Mysteries of William Shakespeare
—The Lost Years
莎士比亚之谜
——行踪成谜的岁月
There are two distinct periods of time in which little to no documentation[文件] on Shakespeare exists. These periods have been called the Lost Years. The first period of missing years is from 1578 to 1582 when Shakespeare was married, and the second stretched from 1582 to 1592. Some suggest that during these lost years, Shakespeare may have dabbled[涉足] in a variety of professions, including teacher or law clerk, or he may have been assisting his father with the family business of leather working and trade. Others believe Shakespeare was using these years to conduct extensive research, travel, and establish himself as a playwright in the theater industry.
有那么两段明显的时期，关于莎士比亚的文件记载极少甚至完全缺失。这些时期被称为“行踪成谜的岁月”。第一段缺失时期从1578年到1582年莎士比亚结婚；第二段时期则从1582年一直到1592年。有人说在这些行踪成谜的年月里，莎士比亚可能涉足各种各样的职业，包括教师或法务，又或者协助其父亲打理皮革加工贸易的家族生意。另一些人则认为莎士比亚利用这些时间进行广泛研究、旅行，并奠定自己在戏剧行业的剧作家地位。
Shakespeare's Last Will 临终遗嘱
Shakespeare died in 1616 at the age of 52. During his life, he collected numerous pieces of property[财产] and had a substantial[丰富的] bit of money to his name. In his will, he bequeathed[遗赠] most of his properties to Susanna, his eldest daughter, and some actors from the King's Men. Famously, he left his wife his “second best bed注2” before he died on April 23rd, 1616 (this date is an educated guess[有根据的推测] because we only have a record of his burial two days later). This indicated she was to be given their marriage bed. Traditionally, the best bed was reserved for guests of a household.
莎士比亚于1616年去世，终年52岁。他在有生之年积累了大量财产，名下也有充足的金钱。根据遗嘱，他把大部分财产留给了长女苏珊娜以及国王剧团的几名演员。值得注意的是，在4月23日（这个日期是有根据的推测，因为我们只有他两天后的葬礼记录）去世之前，他将“第二好的床”留给了妻子，也就是说她得到了两人的婚床。一般来说，最好的床要留给家中客人使用。
Despite the limited information on the man, Shakespeare remains today one of the most famous playwrights in history.
虽然有关莎士比亚的资料很有限，时至今日，他依然是历史上最有名的剧作家之一。
注1：“bard”意为抒情诗人，而“the Bard”特指莎士比亚。
注2：后人对于莎士比亚特意提到把床留给其妻子一直有各种议论，比较有代表性的看法认为这是
莎士比亚对妻子不忠行为的一种讽刺。也有人认为“第二好的床”是结婚时候用的床，表达了
莎士比亚对妻子的爱。不过因为关于莎士比亚的资料太少，所以这些都只是猜测而已。