Alfred Tennyson was born on August 6th, 1809, in Somersby, Lincolnshire, the fourth of twelve children. Most of Tennyson's early education was under the direction of his father, although he did spend four unhappy years at a nearby grammar school. He left home in 1827 to join his elder brothers at Trinity College, Cambridge, more to escape his father than a desire for serious academic work. At Trinity he was living for the first time among young men of his own age who knew little of his problems. He was delighted to make new friends; he was handsome, intelligent, humorous, a gifted impersonator and soon at the center of those interested in poetry and conversation. That same year, he and his brother Charles published Poems by Two Brothers. Although the poems in the book were of teenage quality, they attracted the attention of the "e;Apostles,"e; a select undergraduate literary club led by Arthur Hallam. The "e;Apostles"e; provided Tennyson with friendship and confidence. Hallam and Tennyson became the best of friends; they toured Europe together in 1830 and again in 1832. Hallam's sudden death in 1833 greatly affected the young poet. The long elegy In Memoriam and many of Tennyson's other poems are tributes to Hallam. In 1830, Tennyson published Poems, Chiefly Lyrical and in 1832 he published a second volume entitled simply Poems. Some reviewers condemned these books as "e;affected"e; and "e;obscure."e; Tennyson, stung by the reviews, would not publish another book for nine years. In 1836, he became engaged to Emily Sellwood. When he lost his inheritance on a failed investment in 1840, the engagement was cancelled. In 1842, however, Tennyson's Poems [in two volumes] was a tremendous critical and popular success. In 1850, with the publication of In Memoriam, Tennyson's reputation was pre-eminent. He was also selected as Poet Laureate in succession to Wordsworth and, to complete a wonderful year, he married Emily Sellwood. At the age of 41, Tennyson had established himself as the most popular poet of the Victorian era. The money from his poetry [at times exceeding 10,000 pounds per year] allowed him to purchase a home in the country and to write in relative seclusion. His appearance-a large and bearded man, he regularly wore a cloak and a broad brimmed hat-enhanced his notoriety. In 1859, Tennyson published the first poems of Idylls of the Kings, which sold more than 10,000 copies in a fortnight. In 1884, he accepted a peerage, becoming Alfred Lord Tennyson. On October 6th, 1892, an hour or so after midnight, surrounded by his family, he died at Aldworth. It is said that the moonlight was streaming through the window and Tennyson himself was holding open a volume of Shakespeare. He was buried in Westminster Abbey.

Henrik Ibsen (20th March, 1828 - 23rd May, 1906) is often referred to as the father of realism and ranked just below Shakespeare as Europe's greatest ever playwright especially as his plays are performed most frequently throughout the world after Shakespeare's. He was Norwegian and although set his plays in Norway, he wrote them in Danish and lived most of his professional life in Italy and Germany. His affect on the theatre is still evident today and shapes the distinction of plays being art as opposed to entertainment since he broke down all previous traditions and explored issues, developed characterisation, revealed uncomfortable truths, challenged assumptions and brokedown facades in ourselves as well as society. These factors are clearly demonstrated in the Pillars of Society, a contemporary drama set in a small Norwegian coastal town dominated by shipbuilder Karsten Bernick who is planning a railway to connect the town to the main line and a tract of land he has been secretly buying. His past comes crashing in on him by the return of his brother in law who had gone to America to take the blame for Bernick stealing family business money and having an affair with an actress and the return of the love of his life who he had rejected for his current wealthy wife. Ibsen skilfully builds on these characters to provide a gripping tragedy underlining the ways of the rich and corrupt and Ibsen's conclusions in this play were a cause of great controversy and much surprise.

