy, but they are not all he wrote. Shakespeare’s poems also remain popular to this day.

Detailed explanation-5: -William Shakespeare has been known as “The Bard” since the nineteenth century, but the word has a much older history, and, when it’s not capitalized, it simply means “lyric poet."