Marlowe3

===**WHO WAS CHRISTOPHER MARLOWE? WHAT ARE HIS MAJOR WORKS? WHY WAS HE IMPORTANT IN ELIZABETHAN THEATRE, AND WHY IS HE STILL IMPORTANT TODAY? WHAT ARE THE DETAILS OF HIS MYSTERIOUS DEATH? WHAT ROLE DID HE PLAY IN SHAKESPEARE’S LIFE Answer Prepared by: David Parks  **=== Christopher Marlowe William Shakespeare was one of the most respected playwrights during his life, and after his death. His plays satisfied audiences across the land, and proved to everyone that he was a born artist. Unfortunately, there was a lot of speculation on Shakespeare’s claim to fame. A man known as Christopher Marlowe was the master of the stage in 1580 and 1590. Born only two months before Shakespeare, he was already famous when William was still an apprentice. Marlowe wrote plays such as, the Jew of Malta, and Edward II. If Shakespeare had died before his rise in popularity, Christopher Marlowe would have been remembered as the most respected playwright in English literary History. Marlowe lead a dangerous life, spending time in rough taverns and getting in brawls. He was rumored to be a royalist spy. On may 30, 1593, when he was only 29 years old, Marlowe was killed in a brawl at a lodging house in Deptford. His death was the best-documented event in English literary history.

Some advocates of Marlowe believe that he faked his death, fled to Italy, and sent his work to a middleman commonly known as William Shakespeare. Some believe that William shakespeare stole his plays, and used them for his own benefit. William did not have the education to write all of these plays, which caused there to be some questioning of his claim to fame. We may never know if Marlowe faked his own death, or if William actually did write all of his plays. There will always be the mystery of the Authorship Controversy.

(Below is a picture of Christopher Marlowe in his 20's)

Works Cited Riding, Alan. Essential Shakespeare. 1st. Dorling Kindersly, 2004. Print.  Weis, Rene. Shakespeare Unbound. 1st. Henry Colt and Co, 2007. 1-32. Print. Wells, Stanley. Searching for Shakespeare. 1st. Yale University Press, 2006. 1-239. Print.