Henrik Ibsen (20th March, 1828 - 23rd May, 1906) is often referred to as the father of realism and ranked just below Shakespeare as Europe's greatest ever playwright especially as his plays are performed most frequently throughout the world after Shakespeare's. Ibsen was Norwegian and although set his plays in Norway, he wrote them in Danish and lived most of his professional life in Italy and Germany. His affect on the theatre is still evident today and shapes the distinction of plays being art as opposed to entertainment since he broke down all previous traditions and explored issues, developed characterisation, revealed uncomfortable truths, challenged assumptions and brokedown facades in ourselves as well as society. These factors are clearly demonstrated in Enemy of the People, a story of a man, Dr Stockman, who shows great courage in doing the right thing in the face of extreme social pressure and intolerance. He has been involved in developing medicinal baths in his small coastal community in Norway which have proved a profitable and successful tourist attraction. However, he finds out that waste products are contaminating the water and resulting in serious illnesses for some of the tourists. He sends his detailed report to the authorities and finds that not only are they unwilling to take any action but the townspeople brand him a lunatic. He finds himself marginalised and realises that in matters of right and wrong, the individual is superior to the masses. He says: "e;A minority may be right; a majority is always wrong."e; This remarkable play is seen as Ibsen's denunciation of the masses and a scathing indictment on community and democracy. It is surprisingly relevant with our contemporary concerns of both the environment and whistleblowers and definitely worth a read.

Thomas Middleton was born in London in April 1580 and baptised on 18th April. Middleton was aged only five when his father died. His mother remarried but this unfortunately fell apart into a fifteen year legal dispute regarding the inheritance due Thomas and his younger sister. By the time he left Oxford, at the turn of the Century, Middleton had and published Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satirese which was denounced by the Archbishop of Canterbury and publicly burned. In the early years of the 17th century, Middleton wrote topical pamphlets. One - Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets was reprinted several times and the subject of a parliamentary inquiry. These early years writing plays continued to attract controversy. His writing partnership with Thomas Dekker brought him into conflict with Ben Jonson and George Chapman in the so-called War of the Theatres. His finest work with Dekker was undoubtedly The Roaring Girl, a biography of the notorious Mary Frith. In the 1610s, Middleton began another playwriting partnership, this time with the actor William Rowley, producing another slew of plays including Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel. The ever adaptable Middleton seemed at ease working with others or by himself. His solo writing credits include the comic masterpiece, A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, in 1613. In 1620 he was officially appointed as chronologer of the City of London, a post he held until his death. The 1620s saw the production of his and Rowley's tragedy, and continual favourite, The Changeling, and of several other tragicomedies. However in 1624, he reached a peak of notoriety when his dramatic allegory A Game at Chess was staged by the King's Men. Though Middleton's approach was strongly patriotic, the Privy Council silenced the play after only nine performances at the Globe theatre, having received a complaint from the Spanish ambassador. What happened next is a mystery. It is the last play recorded as having being written by Middleton. Thomas Middleton died at his home at Newington Butts in Southwark in the summer of 1627, and was buried on July 4th, in St Mary's churchyard which today survives as a public park in Elephant and Castle.

Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux was born on May 6th, 1868, in Paris, France. Leroux was schooled in Normandy and went to Paris to study Law where he graduated in 1889. As a young man he inherited a fortune, valued even then in the millions of francs, and lived excessively until it was almost all quickly spent. In 1890, he began working as a court reporter and theater critic for L'Echo de Paris. He became an international correspondent for Le Matin and covered perhaps his most important story in 1905 when he witnessed and wrote about the Russian Revolution. Lerouxs' reporting instincts were also used for in-depth coverage of the former Paris Opera being used as cells to house prisoners of the Paris Commune in the basement. He abruptly switched careers in 1907 to write fiction. His first effort was the Mystery of the Yellow Room. This was the first in a series of the Adventures of Rouletabillet. From then until the mid-1920s he wrote prolifically, becoming a firm favourite to his French audience and increasingly to a growing market abroad thanks to the numerous translations and his growing reputation. By 1919, Leroux had seen the potential in the growing film industry and together with Arthur Bernede they formed a film company, Societe des Cineromans, to publish novels and simultaneously turn them into films. As an author Leroux works are placed alongside Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's in the United Kingdom and Edgar Allan Poe's in the United States. His Phantom of the Opera is one of the world's classic treasures and is constantly being adapted into other media; from films and TV to radio as well as an audiobook. Leroux was honoured by the French State with a Chevalier de la Legion d'honneur in 1902. Gaston Leroux died in Nice, in Southern France, on April 15th, 1927.

