This article on the Shakespeare Authorship Question has been written according to Wikipedia policies and guidelines, as they pertain to alternative theory and minority view articles. The article also conforms to Wikipedia's 5 Pillars of fundamental principals.[a]
Notes on terminology*
*Due to a lack of standardized spelling in the Elizabethan era,[b] the name known today as 'Shakespeare' was spelled numerous ways in the historical records, some of the most well known being Shakspere, Shake-speare and Shakespeare.
Within this article -
*when the name is spelled Shakspere, using the spelling which appeared on his baptismal record and several of his putative signatures, the article will be referring to the gentleman named William Shakspere of Stratford-upon-Avon, to whom authorship is traditionally credited.
*when the name is written Shakespeare or Shake-speare, as spelled on many quartos and in the first folio, the article will be referring to the writer responsible for creating the plays and poems in question (regardless of the candidate).
*Due to a lack of standardized spelling in the Elizabethan era,[b] the name known today as 'Shakespeare' was spelled numerous ways in the historical records, some of the most well known being Shakspere, Shake-speare and Shakespeare.
Within this article -
*when the name is spelled Shakspere, using the spelling which appeared on his baptismal record and several of his putative signatures, the article will be referring to the gentleman named William Shakspere of Stratford-upon-Avon, to whom authorship is traditionally credited.
*when the name is written Shakespeare or Shake-speare, as spelled on many quartos and in the first folio, the article will be referring to the writer responsible for creating the plays and poems in question (regardless of the candidate).
Joseph Hall may have been an early doubter
Like most issues having to do with the debate over Shakespeare's authorship, documenting the history of the Shakespeare authorship question is often contentious. There is no agreement, academic or otherwise, as to when the theory was first proposed or alluded to. Numerous Shakespeare scholars, including Jonathan Bate and Stanley Wells, have written that during the life of William Shakespeare and for more than 200 years after his death, there has been no convincing evidence put forward that anyone other than Shakespeare wrote the works.[1]. Some researchers, however including authorship skeptics Diana Price and John Michell, believe that several 16th and 17th century works, including allusions by Elizabethan satirists Joseph Hall and John Marston,[2] suggest that the Shakespearean canon was written by someone else.[3][4]
According to mainstream critics William and Elizebeth Friedman, the allusions to doubts about Shakespearean authorship also arose in several 18th century satirical and allegorical works.[5] Throughout the 18th century, Shakespeare was described as a transcendent genius and by the beginning of the 19th century Bardolatry was in full swing.[6] Uneasiness about the difference between Shakespeare's godlike reputation and the humdrum facts of his biography began to emerge in the 19th century. In 1850, Ralph Waldo Emerson expressed the underlying question in the air about Shakespeare saying, "The Egyptian [i.e. mysterious] verdict of the Shakspeare Societies comes to mind; that he was a jovial actor and manager. I can not marry this fact to his verse."[7][8]
In 1853, with help from Emerson, Delia Bacon, an American teacher and writer, travelled to Britain to research her belief that Shakespeare's works were written by a group to communicate the advanced political and philosophical ideas of Francis Bacon (no relation). Later writers such as Ignatius Donnelly portrayed Francis Bacon as the sole author. The American poet Walt Whitman declared himself agnostic on the issue and refrained from endorsing an alternative candidacy. Voicing his skepticism, Whitman remarked, "I go with you fellows when you say no to Shaksper: that's about as far as I have got. As to Bacon, well, we'll see, we'll see."[9]
According to mainstream critics William and Elizebeth Friedman, the allusions to doubts about Shakespearean authorship also arose in several 18th century satirical and allegorical works.[5] Throughout the 18th century, Shakespeare was described as a transcendent genius and by the beginning of the 19th century Bardolatry was in full swing.[6] Uneasiness about the difference between Shakespeare's godlike reputation and the humdrum facts of his biography began to emerge in the 19th century. In 1850, Ralph Waldo Emerson expressed the underlying question in the air about Shakespeare saying, "The Egyptian [i.e. mysterious] verdict of the Shakspeare Societies comes to mind; that he was a jovial actor and manager. I can not marry this fact to his verse."[7][8]
In 1853, with help from Emerson, Delia Bacon, an American teacher and writer, travelled to Britain to research her belief that Shakespeare's works were written by a group to communicate the advanced political and philosophical ideas of Francis Bacon (no relation). Later writers such as Ignatius Donnelly portrayed Francis Bacon as the sole author. The American poet Walt Whitman declared himself agnostic on the issue and refrained from endorsing an alternative candidacy. Voicing his skepticism, Whitman remarked, "I go with you fellows when you say no to Shaksper: that's about as far as I have got. As to Bacon, well, we'll see, we'll see."[9]
