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The Authorship Controversy Essay Another contender for the authorship of Shakespeare’s works is Francis Bacon. One of the major reasons for this belief is the existence of a document which bears the names of Shakespeare and Bacon. The Northumberland Manuscript consists of list of speeches and other manuscripts which have been signed â€Å"By Francis William Shakespeare†. Bacon has been known to highlight aspects of a hidden or disguised life. In â€Å"The Essay of Friendship† Bacon writes: There be some whose lives are as if they perpetually played a part upon a stage, disguised to all others, open only to themselves. In a letter written to his friend John Davies, Bacon writes: So desiring you to be good to concealed poets, I continue, yours very assured, Fr. Bacon. Francis Bacon’s vocabulary has been found to be extremely similar to each other. Another reason why several scholars believe that Francis Bacon is actually the author behind Shakespeare’s work is the fact that Bacon never directly mentioned Shakespeare’s name or quoted anything from Shakespeare’s plays. Moreover, many believe that when comparing the writings of most contemporary authors, no one comes close to Shakespeare’s style of prose and verse as Bacon. In fact a large number of words and phrases that are found in Shakespeare’s books can be attributed to Bacon’s notebook â€Å"Promus† which consists of hundreds and thousands of words and phrases that appeared for the first time in the English Language. (BBC UK) However, those who have argued that Bacon could not be Shakespeare have done so on the basis of the fact that Bacon himself has such a large collection of his own works, it is difficult to imagine that he would have had the time or the need to write under a different name. (Shakespeare Resource Center) The third contender is Edward De Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford whose work has shown similarities to that of Shakespeare. His early verse and letters have been known to contain words and phrases similar to that of Shakespeare. Moreover, the content of Shakespeare’s plays and poems indicate an in-depth knowledge of key persons in Elizabeth’s court and events related to them. De Vere was known to posses this information. De Vere has been strongly advocated to be the true author of Shakespeare’s plays. Several scholars have highlighted the similarity between De Vere’s guardian William Cecil and the character of Polonius in Hamlet. (Shakespeare Resource Center) Similarly, De Vere once wrote s poem and a letter to introduce Cardamus Comfort, a book by Thomas Bedingfield and one of the most important source book for Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Another coincidence is the character of Malvolio in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night which shows a striking resemblance to Christopher Hatton, a key enemy of De Vere. Thus, in many of Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets, one can find characters and events similar to De Vere’s real life. In fact, the plot and characters of Hamlet are so similar to De Vere’s life that some scholars have even gone so far as to say that the play is practically an autobiography of De Vere. (Shakespeare-Oxford) Although no play can be attributed to De Vere, his verse and letters show a distinct similarity to Shakespeare. Although no one has been able to give any definite proof of who out of the many contenders was indeed the true author of Shakespeare’s work, nevertheless this debate has been one of the most extensive in literary history. Whoever wrote Shakespeare’s works had to have extensive knowledge on a large variety of subjects including law, music, foreign languages, classics, sports, aristocratic manners etc. Nothing that is known about William Shakespeare indicates that he possessed all this information and knowledge. Similarly, Shakespeare’s connection with the theater was never clearly established and there was nothing to document his career as an actor such as any past roles or any plays that he might have performed in. Moreover, there are no clear and legible signatures that can be attributed to Shakespeare. Historically, there are six practically illegible signatures, each different from the other and each of them from the latter period of his life i. e. three on his will, one on a deposition, and two on some property documents. Not a single signature has been seen with any of his literature. (The Beginner’s Guide) Stratfordians have been consistently downplaying these debates and believe that since so many contenders have been considered to be the true Shakespeare, the notion is absurd to begin with. There cannot be so many possible candidates to substitute one person (approximately eight Elizabethans have been considered for this role) and thus there really is no logic for this premise and none of the so-called contenders are Shakespeare. (The Beginner’s Guide) Overall, there are several arguments which assert that Shakespeare did not write the plays and sonnets that have been attributed to him. He did not have the background or breeding to do so; did not have the education to write such lyrics and prose; did not have the depth his plays possess which only a University educated individual would have. Moreover, his name is spelt Shaksper on his birth certificate and the authenticity of his signatures has also been questioned. There is no reasonable explanation as to why he retired to Stratford at the peak of his career. There is also no logic of why he was not painted during his lifetime or the fact that his death entry in the registry lists him as a Gent instead of a dramatist, playwright or poet. The debate has never been concluded and one cannot be sure when or how it will. (The Authorship Controversy) Bibliography 1. Information about Shakespeare from the Shakespeare Resource Center. Available online at http://www. bardweb. net/debates. html 2. Gross, John. Will the Real Shakespeare Please Stand Up? Commentary, Vol. 119, March 2005