Aphra Behn was a prolific and well established writer but facts about her remain scant and difficult to confirm. What can safely be said though is that Aphra Behn is now regarded as a key English playwright and a major figure in Restoration theatre. Aphra was born into the rising tensions to the English Civil War. Obviously a time of much division and difficulty as the King and Parliament, and their respective forces, came ever closer to conflict. There are claims she was a spy, that she travelled abroad, possibly as far as Surinam. By 1664 her marriage was over (though by death or separation is not known but presumably the former as it occurred in the year of their marriage) and she now used Mrs Behn as her professional name. Aphra now moved towards pursuing a more sustainable and substantial career and began work for the King's Company and the Duke's Company players as a scribe. Previously her only writing had been poetry but now she would become a playwright. Her first, "e;The Forc'd Marriage"e;, was staged in 1670, followed by "e;The Amorous Prince"e; (1671). After her third play, "e;The Dutch Lover"e;, Aphra had a three year lull in her writing career. Again it is speculated that she went travelling again, possibly once again as a spy. After this sojourn her writing moves towards comic works, which prove commercially more successful. Her most popular works included "e;The Rover"e; and "e;Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister"e; (1684-87). With her growing reputation Aphra became friends with many of the most notable writers of the day. This is The Age of Dryden and his literary dominance. From the mid 1680's Aphra's health began to decline. This was exacerbated by her continual state of debt and descent into poverty. Aphra Behn died on April 16th 1689, and is buried in the East Cloister of Westminster Abbey. The inscription on her tombstone reads: "e;Here lies a Proof that Wit can never be Defence enough against Mortality."e; She was quoted as stating that she had led a "e;life dedicated to pleasure and poetry."e;

Table Of ContentsANNE OF GREEN GABLESANNE of the ISLANDAnnes House of DreamsCHRONICLES OF AVONLEAFURTHER CHRONICLES OF AVONLEATHE GOLDEN ROADKILMENY OF THE ORCHARDLucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1896 to 1901Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1902 to 1903Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1904Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1905 to 1906Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1907 to 1908Short Stories 1909 to 1922RAINBOW VALLEYRilla of Ingleside

Jane Austen's Emma (1815) explores the life of women in Regency England, combining romance with some aspects of the comedy of manners. The story centers around the eponymous character who, unlike Austen's other popular heroines, is an upper middle-class young woman with no pecuniary concerns. Emma Woodhouse is rather a strong-headed, beautiful young woman who lives with her father and who has resolved not to marry. Yet, she spends considerable time and energy trying to make matches for the other people around her and tends to draw amusement and satisfaction from such practice. After one successful experience, Emma tries to match her friend Harriet to a man named Mr. Elton. Her earnest and honest friend George Knightley warns her of Mr. Elton's snobbish nature. Nonetheless, Emma starts by making her friend Harriet reject a marriage proposal. Surprisingly, while she believes Mr. Elton's attention is drawn towards Harriet, the man ends up declaring his love for the match-maker herself. When Emma informs Mr. Elton of her intention to match him to her friend, he feels insulted, considering Harriet's inferior social class. He leaves the town while Emma keeps on trying to find a husband for Harriet. By the end of the novel, Emma marries Mr. Knightley to finally give up her favorite hobby while Harriet marries Robert Martin. We've also included a concise and informative biography of Jane's works and life at the end of the book. We hope it helps to give a little context and colour about how her life interacted with her art.

