(294) Shakespeare Authorship: The avalanche of ignorance concerning literature and authors in Shakespeare's days (1)

The knowledge of textual contents of contemporary literature, letters, handwritings, official or state documents and libraries, travel documents etc. etc. in Europe at Shakespeare's days holds the key to resolving the authorship problem!

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In order to approach the Shakespeare Authorship problem we are dependent on the yet existing documents (written or printed) whereever they are (contemporary literature, letters, handwritings, official or state documents in  various European countries and libraries, travel documents etc).

 

No doubt: a full knowledge of the incredible vast amount of  textual contents of contemporary literature in England at Shakespere's days  ( ->digitally available today) holds the key to resolving the authorship problem!

The following   alphabetical namelist of Writers (between 1580 and 1635)  offers you

 1.) at first  not only  a glimpse of the wealth  of contemporous Authors , Writers and Literates in Shakesperean England but
2.) secondly also a list of  an unprecedented richness  of contemporous types  of Book Genres in  Shakespearean times,

                         

As a crucial example one may ask why Shakespeare experts never  systematically investigated the contexts of book Genres such as  "Willobie his Avisa" (594), Polimanteia  etc at least as starting (hypo)thesis for the Shakespeare Authorship controversy

Why Shakespeare didn't contribute to the wealth  of book genres in his own time?

"Working hypothesis" : Marlowe equals Shakespeare 

Thesis = Deadly threatened Marlowe 1593 had to fake his death,  give up his identity and his name for safety resons, to live incognito and write continously under changing initials, pen names, pseudonyms or feigned identities (incl-Shake-speare) .

The title"(1). of the book "Willobie his Avisa" 1594 (of an unidentifiable author H.D. Hadrian Dorell), prompts us to read at first 

"the preface to the Reader.

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The preface (2) informs us that from the 44th canto to the end of the booke the author identifies ("names") himself.

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From Canto 44 (3) we learn that pseudo-author H.W. (Henrico Willebago?) was suddenly infected with the contagion of a fantastical fit. The "fantasical fit" consisted in the transmission (exposition?) of the secresy of his disease [his name] from W.S., William Shakspere ("... now newly recovered of the like infection.

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The preface(4) clearly informs us that though the matter is handled poetically, yet there is something under these fained names and showes that hath bene done truely. Now judge you....." 

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Our poet tried to reveal metaphorically in his Situation in 1594 . Why - on earth - the initials of W.C. could not have belonged to our hidden author? What could it mean otherwise? 

Willoby his Avisa(1594) is literature's first extant independent mentioning of the name William Shakespeare (5) hyphenated from the very beginning), republished six times between 1594 and 1635.

Its popularity suggests that Tudor audiences knew  what was being meant!