To Write or Not To Write?

The burning question on everyone's mind. Did Shakespeare really write his plays? I know that at least one of these plays look familiar to you, but did the author listed actually take the time to write them? Through this post, I will give you both sides of the argument, tell you my opinion, and then let you decide for yourself.

Today, I research extensively, trying to find anything that will tell me more about Shakespeare's life as an author. As I  read through an article, I find a very interesting piece of information that could prove that Shakespeare didn't write his plays. People have been searching for any written document about Shakespeare and have found only a few signatures, a record of his marriage to Anne Hathaway, a three-page will, papers detailing business transactions (unrelated to writing) and two portraits. Nothing about his schooling or any of his manuscripts. This would throw me off, and it does. I keep reading through the article and find that there have been many websites created dedicated to proving the fact that Shakespeare didn't write any of his plays. There is a whole lineup of famous people ready to say and prove that Shakespeare didn't write his plays, the list including Henry James, Mark Twain, Helen Keller and Charlie Chaplin among others. There are multiple theories throughout the article, making it very informative, and I encourage you to check it out.

Now, for the side that believes that yes, of course Shakespeare wrote his plays! I find another interesting article that talks more about the other side's ideas and their own theories. This is one line in the article that might prove this side of the argument correct. "Oxfordians," the author of the article states, "argue that he concealed his identity because his works were so politically provocative, and he wished to be avoid being outed as a lowly playwright." Along with this line, the very last paragraph of this article states that Shakespeare did write his plays, saying, in essence, if there is no evidence to prove that Shakespeare didn't write his plays, and there's no other evidence pointing to who else could've written them, then who are we to judge? We don't know anything and are only going off of what we've been able to discover and understand. There is nothing for sure saying that he did or didn't. So how can we say he didn't write them, when there's no evidence proving that? And even though we don't know if he wrote them, you can find all his books on shelves at Barnes and Noble.

So how do we know which side is right for sure? We have little to no evidence proving if he did or didn't write his plays. For now, I'm going to say that I truly believe he did because, as we all know, we are innocent until proven guilty. Until clear evidence rises to the surface about whether or not Shakespeare wrote his plays, I'm going to say that he did.

That doesn't mean you have to agree with me, however. You can believe whatever you wish, and if you want to believe that Shakespeare didn't, then go ahead. If you're unsure as to where you stand in this argument, then go back through this post and click on those links to the articles. Read through them; they're full of really good information. After that, you may have a better understanding as to where you stand.

For now, my verdict is "To Write!"

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