Thomas Middleton was born in London in April 1580 and baptised on 18th April. Middleton was aged only five when his father died. His mother remarried but this unfortunately fell apart into a fifteen year legal dispute regarding the inheritance due Thomas and his younger sister. By the time he left Oxford, at the turn of the Century, Middleton had and published Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satirese which was denounced by the Archbishop of Canterbury and publicly burned. In the early years of the 17th century, Middleton wrote topical pamphlets. One - Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets was reprinted several times and the subject of a parliamentary inquiry. These early years writing plays continued to attract controversy. His writing partnership with Thomas Dekker brought him into conflict with Ben Jonson and George Chapman in the so-called War of the Theatres. His finest work with Dekker was undoubtedly The Roaring Girl, a biography of the notorious Mary Frith. In the 1610s, Middleton began another playwriting partnership, this time with the actor William Rowley, producing another slew of plays including Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel. The ever adaptable Middleton seemed at ease working with others or by himself. His solo writing credits include the comic masterpiece, A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, in 1613. In 1620 he was officially appointed as chronologer of the City of London, a post he held until his death. The 1620s saw the production of his and Rowley's tragedy, and continual favourite, The Changeling, and of several other tragicomedies. However in 1624, he reached a peak of notoriety when his dramatic allegory A Game at Chess was staged by the King's Men. Though Middleton's approach was strongly patriotic, the Privy Council silenced the play after only nine performances at the Globe theatre, having received a complaint from the Spanish ambassador. What happened next is a mystery. It is the last play recorded as having being written by Middleton. Thomas Middleton died at his home at Newington Butts in Southwark in the summer of 1627, and was buried on July 4th, in St Mary's churchyard which today survives as a public park in Elephant and Castle.

Pride and Prejudice (1813) is one of the most popular novels of the English tongue in which Jane Austen tells the story of Elizabeth Bennet, a beautiful twenty-year-old woman whose liveliness and intelligence do not prevent her from having false impressions and prejudgments about the people surrounding her. The young woman lives with her middle-class family and her best friend Charlotte Lucas. As the plot unfolds, Elizabeth develops a romantic relationship with a man from a higher social rank and a much wealthier background named Mr. Darcy. The latter gentleman is intelligent, handsome and well-mannered. Nonetheless, he generally leaves a negative impression on strangers who do not know his true nature by showing a proud and haughty attitude, refusing to dance at balls and behaving in a reserved manner. Austen gradually elucidates, nonetheless, that what is often seen by strangers as a condescending behavior is just the awkward appearance of a kind and virtuous gentleman. After numerous bursts of rather childish big-headedness and misunderstanding, Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy eventually overcome their pride and prejudice. By the very end of the narrative, Elizabeth accepts Mr. Darcy's proposal when their love for each other succeeds in vanquishing their self-love. We've also included a concise and informative biography of Jane's works and life at the end of the book. We hope it helps to give a little context and colour about how her life interacted with her art.

Thomas Middleton was born in London in April 1580 and baptised on 18th April. Middleton was aged only five when his father died. His mother remarried but this unfortunately fell apart into a fifteen year legal dispute regarding the inheritance due Thomas and his younger sister. By the time he left Oxford, at the turn of the Century, Middleton had and published Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satirese which was denounced by the Archbishop of Canterbury and publicly burned. In the early years of the 17th century, Middleton wrote topical pamphlets. One - Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets was reprinted several times and the subject of a parliamentary inquiry. These early years writing plays continued to attract controversy. His writing partnership with Thomas Dekker brought him into conflict with Ben Jonson and George Chapman in the so-called War of the Theatres. His finest work with Dekker was undoubtedly The Roaring Girl, a biography of the notorious Mary Frith. In the 1610s, Middleton began another playwriting partnership, this time with the actor William Rowley, producing another slew of plays including Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel. The ever adaptable Middleton seemed at ease working with others or by himself. His solo writing credits include the comic masterpiece, A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, in 1613. In 1620 he was officially appointed as chronologer of the City of London, a post he held until his death. The 1620s saw the production of his and Rowley's tragedy, and continual favourite, The Changeling, and of several other tragicomedies. However in 1624, he reached a peak of notoriety when his dramatic allegory A Game at Chess was staged by the King's Men. Though Middleton's approach was strongly patriotic, the Privy Council silenced the play after only nine performances at the Globe theatre, having received a complaint from the Spanish ambassador. What happened next is a mystery. It is the last play recorded as having being written by Middleton. Thomas Middleton died at his home at Newington Butts in Southwark in the summer of 1627, and was buried on July 4th, in St Mary's churchyard which today survives as a public park in Elephant and Castle.

