Ever since I first heard lines from one of William Shakespeare’s plays, I have been fascinated by his control of the language and the elegance with which he wrote. I once heard someone say that if I wanted to hear beautiful language, I could read two things: the Holy Bible and the works of William Shakespeare. To have the writings of one man compared to the Bible means only one thing: greatness. William Shakespeare would probably be the person I would most like to meet.

Besides what was mentioned above, I would like to meet Shakespeare because he is the greatest playwright ever to live. His plays are filled with action, his characters are believable, and his language is magnificent to hear or read. At a Shakespearean tragedy, the audience is left moved and shaken. They are saddened but at peace, feeling a sense calm. A Shakespearean comedy is full of fun. The characters are lively, and the dialogue is witty. His comedies are joyous and romantic. Some people think of Shakespeare similar to a great artist: not very popular in his time but rose to greatness only after he died. This is not correct, though. Shakespeare's name first appeared on the title pages of his printed plays in 1598. In the same year Francis Meres, in 'Palladis Tamia: Wit's Treasury', praised him as a poet and dramatist. Meres's comments on 12 of Shakespeare's plays showed that Shakespeare's genius was recognized in his own time. He was later widely honored as an actor and a playwright. In 1603 Queen Elizabeth I died. King James I followed her to the throne. Shakespeare's theatrical company was taken under the king's patronage and called the King's Company. Shakespeare and the other actors were made officers of the royal household. The theatrical company was the most successful of its time. Before it was the King's Company, it had been known as the Earl of Derby's and the Lord Chamberlain's. In 1608 the company acquired the Blackfriars Theatre. This was a smaller and more aristocratic theater than the Globe. Thereafter the company alternated between the two playhouses. Plays by Shakespeare were also performed at the royal court and in the castles of the nobles. After 1603 Shakespeare probably acted little, although he was still a good actor. His favorite roles seem to have been old Adam in 'As You Like It' and the Ghost in 'Hamlet'.

Because of his ordinary life, and hard-working, middle-class background, many people believed that Shakespeare could not have written his plays. They do not believe he could have known of such greatness and depth of passion. Some say that a man of such little education could not have learned about the professions, the aristocratic ways, or the speech and manners of the upper class about which he wrote. Some people suggest that Shakespeare other people wrote his plays, and then he acted them out and made them known, so he took credit for them. Nearly every famous Elizabethan was named to have been a possibility for who people truly thought wrote Shakespeare’s plays. Some people even claim that "Shakespeare" was an assumed name for a whole group of playwrights and poets. Some people who knew Shakespeare, however, argued that to say an obscure, Stratford boy could not have become the "Shakespeare of literature" is to ignore the mystery of genius. His knowledge, they argue, is the kind that could not be learned in school. It is the kind only a genius could learn by applying a keen intelligence to everyday life.

The idea that Shakespeare did not really write any of his plays or poems is an interesting one that excites and intrigues me. That is where my question to him comes in. I have often wondered if we have given great praise to a writer who did not deserve it or who possibly did not even exist. If he really did write all of his plays, then many people have questioned genius. Either way, I would like to know. If I could meet William Shakespeare, I would ask him if he truly did write all of his plays and poems.