Shakespeares supportersknown as stratfordiansemphasize the fact that the body of evidence that does exist points to shakespeare, and no one else, as the author of his works. I am haunted by the conviction that the divine william is the biggest. If you subscribe to the idea that genius is acquired, then believing that this little man from stratford could acquire the necessary understanding of the classics, law, philosophy, and dramaturgy from a brief stint at grammar school is a stretch. This site explores the twocenturies old shakespeare authorship debate. They voice their opinions on 25 pieces of evidence, but sturrock invites readers to weigh in as well and arrive at their own conclusion. Supreme court justices, with sandra day oconnor and john paul stevens among the luminaries signing a. The only book on the shakespeare authorship question to catalogue, comprehensively, the evidence and arguments from both sides of the debate, point by point, in a clear, accessible format.
The main culprits in the authorship debate are christopher marlowe he was born in the same year as shakespeare, but died around the same time that shakespeare started to write his plays. The evidence that william shakespeare of stratforduponavon wrote those plays is overwhelming, argues teen site member scouting for books. Harvards marjorie garber takes an unusually tolerant view of the longrunning. The authorship controversy as early as 1709, with the publication of nicholas rowes edition of shakespeare s works, the dearth of information about the life of william shakespeare of stratford. I had not seen that portion of the oxfordian debate as part of the debate. Npr public editor academics equate a morning edition interview to climate change denial. He wrote twelve books and numerous articles on the authorship issue, and engaged in a series of public debates with sir sidney lee, the leading shakespeare biographer of his. As henry james said, the facts of stratford do not square with the. Sir george greenwood 1850 1928 was a british lawyer, politician mp, cricketer, animal welfare reformer and leading advocate for the shakespeare authorship question. This book addresses the longstanding debate over the shakespeare authorship problem and offers a daring solution. Evidence for this is the fact that he was known in stratford. The shakespeare authorship debate although william shakespeare is considered to be one of the most revered and wellrenowned authors of all time, controversy surrounds the belief that he actually produced his own literary works. There is little to document shakespeare s early life. There are many other contemporary references to shakespeare as a writer as well.
Though the shakespeare authorship question has been a topic of lively controversy for nearly two centuries now, its likely to generate some renewed debate this week. Kinds of authorship, of his chapter, hugh craig points out that authorship. Oxfraud when the shakespeare authorship page began in 1996, it was the only site on the internet dedicated to countering claims that someone other than william shakespeare wrote the lions share of the works professional literary historians have always assigned to shakespeare. The book, francis bacons contribution to shakespeare. This contends that the bard could not have written 37 plays and 154 sonnets for a very good reason. Wikipedia has a convenient list of shakespeares quartos, along with images of all the title pages. Pulitzer prizewinning historian david mccullough in his foreword to charlton ogburns the mysterious william shakespeare. Still it is a very interesting debate, which is why i even wrote. False balance and the shakespeare authorship debate. Essay about the shakespeare authorship debate 1632 words 7 pages.
Mrs stopes concluded that there were fundamental differences, arguing that bacon was not the author. Despite hundreds of years of scholarly efforts to establish the credentials of william shakspere of stratforduponavon, doubts that he was the author refuse to go away see the declaration of reasonable doubt. If youre looking to know about who really wrote shakespeare s works, shakespeare authorship and books on, shakespeare authorship, visit our website right now. Doubt of shakespeares authorship of his plays essay bartleby. Scholarly editions of the complete works, such as the norton shakespeare and the riverside shakespeare, generally include these references in appendices. And the evidence for an alternative author is totally nonexistent. The shakespeare authorship question is a theory which was first proposed during the victorian era that william shakespeare did not write the plays and poems which were accredited to him. The book explores the issues in the light of biographical, textual and bibliographical evidence to bring fresh perspectives to an intriguing cultural phenomenon. The debate has even attracted the attention of two former u. Shakespeare authorship 101 shakespeare oxford fellowship. The first book by charlotte stopes on shakespearean matters was the bacon shakespeare question 1888, which examined attitudes on particular details found both in bacons works and in those attributed to shakespeare. This book compiled 36 of williams plays, recording and publishing them for the first time.
