The Shakespeare Authorship Question “Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.” This is a quote from the remarkable William Shakespeare. Many would say this quote defines Shakespeare’s work as a whole. William Shakespeare is said to have written some of the most romantic sonnets of his time. He paved the way for many playwrights, authors, and poets. Shakespeare has thirty-seven plays, one-hundred and fifty-four sonnets, and five poems attributed to him. William Shakespeare is one of the most influential writers in history, however did Shakespeare really say this quote or exist at all? There is much evidence that suggests Shakespeare did not, in fact, write his work and …show more content…
Many renowned authors have also questioned Shakespeare’s identity; these authors include Henry James, Sigmund Freud, Helen Keller, Charlie Chaplain, and even Mark Twain! Mark Twain is quoted as saying “So far as anybody actually knows and can prove, Shakespeare of Stratford-on-Avon never wrote a play in his life.” There is a lack of evidence and records that questions the authorship of Shakespeare’s works. There are also close to no records on William Shakespeare’s education or work as a playwright. Not only that, but there are very few portraits of William Shakespeare himself painted in his lifetime. Keep in mind, photographs were not around in the 1500’s. It is thought that William Shakespeare grew up in an illiterate home and evidence suggests he to could’ve been illiterate himself. In addition, it is also to be noted that William Shakespeare’s children were illiterate as well. There are only seven known signatures signed by William Shakespeare and all are said by handwriting experts to be written in a hand that suggests he did not know how to write or had little experience holding a pen (Matus 33). Some scholars even go as far as saying it looks like chicken scrawl. After Shakespeare’s death, his three-page will did not mention any of his literary works. All thirty-seven plays, one hundred and fifty-four sonnets, and five poems went unmentioned. Furthermore, one of the main parts of his will gives his “second-best bed” to his wife yet no mention of his vastly important literature (Filin). Many scholars suggest that William Shakespeare was merely just an actor and someone else wrote his works under his name. Even then, it is questioned if William Shakespeare even existed due to his name missing from Henslowe’s Diary, a document naming nearly all the famous playwrights and actors of the current time (Matus 36). Some that
04/20/17 Shakespeare did write his plays and sonnets. Shakespeare did write his own plays and sonnets. He wrote many plays that are popular today. Shakespeare has always wrote his own plays and there is proof. Shakespeare always loved the theatre, even when he was little.
Are you a Shakespeare enthusiast or are you skeptical about whether he is the true author of his work? Kier Cutler and Simon Schama go neck to neck to determine the truth. Simon Schama's “Shakespeare Shakedown” and Keir Cutler’s “Top 10 Reasons Shakespeare Did Not Write Shakespeare” are the texts we will be looking at today. This century-long argument is going head to head with one thinking Shakespeare wrote his works, and the other not even believing that he existed! Let's get right into it.
“William Shakespeare’s will is four pages long and handwritten by an attorney. In these four pages there is no indication that he was a writer. The will mentions not a single book, play, poem, or unfinished literary work, or scrap of manuscript of any kind. The absence of books in the will is telling, since to write his works William Shakespeare would have had to have access to hundreds of books. The plays are full of expertise on a wide variety of subjects including contemporary and classical literature, multiple foreign languages, a detailed knowledge of Italian language and culture, the law, medicine, military matters, sea navigation, painting, mathematics, astrology, horticulture, music, and a variety of aristocratic sports like bowls and falconry.
However there isn't any proof that he did either. TIME states, " The Anti-Stratfordians point out that nobody even knows if that's how Shakespeare spelled his name: the only surviving examples of his handwriting are six scraggly signatures spelled several different ways. " It cannot be proven that he wrote the texts when we don't even have a single, uniform signature or record showing that he
TDA Shakespeare and Bradstreet Authors William Shakespeare and Anne Bradstreet claim a unique love through their works of literature. It is ironic that the two authors are juxtaposed for their boasting of knowing true love because one is a man of the theatre and the other is a Puritan housewife. They both have remarkable and one-of-a-kind styles of writing. To My Dear and Loving Husband and Sonnet 18 both share a theme of time. These works of literature have become well-known and classic for their strong professions of love.