Skeptic Walt Whitman considered the works "feudal"
In 1918, Professor Abel Lefranc, a renowned authority on French and English literature, put forward William Stanley, 6th Earl of Derby as the author, based on biographical evidence found in the plays and poems [10] In 1920, an English school-teacher, John Thomas Looney, published Shakespeare Identified, proposing a new candidate for the authorship in Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford. This theory gained many notable advocates, including Sigmund Freud. By the early 20th century, the Bacon movement faded, resulting in increased interest in Stanley and Oxford.[11] In 1923, Archie Webster wrote the first in-depth essay on the candidacy of playwright Christopher Marlowe.[12]
In the 1950's and 60's, the "group theory" of Shakespeare authorship was quite popular. It is known that during the late 16th century, collaboration in the writing of plays was not uncommon. For example, John Fletcher appears as the co-author of Henry VIII. Edward de Vere, Francis Bacon, William Stanley, Roger Manners and Mary Sidney Herbert were proposed as members of such a group. Most Group theories of the time included Edward de Vere as a key component, with one such group known as the "Oxford Syndicate". Other playwrights who have been proposed as co-authors include John Lyly, Thomas Nashe, Christopher Marlowe, and Robert Greene.[13]
Since the publication of Charlton Ogburn's The Mysterious William Shakespeare: the Myth and the Reality in 1984, the Oxfordian theory, boosted in part by the advocacy of several Supreme Court justices, high-profile theatre professionals, and a limited number of academics, has become the most popular alternative authorship theory.[14]
In 2007, the New York Times surveyed 265 Shakespeare professors on the topic. To the question "Do you think there is good reason to question whether William Shakespeare of Stratford is the principal author of the plays and poems in the canon?", 6% answered "yes" and an additional 11% responded "possible". When asked what best described their opinion of the Shakespeare authorship question, 61% answered that it was a "A theory without convincing evidence" while 32% called the issue "A waste of time and classroom distraction". When asked if they "mention the Shakespeare authorship question in (their) Shakespeare classes?", 72% answered "yes". [15]
In the 1950's and 60's, the "group theory" of Shakespeare authorship was quite popular. It is known that during the late 16th century, collaboration in the writing of plays was not uncommon. For example, John Fletcher appears as the co-author of Henry VIII. Edward de Vere, Francis Bacon, William Stanley, Roger Manners and Mary Sidney Herbert were proposed as members of such a group. Most Group theories of the time included Edward de Vere as a key component, with one such group known as the "Oxford Syndicate". Other playwrights who have been proposed as co-authors include John Lyly, Thomas Nashe, Christopher Marlowe, and Robert Greene.[13]
Since the publication of Charlton Ogburn's The Mysterious William Shakespeare: the Myth and the Reality in 1984, the Oxfordian theory, boosted in part by the advocacy of several Supreme Court justices, high-profile theatre professionals, and a limited number of academics, has become the most popular alternative authorship theory.[14]
In 2007, the New York Times surveyed 265 Shakespeare professors on the topic. To the question "Do you think there is good reason to question whether William Shakespeare of Stratford is the principal author of the plays and poems in the canon?", 6% answered "yes" and an additional 11% responded "possible". When asked what best described their opinion of the Shakespeare authorship question, 61% answered that it was a "A theory without convincing evidence" while 32% called the issue "A waste of time and classroom distraction". When asked if they "mention the Shakespeare authorship question in (their) Shakespeare classes?", 72% answered "yes". [15]
References
- "It was not until 1848 that the Authorship Question emerged from the obscurity of private speculation into the daylight of public debate.” McCrea, 13
- Gibson, H.N. The Shakespeare Claimants, New York: Barnes and Noble, 1962, 59-65; Michell, John, Who Wrote Shakespeare, London: Thames and Hudson, 1996, 126-29
- Price, Diana. Shakespeare's Unorthodox Biography (2001), 224-26.
- Michell, John, Who Wrote Shakespeare, London: Thames and Hudson, 1996, 126-29
- Friedman, William F. and Elizebeth S. The Shakespearean Ciphers Examined (1957), pp. 1-4, quoted in Shakespeare and His Rivals, George McMichael, Edward M. Glenn, eds. (1962) pg. 56; Wadsworth, 10.
- Sawyer, Robert (2003). Victorian Appropriations of Shakespeare. New Jersey: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 113. ISBN 0838639704.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, 'Shakspeare; or, the Poetì in Joel Porte (ed.) Essays & lectures By Ralph Waldo Emerson,Library of America, 1983 p.725
- Wadsworth, 19.
- Traubel, H.: With Walt Whitman in Camden, qtd. in Anon, 'Walt Whitman on Shakespeare'. The Shakespeare Fellowship. (Oxfordian website). Retrieved April 16, 2006.
- Michell, 191.
- Schoenbaum (1991), 431
- Schoenbaum (1991) 446.
- McMichael, pg 154
- Gibson, 48, 72, 124; Kathman, David (2003), 620; Schoenbaum, Lives, 430–40.
- Did He or Didn’t He? That Is the Question. New York Times