Shakespearians often groan when the Shakespeare authorship conspiracy theory raises its head. But it often does, especially for those of us connected with Shakespeare's birthplace. Or perhaps you've chatted about the issue in taxis, on trains, or during long flights? Sometimes I hear "it doesn't matter, we still have the plays." The fact is it matters utterly, otherwise there would be no conspiracy theories in first place. And there would be no new film called Anonymous (from Roland Emmerich, the director of Godzilla and Independence Day) trying to insinuate itself into the popular imagination. Suddenly, those questions are going to be cropping up more often.
Anonymous will put over the view that the plays and poems should be attributed to the Earl of Oxford, a nominee first suggested by Thomas Looney (pronounced "Loney") in 1920. Let's get this straight. There is not a shred of evidence for the Earl of Oxford's nomination, nor for the 76 other people who have been suggested. Time and again I hear the rhetoric: "Shakespeare couldn't have written the plays; he wasn't educated enough; he wasn't aristocratic; he wasn't knowledgeable enough; he didn't have the right kind of experience." That isn't evidence of anything. It's just an unattractive mix of ignorance, jealousy, snobbery, and intellectual theft. And it denies the power of the human imagination.
There is, in fact, a mass of evidence for Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon as author of the plays and poems. The first time his name appears in print is at the end of the dedication of the erotic poem Venus and Adonis in 1593 and again the following year in The Rape of Lucrece. Both works were printed by his Stratford contemporary, Richard Field, and remained hugely popular well into the 17th century. There were around 35 editions of about half the plays published during his lifetime: two thirds of those bear Shakespeare's name; those that don't carry the name of the companies for which he wrote. At least 14 different people refer to Shakespeare as a writer in his lifetime. In 1598, Francis Meres mentions the Earl of Oxford in the same sentence as Shakespeare and lists their different plays. On his death, Shakespeare was commemorated by the bust in Holy Trinity Church, Stratford (which refers to him three times as a writer) and by a collection of 36 of his plays in 1623. There, Ben Jonson – never a man quick to praise – refers to him as "the sweet swan of Avon" and Leonard Digges refers to Shakespeare's "Stratford monument". Later, William Davenant liked to claim he was Shakespeare's illegitimate son (Davenant's mother looked after a popular inn on the journey between Stratford and London). In the 1660s, Rev John Ward (the Stratford vicar) makes notes about Shakespeare writing in Stratford, and Nicholas Rowe sends researchers to Stratford for his 1709 biography. Everything, in other words, connects Shakespeare of Stratford with the works.
The conspiracy theories started in the middle of the 19th century. It was the era of an inherited gothic and Romantic imagination, reacting to Darwin, and alive to the beginnings of detective fiction. Gaps in the record began to make people uneasy. But there's nothing unusual in those gaps. We don't know very much about most people during Shakespeare's time.
Does it matter who wrote the plays? I think it matters greatly, and always will. As people we want to know as much as possible about the artist who produced the work. William Shakespeare was Stratford and London through and through. He didn't go to university. He wasn't an aristocrat. He was from fairly humble origins and worked hard at what he was good at. So the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust is speaking up for Shakespeare. We've gathered together 60 speakers to answer 60 questions for 60 seconds each. Contributors include Shakespeare scholars (Gary Taylor, Stanley Wells), writers (Margaret Drabble, Michael Holroyd, Stephen Fry), and actors (Simon Callow, Antony Sher, Harriet Walter, Janet Suzman).
• Anonymous is showing at the Toronto film festival on 11, 12 and 17 September
taken from http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/theatreblog/2011/sep/05/shakespeare-anonymous-roland-emmerich
- Anonymous
- Production year: 2011
- Directors: Roland Emmerich
- Cast: David Thewlis, Derek Jacobi, Joely Richardson, Rhys Ifans, Vanessa Redgrave
There is, in fact, a mass of evidence for Shakespeare of Stratford-upon-Avon as author of the plays and poems. The first time his name appears in print is at the end of the dedication of the erotic poem Venus and Adonis in 1593 and again the following year in The Rape of Lucrece. Both works were printed by his Stratford contemporary, Richard Field, and remained hugely popular well into the 17th century. There were around 35 editions of about half the plays published during his lifetime: two thirds of those bear Shakespeare's name; those that don't carry the name of the companies for which he wrote. At least 14 different people refer to Shakespeare as a writer in his lifetime. In 1598, Francis Meres mentions the Earl of Oxford in the same sentence as Shakespeare and lists their different plays. On his death, Shakespeare was commemorated by the bust in Holy Trinity Church, Stratford (which refers to him three times as a writer) and by a collection of 36 of his plays in 1623. There, Ben Jonson – never a man quick to praise – refers to him as "the sweet swan of Avon" and Leonard Digges refers to Shakespeare's "Stratford monument". Later, William Davenant liked to claim he was Shakespeare's illegitimate son (Davenant's mother looked after a popular inn on the journey between Stratford and London). In the 1660s, Rev John Ward (the Stratford vicar) makes notes about Shakespeare writing in Stratford, and Nicholas Rowe sends researchers to Stratford for his 1709 biography. Everything, in other words, connects Shakespeare of Stratford with the works.
The conspiracy theories started in the middle of the 19th century. It was the era of an inherited gothic and Romantic imagination, reacting to Darwin, and alive to the beginnings of detective fiction. Gaps in the record began to make people uneasy. But there's nothing unusual in those gaps. We don't know very much about most people during Shakespeare's time.
Does it matter who wrote the plays? I think it matters greatly, and always will. As people we want to know as much as possible about the artist who produced the work. William Shakespeare was Stratford and London through and through. He didn't go to university. He wasn't an aristocrat. He was from fairly humble origins and worked hard at what he was good at. So the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust is speaking up for Shakespeare. We've gathered together 60 speakers to answer 60 questions for 60 seconds each. Contributors include Shakespeare scholars (Gary Taylor, Stanley Wells), writers (Margaret Drabble, Michael Holroyd, Stephen Fry), and actors (Simon Callow, Antony Sher, Harriet Walter, Janet Suzman).
• Anonymous is showing at the Toronto film festival on 11, 12 and 17 September
taken from http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/theatreblog/2011/sep/05/shakespeare-anonymous-roland-emmerich
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