William Shakespeare (/ekspr/;[1] 26 April 1564 (baptised) 23

April 1616)[nb 1] was an English poet, playwright, and actor, widely

regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the
world's pre-eminent dramatist.[2] He is often called England's national
poet, and the "Bard of Avon".[3][nb 2] His extant works, including
collaborations, consist of approximately 38 plays,[nb 3] 154 sonnets, two
long narrative poems, and a few other verses, some of uncertain
authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living
language and are performed more often than those of any other
playwright.[4]
Shakespeare was born and brought up in Stratford-upon-Avon,
Warwickshire. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with
whom he had three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith.
Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in
London as an actor, writer, and part-owner of a playing company
called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men.
He appears to have retired to Stratford around 1613, at age 49, where
he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life
survive, which has stimulated considerable speculation about such
matters as his physical appearance, sexuality, and religious beliefs,
and whether the works attributed to him were written by others.[5]
Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1589 and
1613.[6][nb 4] His early plays were primarily comedies and histories, and
these are regarded as some of the best work ever produced in these
genres. He then wrote mainly tragedies until about 1608, including
Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth, considered some of the
finest works in the English language.[2] In his last phase, he wrote
tragicomedies, also known as romances, and collaborated with other
playwrights.
Many of his plays were published in editions of varying quality and
accuracy during his lifetime. In 1623, John Heminges and Henry
Condell, two friends and fellow actors of Shakespeare, published the

First Folio, a posthumous collected edition of his dramatic works that

included all but two of the plays now recognised as Shakespeare's. [7]
It was prefaced with a poem by Ben Jonson, in which Shakespeare is
hailed, presciently, as "not of an age, but for all time". [7] In the 20th
and 21st centuries, his works have been repeatedly adapted and
rediscovered by new movements in scholarship and performance. His
plays remain highly popular, and are constantly studied, performed,
and reinterpreted in diverse cultural and political contexts throughout
the world.
The Shakespeare authorship question is the argument that
someone other than William Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon
wrote the works attributed to him. Anti-Stratfordiansa collective term
for adherents of the various alternative-authorship theoriesbelieve
that Shakespeare of Stratford was a front to shield the identity of the
real author or authors, who for some reason did not want or could not
accept public credit.[1] Although the idea has attracted much public
interest,[2][a] all but a few Shakespeare scholars and literary historians
consider it a fringe belief and for the most part acknowledge it only to
rebut or disparage the claims.[3]
Shakespeare's authorship was first questioned in the middle of the
19th century,[4] when adulation of Shakespeare as the greatest writer
of all time had become widespread.[5] Shakespeare's biography,
particularly his humble origins and obscure life, seemed incompatible
with his poetic eminence and his reputation for genius, [6] arousing
suspicion that Shakespeare might not have written the works
attributed to him.[7] The controversy has since spawned a vast body of
literature,[8] and more than 80 authorship candidates have been
proposed,[9] the most popular being Sir Francis Bacon; Edward de
Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford; Christopher Marlowe; and William Stanley,
6th Earl of Derby.[10]
Supporters of alternative candidates argue William Shakespeare

lacked the education, aristocratic sensibility, or familiarity with the

royal court that they say is apparent in the works. [11] Those
Shakespeare scholars who have responded to such claims hold that
biographical interpretations of literature are unreliable in attributing
authorship,[12] and that the convergence of documentary evidence
used to support Shakespeare's authorshiptitle pages, testimony by
other contemporary poets and historians, and official recordsis the
same used for all other authorial attributions of his era. [13] No such
direct evidence exists for any other candidate,[14] and Shakespeare's
authorship was not questioned during his lifetime or for centuries after
his death.[15]
Despite the scholarly consensus,[16] a relatively small[17] but highly
visible and diverse assortment of supporters, including prominent
public figures,[18] have questioned the conventional attribution. [19] They
work for acknowledgment of the authorship question as a legitimate
field of scholarly inquiry and for acceptance of one or another of the
various authorship candidates.[20]

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Contents [hide]

1 Overview
2 Case against Shakespeare's authorship
2.1 Shakespeare's background
2.2 Education and literacy
2.3 Name as a pseudonym
2.4 Lack of documentary evidence
2.5 Circumstances of Shakespeare's death
3 Case for Shakespeare's authorship
3.1 Historical evidence
3.2 Contemporary legal recognition
3.3 Recognition by fellow actors, playwrights and writers
3.4 Shakespeare's deaththe historical perspective
3.5 Evidence for Shakespeare's authorship from his works
4 History of the authorship question

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4.1 Bardolatry and early doubt

4.2 Open dissent and the first alternative candidate
4.3 Search for proof
4.4 Other candidates emerge
4.5 Authorship in the mainstream media
5 Alternative candidates
5.1 Group theories
5.2 Sir Francis Bacon
5.3 Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford
5.4 Christopher Marlowe
5.5 William Stanley, 6th Earl of Derby
6 Notes
6.1 Footnotes
6.2 Citations
7 References
8 External links