Did William Shakespeare Write His Plays?

The 37 plays attributed to William Shakespeare are among the most important English language works ever authored. They form a catalog of theatrical plots and characters as well as a lexicon of the evolution of modern English. Yet there are claims that Shakespeare never wrote any plays. Some scholars believe the actor served as a front for an author who wished to remain anonymous.

The Case Against Shakespeare
At the heart of the Shakespeare authorship debate is the lack of information we have about the man himself. Although Shakespeare lived in an era when records were kept, his birthdate is unknown. No one knows where he attended school, although it is generally believed that he never went to college.

Although Shakespeare registered ownership of his plays and poems with the local government, no first drafts or notes about his work have ever been found. No mention of his papers can be found in his will, which is quite surprising, because these papers would have been quite valuable at the time of his death.

This lack of evidence has led some scholars to suggest that Shakespeare was taking credit for the work of a noble who wished to remain anonymous. Although plays were a popular form of entertainment in Shakespeare's time, they weren't considered literature and would have been seen as an unfit pursuit for the upper class.

Over the centuries since Shakespeare's death, several people have been named as potential authors of the plays:

• Francis Bacon: A scholar and philosopher who helped to develop scientific research principles, Bacon dabbled in playwriting and poetry at the same time that Shakespeare was writing. Although Bacon had the education to create Shakespeare's plays, most scholars argue that his writing style was inferior to Shakespeare.
• Christopher Marlowe: Next to Shakespeare, Marlowe was the most famous poet and playwright of the Elizabethan era. Marlowe had an immense influence on other writers of his day, including Shakespeare. Some scholars believed that Marlowe staged his own death in 1593 to avoid facing trial for heresy, then continued writing and publishing using the name Shakespeare. A flaw in this theory is that Marlowe's plays were written in blank verse, while Shakespeare's were mostly written in iambic pentameter.
• Edward de Vere: The 17th Earl of Oxford is the current candidate supported by some scholars. There are strong similarities between Shakespeare's and de Vere's writing style, and de Vere was known to posess a formidable vocabulary. However, de Vere died in 1604, years before many Shakespeare plays were published.

Other candidates for authorship include such notable figures as Queen Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh. Another theory holds that Shakespeare simply signed his name to plays written by a group that included himself, de Vere, Bacon, Mary Sidney and William Stanley.

The Case for Shakespeare
Despite the scholarly bickering, there is no evidence to suggest that anyone other than Shakespeare authored the plays and poems that bear his name. Shakespeare was a registered part-owner of the Globe Theatre, and it's known that he performed in the plays that he wrote. Until strong evidence to the contrary is found, Shakespeare's name will continue to be associated with some of the greatest English-language works of all time.