Response Paper On Anonymous Discussio
Michelle Gaalswyk
Mr. Hackbarth
English 4, Period 2
24 November 2014
Anonymous
Shakespeare and Edward de Vere had a lot of these in common according to Professor Stanley Wells. He also says that it is not very likely that Edward de Vere would have wrote the plays. It is very likely, however, that William Shakespeare wrote the plays. The video talking about the movie Anonymous and if Shakespeare is real, makes many strong points for why he is the real author and Edward de Vere is not. First of all, Professor Stanley Wells and Professor Carol Rutter talk about William Shakespeare’s education. They talk about how Shakespeare would have had a really intense and good education. He would not have been illiterate like the article and movie claim. He would have gone to grammar school six days a week. Shakespeare would have been memorizing and learning Latin while at school. He probably would have learned the Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Another thing they talk about is the fact that Shakespeare would have signed his name in many different ways. It was very common for people to sign their names in multiple ways. The spelling of words was very flexible during Shakespeare’s time. They also say that Shakespeare was quite wealthy and left a lot of money to his wife and children. He also would have had many books for research even if he never traveled. Shakespeare lived in a rather large town (not a tiny village) of about two thousand people. The largest city at that time was around fifteen thousand people. One of the arguments for why Shakespeare did not write the plays is because he had bad handwriting. Professor Stanley Wells says, “He is being judged as a calligrapher, not a poet.” I believe that he should not be judged based off of his handwriting like Professor Stanley Wells, but that he should be judged by his skills on writing poetry and plays. Secondly, when talking about Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, the professors say that he wrote in secret in his study. The
Mr. Hackbarth
English 4, Period 2
24 November 2014
Anonymous
Shakespeare and Edward de Vere had a lot of these in common according to Professor Stanley Wells. He also says that it is not very likely that Edward de Vere would have wrote the plays. It is very likely, however, that William Shakespeare wrote the plays. The video talking about the movie Anonymous and if Shakespeare is real, makes many strong points for why he is the real author and Edward de Vere is not. First of all, Professor Stanley Wells and Professor Carol Rutter talk about William Shakespeare’s education. They talk about how Shakespeare would have had a really intense and good education. He would not have been illiterate like the article and movie claim. He would have gone to grammar school six days a week. Shakespeare would have been memorizing and learning Latin while at school. He probably would have learned the Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Another thing they talk about is the fact that Shakespeare would have signed his name in many different ways. It was very common for people to sign their names in multiple ways. The spelling of words was very flexible during Shakespeare’s time. They also say that Shakespeare was quite wealthy and left a lot of money to his wife and children. He also would have had many books for research even if he never traveled. Shakespeare lived in a rather large town (not a tiny village) of about two thousand people. The largest city at that time was around fifteen thousand people. One of the arguments for why Shakespeare did not write the plays is because he had bad handwriting. Professor Stanley Wells says, “He is being judged as a calligrapher, not a poet.” I believe that he should not be judged based off of his handwriting like Professor Stanley Wells, but that he should be judged by his skills on writing poetry and plays. Secondly, when talking about Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, the professors say that he wrote in secret in his study. The