William Shakespeare

By Bruce Shawkey

Was William Shakespeare really Edward De Vere?   

This story has popped up on the Internet quite a few times over the years that the great British playwright and poet, William Shakespeare (1550 - 1604, was actually Edward DeVere and/or that De Vere wrote for Shakespeare and Shakespeare basically plagiarised it. It just isn't true.

Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford, was a real person. But there's no concrete proof that he was the true author of William Shakespeare's plays and poems.

It's a confirmed fact that William Shakespeare wrote at least thirty-six plays, including such masterpieces as Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Julius Caesar, and Othello, a magnificent set of 154 sonnets, and a few longer poems. 

It seems beyond dispute that Shakespeare is preeminent among all literary figures. Relatively few people today read the works of Chaucer, Virgil, or even Homer, except when those works are assigned reading in school. However, a performance of one of Shakespeare's plays is certain to be well attended. Shakespeare's gift for a well-turned phrase is without parallel, and he is frequently quoted — even by persons who have never seen or read his plays. Furthermore, it is plain that his popularity is not a mere passing fad. His works have given pleasure to readers and viewers for almost four centuries. As they have already stood the test of time, it seems reasonable to assume that the works of Shakespeare will continue to be popular for a good many centuries to come.

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