WillandTestament4


 * WHAT WAS SHAKESPEARE'S LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT? WHAT ARE THE CONTROVERSIES SURROUNDING HIS WILL? WHAT THEORIES ATTEMPT TO EXPLAIN THOSE CONTROVERSIES?** ** Answer prepared by: Megan W. **

William Shakespeare died at age 52 on April 23, 1616 from unknown causes, but it was what he did in the months leading up to his death that continues to puzzle people nearly 400 years after his death.

On the //William Shakespeare (The Complete Works)// website, the section entitled “The Last Will & Testament of William Shakespeare” explains how in January of 1616, Shakespeare and his lawyer, Francis Collins of Warwick, edited his will. The official copy was not signed until March 1616. It is widely believed that he was not well due to his shaky signature, his lack of memory of many of his family member’s names and his insistence on five witnesses, when the usual was only two. He also failed to mention that he was not completely healthy, and when the usual phrase would be “sick in body” he went as far as to state that he was “in perfect health.” Shakespeare left a total of 350 pounds in cash plus four houses, and their contents, and a good deal of land to his daughters, sister, nephews, granddaughter, the poor of Stratford, friends, wife and his son-in-law.

Besides the mystery of Shakespeare’s sudden urge to edit his will, the most famous controversy surrounding his will remains to be what he left his wife. //Shakespeare: the Life, the Works, the Treasures// by Catherine M S Alexander quoted Shakespeare’s gift to his wife in his will, “Item, I gyve unto my wiefe my second best bed with the furniture.” This was the only time Anne Hathaway was mentioned in the entire will. Prior to Shakespeare editing the will, Anne’s name had never even been mentioned in the first draft of the will, even though she had been married to him over 30 years. Shakespeare leaving his wife “the second best bed” was highly uncommon. Around that time, it would have been custom to leave one-third of his estate as well as residence for life at his home, New Place to Anne.

There are many theories surrounding the strange act of giving Anne “the second best bed.” Some theories state that due to the seemingly sarcastic mention of her in his revised draft of the will and his separation from Anne while he was in London, he wasn’t very fond of her near the end of his life. Amanda Mabillard discusses a slightly less popular belief in //Shakespeare’s Last Will and Testament (1616.)// Mabillard writes about how a select few share the belief that Shakespeare had provided for her other than “the second best bed” in his will, and that the mention of it might have been an act of tenderness or a private joke, although it seems unlikely that he would have provided for her without mentioning it in his will. However, many believe that what Shakespeare decided to give his wife wasn’t rare or unfavorable, according to L.K. Alchin in //The Last Will & Testament of William Shakespeare.// Disregarding the fact that it would be custom to leave one third of his estate to her and residence for life, some thought many did not abide by that rule during the time.

Despite many theories, Shakespeare’s abrupt urge to edit his will just a few months before his death, his assurance that he was “in perfect health” when all of his actions seem to suggest he was not, and the absence of Anne’s name in the first draft of the will and the addition of leaving her “the second best bed” in the final draft continues to puzzle us even today.

Check out //Shakespeare Online// to learn more about Shakespeare's last will and testament: Shakespeare's Last Will and Testament




 * Works Cited

** Alchin, L.K. "The Last Will & Testament of William Shakespeare." //William Shakespeare (The Complete Works)//. N.p.,2005. Web. 3 Apr 2010. .

Alexander, Catherine M S. //Shakespeare: the Life, the Works, the Treasures//. New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, 2006. Print.

Bryson, Bill. //Shakespeare: The World as a Stage//. New York, New York: Harper Collins, 2007. Print.

Cooper, Tarnya. //Searching for Shakespeare//. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2006. Print.

d'Aulaire, Edgar Parin, and Ingri d'Aulaire. //Book of Greek Myths//. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group Inc., 1962. Print.

Ehrlich, Jeremy. ""Very tragical mirth: Romeo and Pyramus, Juliet and Thisbe ." //Folger Shakespeare Library//. Folger Shakespeare Library, 2010. Web. 3 Apr 2010. .

Laroque, Francois. //The Age of Shakespeare//. Abrams, New York: Discoveries, 1991. Print.

Mowat, Barbara A. and Paul Werstine. Introduction. //A Midsummer Night's Dream//. By William Shakespeare. 1600. New York: Washington Square P, 1993. xiii-lii. Print. Mabillard, Amanda. "Shakespeare's Last Will and Testament (1616)." //Shakespeare Online//. N.p., Sun, 21 Feb 2010. Web. 29 Mar 2010. < [|__http://www.shakespeareonline.com/biography/shakespearewill.html__] >.

Pontikis, Nick. "Pyramus & Thisbe (Romeo & Juliet?)." //Myth Man's Homework Help Center//. N.p., 1999. Web. 3 Apr 2010. .

Shakespeare, William. //A Midsummer Night's Dream//. 1600. New York, New York: Washington Square Press, 1993. Print.

"The ass's head." //Royal Shakespeare Company//. RSC, 2006. Web. 3 Apr 2010. .