What was the society like when shakespeare lived?
Elizabethan society was strongly hierarchical, everyone had a place in the social order. The majority of the people still lived int he country, and made a living by farming, growing enough food for their own use and selling off the surplus. Most people were at least partly self-sufficient. As well as growing their own food, the farmers wives would make their own butter and cheese, brew their own ale, distill their own perfume, make their own soap and candles etc. Preserving food for winter would be an important household task, as there was little fresh food available in winter. Towns were a lot smaller than they are now, but full of tradesmen and craftsmen and merchants of all kinds. Most tradesmen would belong to a guild, which looked after the interests of its members. Most businesses were family affiars, with wives and children being involved as well. Shakespeare grew up in Stratford-on-Avon, and would probably have been accustomed to helping out in his father’s business. Shakespear
