A name by any other spelling?

John Shahan, Guest Commentary

One reason the SAT added Substack to our activities was to increase engagement with our members; to provide a forum for discussion. A recent comment on one of our posts has given rise to an important component of how the authorship question is perceived and what we, as scholars, can do to shift perceptions.

The following is from one John Shahan, Chairman of the Shakespeare Authorship Coalition, a U.S. based organization whose goal is to legitimize the Shakespeare authorship issue, primarily through the promulgation and defense of the Declaration of Reasonable Doubt. Posted with permission.

The spelling of the Stratford man’s family name is critically important to our cause. It is problematic when it is spelled ‘Shakespeare’ in publications that legitimize the use of that spelling. The evidence shows that his name was not ‘Shakespeare,’ but ‘Shakspere,’ and that there are few things in the authorship controversy so clearly supported by evidence. It is also not a minor point but a major argument (sometimes the only argument) in the case for Shakspere as the author. This is based mainly on Professor A.J. Pointon’s book, The Man Who Was Never Shakespeare (2011). Space does not allow for a deep dive into details, but they are overwhelming. For example, not once is the name spelled ‘Shakespeare’ in any of twenty-six entries in Stratford’s parish records relating to him and his family. And, as Bill Bryson pointed out, he never used the name ‘Shakespeare’ in his life.