Introduction
William Shakespeare is a renowned English playwright, actor, poet and dramatist.
Records about his baptism indicate that he was born in the English town of Stratford in England being the eldest son of John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. Many people have referred to him as the most famous dramatist that ever lived and some of his plays such as Romeo and Juliet, and Hamlet are viewed as among the greatest pieces of literature in the world. Shakespeare is reputed for a large vocabulary so unlike a person of his time, having used roughly 29,000 different words while writing his plays.
But William Shakespeare’s identity, poetry and authorship have become a topic of great controversy that has been going on for a long time. No other life of a re-known literacy figure has been studied, researched and debated like that of William Shakespeare (Vickers 2003).
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Many critics argue that Shakespeare was neither a poet, playwright or actor and that he wrote none of the plays that have famously been attributed to him.
There are even claims that the name Shakespeare was the assumed name for a group of playwrights and poets.
Critics argue that although there are assumptions that this great playwright was educated at Stratford the works attributed to Shakespeare display a level of writing too high for his standard. But even with the possibility that Shakespeare may not have been the author of all those literary writings, many people some of whom lived during his time like Meres (1598) and Johnson (1623) have credited him as a writer worthy of recognition (Malim&Imlay 2004).
From a brief history about his personal life, critics have expressed doubts that this man was truly the real playwright, poet and dramatist that are today referred to as William Shakespeare. Documents from the life of William Shakespeare of Stratford describe him as a businessman and investor in real estate and there is no given evidence that this man was a playwright and very scanty information connects him to theatre.
No evidence exists from the time he lived that relates Shakespeare to poetry and a playwright’s life and whatever information that has been provided came much later after his death and is questionable. Critics argue that during the writing of William Shakespeare’s works, playwriting was a very lowly profession and that Shakespeare’s name could have been used as a pseudonym by the actual authors as they tried to protect their names. Close to sixty candidates have even been proposed as the most probable authors of his works (Ready and Kathman 1996).
Records about the life of the man from Stratford spelled his name as Shakespeare or something less different and this contrasts the name that appears on the poems and plays that was at most times spelled as Shake-speare. Although the man from Stratford is widely known as an actor, there is no written evidence about any regular theatre performances that he was involved in, and no records give indication that he had any roles in plays at the time, not even in those that he supposedly wrote.
The record gave about his life also fails to square; up with the deep knowledge about Italy and France’s aristocratic attitude and deep classical education that has been portrayed in William Shakespeare’s work (Vickers 2003).
Information about his early life has been derived from baptism, marriage and legal documents and there is no information about his early life as an artist despite the fact that the first 30 years are most important in an artist’s life. Extensive records about his life as a businessman and also detailing his legal affairs contrast the scattered and sparse documents about his involvement in theatre. Worse still, these are not theatre records and in of those is he referred to as a playwright.
Some scholars have had tremendous difficulty trying to reconcile the dull life of the man from Stratford with the stupendous geniou8s who shines in William Shakespeare’s work. Critics also argue that there are no existing records indicating that Shakespeare was a writer despite the fact that records appear that link other writers of the time to their works. They also argue that there are no existing manuscripts that have survived from that time to give proof that he ever wrote all those works attributed to him (Whalen 1994).
But for scholars like Richard Whalen and others, Shakespeare lived as a person and playwright as is evident in the life and works of other poets like Edward de Vere. There are many references to this earl of Oxford in Shakespeare’s works. Besides, the authorship of Edward de Vere is disputed in William Shakespeare’s works because of evidence about several works that were written after his death in 1604. Those who support the authorship of Shakespeare also argue that Edward de Vere’s writings were quite inferior as compared to Shakespeare’s works. No written evidence exists of any charges brought forward by his contemporaries that he did not write his works and there was also no speculation about his doubted authorship until much later after his death (Whalen 1994).
Scholars have argued that Shakespeare authored his books because there exists no written evidence from that time that such works could have been related with anyone else and besides, no author of that time was known by the name William Shakespeare. Further arguments dictate that the printed editions for his works have his name endorsed on them and no other names have been given in these editions.
Ample evidence from the works of William Shakespeare also clearly indicates that the writer or author of these works had gone through standard training in an Elizabethan grammar school and received good classical education. It is likely that he also acquired a some knowledge of the Greek language and Latin at the Stratford grammar school. Shakespeare must have been introduced to plays of the five-act structure and to classical comedy at such schools (Ready & Kathman 1996).
From documented records, there is no evidence that Oxford and Bacon, two of the most suggested authors for Shakespeare’s works, were ever associated with production and acting in any of his plays. An attack from a fellow playwright by name Robert Greene in 1592 accusing him of trying to compete with others is evidence that William Shakespeare was indeed a playwright and that he was well known in the London stage.
In 1594 William Shakespeare is documented by have given a live performance before Queen Elizabeth, evidence that he was indeed an actor and in 1598 his poetry was attacked by Francis Meres, meaning that Shakespeare was a poet. Records dating as far back as 1599 that give information about the ownership of Globe theatre have the name William Shakespeare s one of the owners (Ready & Kathman 1996). Evidence from his will indicates that Shakespeare had some gifts left for actors in the London company an indication that Shakespeare of Stratford is likely to have moved to London and become a playwright and actor.
The lively world that he got exposed to in Elizabethan London could have provided a good background on which to create those poetic and dramatic works that have become so popular over time. Critics however argue that this will make no mention of personal items such as letters or papers and that it lists no plays, manuscripts or any unfinished works (Whalen 1994).
From historical records, no person that lived in the Jacobean and Elizabethan eras seems to have any doubt that William Shakespeare the playwright, poet and actor was the same as William Shakespeare, the man from Stratford. In various writings from that time, this man was often praised for his poetry and playwriting and during his life was named as author for most of his works. There are also several manuscripts that refer to the death of William Shakespeare in 1616, meaning that such records were clearly referring to the William Shakespeare of Stratford whose date of death is similar (Ready & Kathman 1996).
Conclusion
As the controversy about the authorship of Shakespeare’s works continues and more and more scholars delve into the issue, no amount of criticism seems to erode the fact these are great literary works. William Shakespeare’s work has been and continues to be widely read worldwide.
Works Cited
Malim, Richard and Imlay, Elizabeth. Great Oxford: Essays on the Life and Word of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Stratford. Parapress Limited, 2004.
Ready, Tom and Kathman David. How we know that Shakespeare Wrote Shakespeare: The Historical Facts.
Whalen, F. Richard. Shakespeare: WHO WAS HE? The Oxford Challenge to the Bard of Avon. Greenwood Publishing Group, 1994.
Vickers, Brian. William Shakespeare. Routledge, 2003.