Shakespeare was a very successful poet,playwright,and one of the best during the Elizabethan age and maybe even the best writer in the English language. After reading all of the sources, many of them suggest theories about how Shakespeare didn’t write any of his works. They also suggest others who may have written them. In the sources, “Who was William Shakespeare (Parts 1-3)”, it states that Shakespeare wasn’t part of the royal court and didn’t have a very good education. First of all, Shakespeare wasn’t considered to be in the upper class and wasn’t educated.
One of the few documents of Shakespeare is his will, “which has nothing literary in it, and is buried under a gravestone that does not even carry his name” (Whalen, Richard F.) William Shakespeare famously left his
Shakespeare was born in Stratford of Avon though the exact date of Shakespeare’s birthday is unknown. Also, records concerning his schooling, along with details of his education, manuscripts in his own writing and any real notes or legal documents that can attest to the ownership and magnitude of his talent and natural genius. The recent questioning of William Shakespeare being the true author of such notable literary works have led to many theories purporting the idea that Shakespeare was actually a pen name or a cover up to mask the true identity of a man who couldn’t possibly have amassed such inconceivable knowledge, training and culture. While several candidates have been proposed as having authored the more than 150 sonnets and dozens of Shakespearian plays, most notably: Sir Frances Bacon and Christopher Marlowe; it is more probable that Sir Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford was the most prominent of scholars in the group and most likely aristocrat to be the true author and playwright acquiring the prestigious
Have you ever wondered about the life of the illustrious playwright, William Shakespeare? Surprisingly, scholars and skeptics do not really know as much about the man as one might think. In fact, there was a period of seven years, between 1589 and 1592, when Shakespeare disappeared from society with absolutely no documentation of where he was or what he was doing. There are only conspiracy theories about his location during this mysterious time. Throughout this paper, the known facts, a popular tale surrounded by a lot of speculation, and conspiracy theories, are examined in order to decide whether the theories in question are fact or fiction.
The more negative parts of William’s legacy comes from the many conspiracies that have come up regarding his life. With very little records about Shakespeare’s life, it is hard to come up with a trustworthy biography. Many people have to resort to speculation to fill in the gaps of his life. The most popular theory regarding Shakespeare states that he never even existed. How could the son of a leather worker who never went to college grow up to be the most influential writer of all time?
William Shakespeare William Shakespeare was an actor, poet, and playwright, but he did so much more than that. He changed psychology, the english language, theater, writing, and created thousands of words we still use today. William Shakespeare wrote and acted in his plays during the Renaissance, which was a time from the 1300s until the 1600s when ideas of society changed. During the Renaissance, a new concept started to form that changed society which was humanism.
In the article “ Who Was William Shakespeare (Part 1)” by: Unknown author, it states, “ The anti- shakespearean group says that William Shakespeare did not have enough education to prepare to write his plays”. This tells me that shakespeare could not have wrote his plays with
Shakespeare is the author of some of the greatest masterpieces of the English language. Among the other writers, Shakespeare is the best in approaching the human nature and in tackling humanity’s important questions. Some of the most used themes in his works are about love, death, murder, vengeance, sorrow, envy, and secrecy. From 1589 until 1613, it is believed that Shakespeare wrote some of his best works and by this time he was already well known in London. His collection of works comprises of 38 plays, 154 sonnets and two long narrative poems.
“William Shakespeare, often called the English national poet, widely considered the greatest dramatist of all time” (Biography.com). “Shakespeare was the greatest English writer in history” (History.com Staff). Shakespeare wrote 154 sonnets, five long narrative poems, and wrote 37 plays. Some of Shakespeare’s famous work are Othello, Macbeth, Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, and Julius Caesar. William was born at Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom in April 23, 1564.
William Shakespeare was a playwright and an actor that lived in the 16th and 17th centuries. There are countless sights and information about who William Shakespeare was. However, no one knows for sure what the actual information of William Shakespeare’s life. The information provided in the following paper is what is said to be known of William Shakespeare.