A tale of two Shakespeares
Published 23 May, 2008, 05:30
A professor at Moscow’s Linguistics University claims Shakespeare was actually two different writers. This latest theory adds to a heated debate on the authenticity of one of the world's greatest literary figures.
William Shakespeare is not only one of the most enduring figures of world literature, but also one of fierce debate.
Some doubt that a middle class tax collector from a provincial English town would be able to write so intimately about war, the court and distant lands.
Now Marina Litvinova – a Russian academic – has thrown her hat into the ring. Her new book ‘Shakespeare: A Justification’ claims the bard was not one person but two.
“Shakespeares plays and sonnets that are easily settled by this answer that there were two persons one a great thinker and one a great poet,” Litvinova believes.
Litvinova says the works were a partnership between Philosopher and Statesman Sir Francis Bacon and poet/scholar, Roger Manners the 5th Earl of Rutland.
According to Litvinova these men had all the right ingredients of real writers.
They hung out with prominent figures of the day. Manners headed a military campaign and led an envoy to Denmark, which was of course the setting for Hamlet.
For thousands of actors who’ve treaded the boards since the XVI century the latest revelations are unlikely to detract from the beauty of the words. But the question is would rose by any other name still smell as sweet.
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