Name(s)
Literature Section
Julius Caesar/Shakespeare Webquest
Purpose: To acquaint ourselves with William Shakespeare, the Elizabethan era, and Julius Caesar.
Directions: You may work alone or with 1 other student – no groups of 3 or more. Do NOT google the
questions. I picked these specific sites, and I want the information from them. This webquest refers to several
sites posted at http://bareswiltheng3.weebly.com/julius-caesar-webquest.html. Go to this page, so that you
can click on several of the corresponding links and will not have to type each one’s address. Next, visit the
links that go with each set of questions. I double checked all links, and they are correct and working. If not,
you have typed in the URL incorrectly. Read carefully to answer the questions fully and correctly. Feel free to
read beyond the questions!
Part I: Shakespeare & the Globe SHAKESPEARE: Use this link: http://www.biography.com/people/williamshakespeare-9480323?page=2#theatrical-beginnings
1. William Shakespeare was born in what year?
2. What date do we recognize as his birthday?
3. Where was Shakespeare born?
4. Under Married Life: Whom did Shakespeare marry?
5. How many children did they have?
6. Under Married Life: What time period covers the Lost Years?
7. Why are they called the Lost Years?
8. Under Theatrical Beginnings find the name of the acting company Shakespeare was associated with in
the early days.
9. What day and year did Shakespeare die?
10. Why is this interesting?
11. How old was he when he died?
SHAKESPEARE: Use this link: http://www.life123.com/parenting/education/shakespeare/why-isshaekspeare-called-the-bard.shtml
12. What does the word BARD mean?
13. Why is Shakespeare known as "the Bard”?
SHAKESPEARE ON-LINE - http://www.shakespeare-online.com/biography/whystudyshakespeare.html
14. Why is Shakespeare considered “the greatest writer ever”? (Hint: There are 4 reasons.)
http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/juliuscaesar/juliuscaesarquotes.html
15. Out of the top 10 lines in Julius Caesar, which one do you like best? Write it out.
16. Why?
http://www.shakespeare-online.com/faq/playsfaq.html
17. How are Shakespeare’s works divided, and how are they classified?
18. Define tragedy as it relates to Shakespeare’s plays.
http://www.shakespeare-online.com/faq/shakepeareauthorship.html
19. What is the controversy with Shakespeare and his works?
GLOBE: Under the link, http://www.shakespeare-online.com/theatre/globe.html:
20. Where exactly was The Globe originally built?
21. What happened to the Globe theatre on July 29, 1613?
22. Go to: http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-globe-theater-burns-down. What happened as
a result?
23. Go to: http://www.william-shakespeare.info/william-shakespeare-globe-theatre.htm. How many
people did it seat?
24. Go to: http://www.bardstage.org/globe-theatre-flags.htm. Why did the Globe have flags? How were
they used? What did the various colors mean?
Part II: Theater Use this link: http://www.uni-koeln.de/phil-fak/englisch/shakespeare/ (Click on “Actors,
Acting & Audience” on the left-hand side of the page.)
25. How many women actors did the company usually feature?
26. Was Shakespeare an actor?
27. What term was often used to refer to actors?
28. How were the seats arranged for the audience?
29. How did one get a good seat?
30. What would the audience do if they did not like a performance?
Part III: The Gist on JC and Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar
ROMAN LIFE: Use info from the following sites:
http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/caesar.html and then http://www.livius.org/caacan/caesar/caesar00.html
31. Who was Julius Caesar, and when did he live?
32. What was his great victory?
33. A triumvirate is political power made up of three people. Caesar was part of one at a very crucial
turning point in the history of Rome. Who formed what is now known as the First Triumvirate with
Caesar? When was this? (See http://historylink101.com/2/Rome/roman-time-line.htm)
34. See http://www.infoplease.com/spot/ides1.html: What is “the Ides of March”?
35. Why do you suppose Caesar is warned to “Beware the Ides of March”?
SHAKESPEARE’S CAESAR: Search for the answers to questions on the following sites:
http://www.william-shakespeare.info/shakespeare-play-julius-caesar.htm
36. What is the setting?
37. What historical source(s) did Shakespeare draw from to write his play?
THE GLOBE THEATER-Click on the forward arrows that appear on the slides for additional information needed
to answer questions. Watch two video clips of the history and current view of The Globe as you answer the
questions on the handout.
http://www.english.cam.ac.uk/converse/movies/sound_globe.swf
38. What was the job of the door keeper to the theater?
39. What is difference between The Globe Theater Experience for most patrons and richer patrons?
40. List three forms bad behavior a patron could expect to experience upon visiting a playhouse like The
Globe. (hint : click on the forward arrow on the previous slide)
41. What was the punishment for pickpockets?
42. What was the most common signal that a play was about to begin, and how did this cause the demise
of the first Globe?
43. In Elizabethan English what restrictions were placed on clothing for citizens?
44. List three ways the audience could determine what the setting of the play was.
45. How does the lack of artificial lighting in the Globe affect when and how certain scenes in plays could
be performed?
46. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVmOric9nUo&feature=related (background history) What was
the only flaw of the design of The Globe?
47. What was one of the common mistakes people make about Shakespeare ownership of the Globe?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgnInT4x8kA&feature=related (current view of the new Globe)
48. What does it imply about the Elizabethan’s view of plays, as it was listed as part of the controversial
events that took place in Sussex?