Cruel To Be Kind is the true story of Max, aged 6. He is fostered by Cathy while his mother is in hospital with complications from type 2 diabetes. Cruel To Be Kind is the true story of Max, aged 6. He is fostered by Cathy while his mother is in hospital with complications from type 2 diabetes. Fostering Max gets off to a bad start when his mother, Caz, complains and threatens Cathy even before Max has moved in. Cathy and her family are shocked when they first meet Max. But his social worker isn’t the only one in denial; his whole family are too.

Aphra Behn was a prolific and well established writer but facts about her remain scant and difficult to confirm. What can safely be said though is that Aphra Behn is now regarded as a key English playwright and a major figure in Restoration theatre. Aphra was born into the rising tensions to the English Civil War. Obviously a time of much division and difficulty as the King and Parliament, and their respective forces, came ever closer to conflict. There are claims she was a spy, that she travelled abroad, possibly as far as Surinam. By 1664 her marriage was over (though by death or separation is not known but presumably the former as it occurred in the year of their marriage) and she now used Mrs Behn as her professional name. Aphra now moved towards pursuing a more sustainable and substantial career and began work for the King's Company and the Duke's Company players as a scribe. Previously her only writing had been poetry but now she would become a playwright. Her first, "e;The Forc'd Marriage"e;, was staged in 1670, followed by "e;The Amorous Prince"e; (1671). After her third play, "e;The Dutch Lover"e;, Aphra had a three year lull in her writing career. Again it is speculated that she went travelling again, possibly once again as a spy. After this sojourn her writing moves towards comic works, which prove commercially more successful. Her most popular works included "e;The Rover"e; and "e;Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister"e; (1684-87). With her growing reputation Aphra became friends with many of the most notable writers of the day. This is The Age of Dryden and his literary dominance. From the mid 1680's Aphra's health began to decline. This was exacerbated by her continual state of debt and descent into poverty. Aphra Behn died on April 16th 1689, and is buried in the East Cloister of Westminster Abbey. The inscription on her tombstone reads: "e;Here lies a Proof that Wit can never be Defence enough against Mortality."e; She was quoted as stating that she had led a "e;life dedicated to pleasure and poetry."e;

Aphra Behn was a prolific and well established writer but facts about her remain scant and difficult to confirm. What can safely be said though is that Aphra Behn is now regarded as a key English playwright and a major figure in Restoration theatre. Aphra was born into the rising tensions to the English Civil War. Obviously a time of much division and difficulty as the King and Parliament, and their respective forces, came ever closer to conflict. There are claims she was a spy, that she travelled abroad, possibly as far as Surinam. By 1664 her marriage was over (though by death or separation is not known but presumably the former as it occurred in the year of their marriage) and she now used Mrs Behn as her professional name. Aphra now moved towards pursuing a more sustainable and substantial career and began work for the King's Company and the Duke's Company players as a scribe. Previously her only writing had been poetry but now she would become a playwright. Her first, "e;The Forc'd Marriage"e;, was staged in 1670, followed by "e;The Amorous Prince"e; (1671). After her third play, "e;The Dutch Lover"e;, Aphra had a three year lull in her writing career. Again it is speculated that she went travelling again, possibly once again as a spy. After this sojourn her writing moves towards comic works, which prove commercially more successful. Her most popular works included "e;The Rover"e; and "e;Love-Letters Between a Nobleman and His Sister"e; (1684-87). With her growing reputation Aphra became friends with many of the most notable writers of the day. This is The Age of Dryden and his literary dominance. From the mid 1680's Aphra's health began to decline. This was exacerbated by her continual state of debt and descent into poverty. Aphra Behn died on April 16th 1689, and is buried in the East Cloister of Westminster Abbey. The inscription on her tombstone reads: "e;Here lies a Proof that Wit can never be Defence enough against Mortality."e; She was quoted as stating that she had led a "e;life dedicated to pleasure and poetry."e;

Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was born on the 16th October 1854 in Dublin Ireland. The son of Dublin intellectuals Oscar proved himself an outstanding classicist at Dublin, then at Oxford. With his education complete Wilde moved to London and its fashionable cultural and social circles. With his biting wit, flamboyant dress, and glittering conversation, Wilde became one of the most well-known personalities of his day. His only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray was published in 1890 and he then moved on to writing for the stage with Salome in 1891. His society comedies produced enormous hits and turned him into one of the most successful writers of late Victorian London. Whilst his masterpiece, The Importance of Being Earnest, was on stage in London, Wilde had the Marquess of Queensberry, the father of his lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, prosecuted for libel. The trial unearthed evidence that caused Wilde to drop his charges and led to his own arrest and trial for gross indecency. He was convicted and imprisoned for two years' hard labour. It was to break him. On release he left for France, There he wrote his last work, The Ballad of Reading Gaol in 1898. He died destitute in Paris at the age of forty-six sipping champagne a friend had brought with the line 'Alas I am dying beyond my means'. Here we publish the infamous play 'Salome'. A work of great art that is now being accepted and placed where it rightfully belongs.

Henrik Ibsen (20th March, 1828 - 23rd May, 1906) is often referred to as the father of realism and ranked just below Shakespeare as Europe's greatest ever playwright especially as his plays are performed most frequently throughout the world after Shakespeare's. He was Norwegian and although set his plays in Norway, he wrote them in Danish and lived most of his professional life in Italy and Germany. His affect on the theatre is still evident today and shapes the distinction of plays being art as opposed to entertainment since he broke down all previous traditions and explored issues, developed characterisation, revealed uncomfortable truths, challenged assumptions and brokedown facades in ourselves as well as society. These factors are clearly demonstrated in Lady Inger of Ostrat, a historical play set in a period in history when Norway was struggling to retain independence and Norwegian literature was virtually non existent. Ibsen describes the era as "e;Four Hundred Years of Darkness"e; and his setting Lady Inger at this time was very much part of the patriotic Romantic Nationalism movement of the time, of which he was its most famous exponent. This play is a fine example of both the movement's intent, to reintroduce the near forgotten past of the previous four centuries providing a richer Norwegian culture, as well as Ibsen's poetic style that captures the scan and spirit of old Scandinavian songs and ballads so skilfully .

Thomas Middleton was born in London in April 1580 and baptised on 18th April. Middleton was aged only five when his father died. His mother remarried but this unfortunately fell apart into a fifteen year legal dispute regarding the inheritance due Thomas and his younger sister. By the time he left Oxford, at the turn of the Century, Middleton had and published Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satirese which was denounced by the Archbishop of Canterbury and publicly burned. In the early years of the 17th century, Middleton wrote topical pamphlets. One - Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets was reprinted several times and the subject of a parliamentary inquiry. These early years writing plays continued to attract controversy. His writing partnership with Thomas Dekker brought him into conflict with Ben Jonson and George Chapman in the so-called War of the Theatres. His finest work with Dekker was undoubtedly The Roaring Girl, a biography of the notorious Mary Frith. In the 1610s, Middleton began another playwriting partnership, this time with the actor William Rowley, producing another slew of plays including Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel. The ever adaptable Middleton seemed at ease working with others or by himself. His solo writing credits include the comic masterpiece, A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, in 1613. In 1620 he was officially appointed as chronologer of the City of London, a post he held until his death. The 1620s saw the production of his and Rowley's tragedy, and continual favourite, The Changeling, and of several other tragicomedies. However in 1624, he reached a peak of notoriety when his dramatic allegory A Game at Chess was staged by the King's Men. Though Middleton's approach was strongly patriotic, the Privy Council silenced the play after only nine performances at the Globe theatre, having received a complaint from the Spanish ambassador. What happened next is a mystery. It is the last play recorded as having being written by Middleton. Thomas Middleton died at his home at Newington Butts in Southwark in the summer of 1627, and was buried on July 4th, in St Mary's churchyard which today survives as a public park in Elephant and Castle.