Thats because of the release of the new movie anonymous in theaters october 28, a period historical thriller. A new attribution method, argues that the statesman contributed to the tempest and loves labours lost, among other works. Why the shakespeare authorship question matters to. Doubt of shakespeares aut horship of his plays over the years, various persons have expressed doubt as to the authorship of william shakespeare. Perhaps at the heart of the shakespeare authorship controversy is a more philosophical debate. Mark rylance takes on shakespeare establishment in authorship row this article is more than 1 year old actor accuses critics of fearmongering in foreword to new book arguing that francis. The shakespeare authorship question is the argument that someone other than william shakespeare of stratforduponavon wrote the works attributed to him. This is the kind of magazine you keep on your bookshelves with your favorite books. Conspiracy theorists either attribute shakespeares works to another prominent writer of his era or to a group of writers using the shakespeare name as a pseudonym. A neutral compendium for the curious, an invaluable resource for shakespeare researchers, an essential rea. William shakespeare and the authorship debate hubpages.
No hard evidence, no circumstantial evidence, no pointers from contemporaries no undisputed scholarship. Mark rylance takes on shakespeare establishment in. List of books and articles about shakespeare authorship. There are a lot of mysteries surrounding several plays of unknown authorship from the period, some of which may or may not have been written by shakespeare and there has been debate over who shakespeare was and whether or not the stratford shakespeare is the same as the author of the plays. Though literary scholars reject all alternative authorship candidates, including oxford, interest in the oxfordian theory continues. The most startling thing about contested will, james shapiros new book about the shakespeare authorship debate, is not what it concludes about. Hudson argues that an obscure but talented woman named amelia bassano lanierposited to be both shakespeares dark lady of the sonnets and a secret jewwas in the right place at the right time, and had the right skills and knowledge, to be the true. History of the shakespeare authorship question wikipedia. Oxfordian theory of shakespeare authorship wikipedia.
She espouses the first group theory attributing the shakespearean works to a committee headed by francis bacon and including walter. William shakespeare the authorship controversy essay. Presenting the authorship of shakespeare s works in relation to historiography, psychology and literary theory, twentythree distinguished scholars reposition and develop the discussion. Shakespeare, of all the great writers in western civilization, presents a unique enigma. Activity explain to the class that they will hold a roundtable discussion about shakespearean authorship. The shakespeare authorship question oleg seletsky tiger huang william hendersonfrost dartmouth college december 12, 2007 abstract many in academic world accept as fact that william shakespeare of stratforduponavon was the pen behind such works as romeo and juliet, king lear etc. Francis langley 15481602 biography of the moneylender, extortionist, and entrepreneur who was associated with shakespeare. This brilliant, powerful book is a major event for everyone who cares about shakespeare. In shapiros account, the mischief of the authorship controversy began with a kind of scholarly original sin. Because if shakespeare didnt write the plays, someone must have. A shakespeare scholar takes on a taboo subject the. The scholarship is surpassingbrave, original, full of surpriseand in the hands of so gifted a writer it fairly lights up the sky. Skeptics include not only scholars but also famous folks, ranging from orson welles to mark twain. He noted that the shakespeare birthplace trust had refused to enter into such a debate.
Essay on shakespeare authorship controversy 1504 words. We have more company now as you can see from the sites linked in our bardlinks area below. Hudsons first book is a scholarly examination of the ongoing debate about the authorship of the works of william shakespeare. The authorship debate, says bate, is a natural consequence of a cult of shakespeare now deeply rooted in our culture. The shakespeare authorship coalition runs this website to introduce the shakespeare authorship controversy, or shakespeare authorship question.
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