Topic 1: Can the real William Shakespeare please stand up?
Why is William Shakspere of Stratford-upon-Avon an unlikely candidate for the authorship of Shakespeare’s works?
There are too many reasons justifying the saying that William Shakspere of Stratford was not the true Shakespeare whom almost everyone in the world knows today.
Firstly, throughout the Stratford man’s lifetime, there was no record of the author of the Shakespearean works being to Stratford-upon-Avon, neither did it say that the Stratford man was the true author of the works. In fact, the first mention of Stratford man being the Shakespeare we know today came ambiguously from the 1623 First Folio.
William Camden was the author of a book called Remaines, where he commended “Shakespeare”. He, however, omits the Stratford man’s name in his other books Annals and Stratford Worthies in 1616 and 1605 respectively. This proves that Camden never associated Shakspere of Stratford with Shakespeare.
There were also no records of any man called Shakespeare or Shakspere having relations with the inner court circles either.
The author of Shakespeare’s contemporary works had to be a knowledgeable person who was well-versed in many different fields, like law, music and foreign languages, which the Stratford man had no access to.
Shakspere of Stratford was never recorded to be an actor, whilst the William Shakespeare was commemorated as “the Principall Actors in all these Playes” in the 1623 First Folio. This was a direct contradiction, between the two men.
In Shakspere’s will, he mentioned about the inheritance of household furniture, but did not talk about any literary works, or manuscripts. Shakspere’s handwriting was only captured in his signatures, all on documents which had nothing to do with literary pieces or works, all of which were signed as “Shak”, and not “Shake”.
Shakspere was also not recorded to have left for London in 1585, which he should have if he was the true Shakespeare.
Who are the possible candidates? / Who is the most likely candidate for the authorship of Shakespeare’s works? Provide reasons to support your view.
The first candidate is Francis Bacon, who had a keen sense of intellect, sophistication, and learning, in addition to a firm grasp of the law. However, his writing style is extremely different from that of Shakespeare, where the latter’s was more richly metaphorical unlike Bacon’s.
Christopher Marlowe was the same age as Shakspere, and was said to have died in 1593. However, supporters said that he did not die but continued writing under a pseudonym, William Shakespeare. The year 1593 was also the first publication of Shakespeare’s works, which further justified Marlowe’s case. However, these are all weakly-supported conjectures, much less only provided by his supporters, which exude a definite bias.
Nonetheless, I feel that Edward de Vere, also known as Oxford, is the one who is the most likely candidate for the authorship of Shakespeare’s works.
The writing style of Oxford and Shakespeare are too similar to be ignored.
Shakespeare wrote Venus and Adonis and used the phrase “first heir of my invention”, which was a common sight in Oxford’s poetry, and nowhere else in other English poems.
Craig Huston showed in his books The Shakespeare Authorship Question, Evidence for Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford and some others that there were many parallels between Shakespeare’s and Oxford’s works.
Venus and Adonis indicates both knowledge of Arthur Golding’s translation of Ovid’s Metamorphoses and of the original. Golding was the Earl of Oxford’s uncle and lived in the Cecil household when Oxford was a ward of Cecil’s, also dedicating two of his other translations to Oxford.
Characters and incidents in Shakespeare’s works are really people related to Oxford.
In Hamlet, Polonius actually represented Lord Burghley, who was Oxford’s father-in-law. In Hamlet’s dialogue, knowledge of Burghley’s career is revealed.
Christopher Hatton was Oxford’s enemy, and was satirised as Malvolio in Twelfth Night, with his letter to the Queen being parodied.
Oxford also wrote an introduction to Thomas Bedingfield’s Cardanus Comfort, a major source book for Hamlet.
Oxford was the only possible candidate for “Shakespeare” who actually “bore the canopy” over the Queen during the celebration of the defeat of the Spanish Armada.
The infamous Oxford-Sidney tennis-court quarrel is likened to Polonius in Hamlet saying, “young men falling out at tennis”.
Due to injuries suffered in a duel, Oxford attested to his own “infirmity” in later life, which could be the lameness mentioned by the author of Sonnets 37, 66 and 89.
In 1573 young Oxford played pranks on travellers along the same stretch of road “between Rochester and Gravesend”. So did Prince Hal’s pals from the Boar’s Head Tavern in Henry IV, Part 1. The Vere family crest also featured a blue boar.
Oxford wrote the poem “Anne Vavasor’s Echo”, to his mistress Anne Vavasor, the “Dark Lady” of the sonnets, which is similar to parts of Venus and Adonis and Romeo and Juliet.
The details of Hamlet are also very similar to those of Oxford’s life.
Oxford had a probable reason for adopting the name William Shakespeare because Thomas Nashe may have been referring to him when he addressed a “Gentle Master William” and a “Master Sacred ox” in 1592. In the same pamphlet, Nashe also mentions “his very friend Master Apis Lapis” and “Will Monox”, which might refer to Oxford.
The reference by Ben Jonson to Shakespeare as “Sweet Swan of Avon” in the First Folio has been put forward to show Shakespeare must have been Shakspere of Stratford. However, Oxford had an estate, which was bounded by the Avon River on one side and the Forest of Arden.
Upon Oxford’s death in 1604, King James had eight Shakespeare plays produced at court. When Oxford’s widow died, a group of Shakespeare plays were produced.
All these fully justify Edward de Vere’s identity as William Shakespeare. Would you not agree with me?
Resources:
Shakespeare Oxford Society. (Date Unknown). Shakespeare Oxford Society: “A Beginner’s Guide to the Shakespeare Authorship Problem” http://www.shakespeare-oxford.com/?p=35#Introduction (Accessed 5 June 2011)
Best Regards,
Nathan :)
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