John Fletcher was born in December, 1579 in Rye, Sussex. He was baptised on December 20th.As can be imagined details of much of his life and career have not survived and, accordingly, only a very brief indication of his life and works can be given.Young Fletcher appears at the very young age of eleven to have entered Corpus Christi College at Cambridge University in 1591. There are no records that he ever took a degree but there is some small evidence that he was being prepared for a career in the church.However what is clear is that this was soon abandoned as he joined the stream of people who would leave University and decamp to the more bohemian life of commercial theatre in London.The upbringing of the now teenage Fletcher and his seven siblings now passed to his paternal uncle, the poet and minor official Giles Fletcher. Giles, who had the patronage of the Earl of Essex may have been a liability rather than an advantage to the young Fletcher. With Essex involved in the failed rebellion against Elizabeth Giles was also tainted.By 1606 John Fletcher appears to have equipped himself with the talents to become a playwright. Initially this appears to have been for the Children of the Queen's Revels, then performing at the Blackfriars Theatre.Fletcher's early career was marked by one significant failure; The Faithful Shepherdess, his adaptation of Giovanni Battista Guarini's Il Pastor Fido, which was performed by the Blackfriars Children in 1608.By 1609, however, he had found his stride. With his collaborator John Beaumont, he wrote Philaster, which became a hit for the King's Men and began a profitable association between Fletcher and that company. Philaster appears also to have begun a trend for tragicomedy.By the middle of the 1610s, Fletcher's plays had achieved a popularity that rivalled Shakespeare's and cemented the pre-eminence of the King's Men in Jacobean London. After his frequent early collaborator John Beaumont's early death in 1616, Fletcher continued working, both singly and in collaboration, until his own death in 1625. By that time, he had produced, or had been credited with, close to fifty plays.William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in late April 1565 and baptised there on 26th April. He was one of eight children.Little is known about his life but what is evident is the enormous contribution he has made to world literature.His writing was progressive, magnificent in scope and breathtaking in execution.Shakespeare's plays and sonnets helped enable the English language to speak with a voice unmatched by any other.William Shakespeare died on April 23rd 1616, survived by his wife and two daughters. He was buried two days after his death in the chancel of the Holy Trinity Church. The epitaph on the slab which covers his grave includes the following passage,Good friend, for Jesus's sake forbear, To dig the dust enclosed here. Blessed me the man that spares these stones, And cursed be he that moves my bones.

Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was born on October 16, 1888 in a hotel bedroom in what is now Times Square, New York. Much of his childhood was spent in the comfort of books at boarding schools whilst his actor father was on the road and his Mother contended with her own demons. He spent only a year at University - Princeton - and various reasons have been given for his departure. However whatever his background and education denied or added to his development it is agreed amongst all that he was a playwright of the first rank and possibly America's greatest. His introduction of realism into American drama was instrumental in its development and paved a path for many talents thereafter. Of course his winning of both the Pulitzer Prize (4 times) and the Nobel Prize are indicative of his status. His more famous and later works do side with the disillusionment and personal tragedy of those on the fringes of society but continue to build upon ideas and structures he incorporated in his early one act plays. Eugene O'Neill suffered from various health problems, mainly depression and alcoholism. In the last decade he also faced a Parkinson's like tremor in his hands which made writing increasingly difficult. But out of such difficulties came plays of the calibre of The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night, and A Moon for the Misbegotten. Eugene O'Neill died in Room 401 of the Sheraton Hotel on Bay State Road in Boston, on November 27, 1953, at the age of 65. As he was dying, he whispered his last words: "e;I knew it. I knew it. Born in a hotel room and died in a hotel room."e;

Madame Bovary (1856) is the French novelist Gustave Flaubert's much-celebrated masterpiece that has been translated into more than forty languages in the world. It belongs to the realistic movement of fiction and has often been considered by critics as one of its most important foundational works. The book recounts the life story of Charles Bovary, a young man from northern France who has been brought up by his mother to become rather a simpleton. Charles is trained to be a medical doctor and then starts practicing his job. He first marries an elder woman that his mother chooses for him. While being married, he has an acquaintance with a beautiful young woman named Emma with whom he falls in love. He is given the opportunity to get closer to Emma and marry her after the death of his first wife. The story then becomes entirely focused on the character of Emma who soon gets bored of her marital status and starts to look for extramarital relations. She indulges in sexual adventures with two different partners while her husband never suspects anything. She even unsuccessfully attempts to elope with one of her lovers once. Madame Bovary commits suicide by the end of the narrative after having drowned herself in irredeemable debt. Charles, who cherishes her memory, discovers about her cheating only later and still tries to find her excuses before he dies himself.

Nicholas Rowe was born in Little Barford, Bedfordshire, England, on June 20th, 1674. He was educated at Highgate School, and then at Westminster School under the tutelage of Dr. Busby.In 1688, Rowe became a King's Scholar, and then in 1691 gained entrance into Middle Temple. This was his father's decision (he was a barrister) who felt that his son had made sufficient progress to study law. While at Middle Temple, he decided that studying law was easier if seen as a system of rational government and impartial justice and not as a series of precedents, or collection of positive precepts.On his father's death, when he was nineteen, he became the master of a large estate and an independent fortune. His future path now was to ignore law and write poetry with a view to eventually writing plays.The Ambitious Stepmother, Rowe's first play, produced in 1700 at Lincoln's Inn Fields by Thomas Betterton and set in Persepolis, was well received. This was followed in 1701 by Tamerlane. In this play the conqueror Timur represented William III, and Louis XIV is denounced as Bajazet. It was for many years regularly acted on the anniversary of William's landing at Torbay. In 1704, he tried his hand at comedy, with The Biter at Lincoln's Inn Fields. The play is said to have amused no one except the author, and Rowe returned to tragedy in Ulysses (1706). For Johnson, this play was to share the fate of many such plays based on mythological heroes, as, "e;We have been too early acquainted with the poetical heroes to expect any pleasure from their revival"e;The Royal Convert (1707) dealt with the persecutions endured by Aribert, son of Hengist and the Christian maiden Ethelinda. The story was set in England in an obscure and barbarous age. Rodogune was a tragic character, of high spirit and violent passions, yet with a wicked with a soul that would have been heroic if it had been virtuous.Rowe is however well known for his work on Shakespeare's plays. He published the first 18th century edition of Shakespeare in six volumes in 1709. His practical knowledge of the stage helped him divide the plays into scenes and acts, with entrances and exits of the players noted. The spelling of names was normalized and each play prefixed with a dramatis personae. This 1709 edition was also the first to be illustrated, a frontispiece engraving being provided for each play. Unfortunately, Rowe based his text on the discredited Fourth Folio, a failing which many succeeding him also followed.Rowe also wrote a short biography of William Shakespeare, entitled, Some Account of the Life of Mr. William Shakespeare.In Dublin in 1712 a revival of his earlier play, Tamerlane, at a time when political passions were running high, the performance provoked a serious riot.The Tragedy of Jane Shore, played at Drury Lane with Mrs Oldfield in the title role in 1714. It ran for nineteen nights, and kept the stage longer than any other of Rowe's works. In the play, which consists chiefly of domestic scenes and private distress, the wife is forgiven because she repents, and the husband is honoured because he forgives.Whilst his plays met with little success at the time his poems were received extremely well. Although he was not prolific nor his output large the quality was high. With the accession to the throne of George I he was made a surveyor of customs, and then, in 1715, he succeeded Nahum Tate as poet laureate. It was the high point of his artistic life.He was also appointed clerk of the council to the Prince of Wales, and in 1718 was nominated by Lord Chancellor Parker as clerk of the presentations in Chancery. Nicholas Rowe died on December 6th, 1718, and was buried in Westminster Abbey.Rowe married first a daughter of a Mr Parsons and left a son John. By his second wife Anne, nee Devenish, he had a daughter Charlotte.