Jessie Potter

Mr. Clark

AP English Literature and Composition

December 19, 2018

Authorial Intent Research Paper

The majority of people start reading books with no background knowledge of who the author

is or why they wrote the book. They might do this simply because they have no desire to find out

more information or as part of an effort to reduce their personal biases. A select few however

dive deep into research before they even consider their next read as they believe that this

knowledge can help them better analyze the story and the message behind it. Though leaving an

author unknown may seem beneficial, in order to get the most out of a book, one must have at

least some prior knowledge of an author’s background or intent to be able to draw the necessary

conclusions about a story’s symbols, motifs, themes, or overall meaning as a whole.

Researching an author’s background is extremely important before reading their work, even

when limited information may be available, like in the case of William Shakespeare.

Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England in 1564 to a common, yet well-respected

family. Not much is known about his childhood and life and there’s even a 7-year period where

he is “lost” or there are no records of him at all (History.com Editors). Despite this, he is widely

regarded as the most influential English writer of all-time, and even with the little known about

him, it is still beneficial to know his biography and understand his intentions when reading his

plays or sonnets. For example, Shakespeare lived during the Elizabethan Era of England, a time

when Catholics were persecuted by Queen Elizabeth and often fined, imprisoned or put to death
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for practicing their faith (Ackroyd). Her successor, King James I, continued this persecution

during his reign as well. However, many historians suspect that Shakespeare himself was a

Catholic. This information is extremely beneficial when analyzing his works, especially in the

case of Macbeth.

The story of Macbeth is set in 11th century Scotland and follows the main character, Macbeth,

as he is approached by witches and manipulated into killing his king in order to claim the throne

for himself. There are many hidden symbols and themes present throughout Macbeth that,

without prior knowledge of the author, would be difficult to analyze and understand. First, the

setting of the story possesses significance as Scotland was the home of King James 1, the king

ruling at the time Macbeth was written. Shakespeare most likely did this to please James, who

was a fan of his plays, and to maybe curry favor with the king so he would not be persecuted like

his fellow Catholics. In addition, the main themes present in Macbeth may have been a way to

appease the king as James was an ardent believer in spirits, demons, and the Divine Right of

Kings, which states “…that kings derived their authority from God…” (Britannica). The witches

and the apparition of the dagger provide some supernatural aspects while Macbeth’s downfall

supports the Divine Right of Kings. After Macbeth murders King Duncan, he goes mad with

guilt and begins seeing things. Not only does this lead to his soldiers losing respect for him, it

eventually causes him to be defeated and killed. Those who believed in the Divine Right of

Kings, like King James, would take this as a sign of affirmation that their beliefs are right, as

Macbeth went against God’s authority by killing someone who was appointed by God himself,

and was punished for it with his death (Shakespeare, Macbeth).

Having background knowledge on Shakespeare is not only beneficial in analyzing Macbeth,

but also in his other works like Hamlet. Shakespeare’s son passed away shortly before he started
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Hamlet, a play about a son grieving his dead father (Neilson). In addition, Shakespeare’s own

father passed in the same year that Hamlet was written (John Shakespeare). Although Hamlet

clearly possesses more drama than the death of Shakespeare’s father and son, as Hamlet’s father

was killed by his brother, Shakespeare had a unique and real-life perspective to help him tap into

Hamlet’s character. Having this knowledge helps readers to view Hamlet’s struggles in a

different way and understand why a grieving Shakespeare might have written this tragedy. This

in turn can help readers sympathize more with Hamlet and go into a deeper analysis of his

actions.

In addition to Macbeth and Hamlet, many of Shakespeare’s other works are made clearer by

understanding why he wrote them or who he wrote them for. Throughout his life, Shakespeare

wrote 154 sonnets that explored themes of love, happiness, loneliness, and longing. However, to

truly understand these sonnets and analyze them correctly, information about Shakespeare’s

background and personal life must be known. Shakespeare married his wife Anne Hathaway

when he was 18 years old, which was young even for his time. He presumably did this as Anne

was already pregnant with their first child, Susanna (Neilson). This quick marriage can help give

readers insight into who exactly Shakespeare wrote his sonnets for, as they were not dedicated to

his wife. Instead, Shakespeare addresses a “…fair young man…” (Shakespeare, Sonnets)

throughout the first 126 sonnets and a “…woman colored ill…” (Shakespeare, Sonnets) in the

rest, who is often referred to as the “dark lady” (Callaghan). He is “…emotionally invested in

both the figures he writes about…” (Callaghan) and “…appears to be caught in a painful love

triangle with the youth and the woman…” (Callaghan). The nature in which he refers to the

young man especially has caused many experts to question not only his happiness in his

marriage, but also his sexuality. Knowing this information can help readers look at the sonnets in
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a different way and gain a better understanding of not only what Shakespeare was thinking about

when he wrote them, but who.

Overall, understanding an author’s intent is not only beneficial, but necessary, in order to

fully understand the novel. Readers need to know what motivates an author so that they can

approach different books in different ways. For example, one would not approach a history book

the same way they do Shakespeare’s works as the intent of the authors is different. While the

history book is simply meant to inform, Shakespeare means to entertain his audience and

challenge them with hidden themes and lessons. However, even with something that is meant to

inform like a history book, it is still important to know the author’s background. This knowledge

can let readers know if the author is qualified to write about a subject or if they are biased due to

racial, religious, or cultural beliefs. Even in the U.S., there is still bias present in school’s history

books due to authors. Many schools in the South of the U.S. teach students different content

about the Civil War than schools in the North. They even refer to the war itself differently,

calling it the War of Northern Aggression. If prior research was not done on the author, then this

information would simply be taken for fact, no matter if there was a bias present. However,

leaving an author unknown can be beneficial in one case: to reduce one’s own personal bias

against an author. This would allow the reader to take in the book without letting their own bias

sway or distort the meaning. Yet, even after this, researching the author would still be beneficial

and could clear up certain plot points that may have gone misunderstood.

In conclusion, having knowledge about an author’s background greatly affects the reader’s

ability to get the most out of the author’s work. This can be seen even in an author such as

Shakespeare, who has little information known about him. By understanding why Shakespeare,

and all authors, write, readers can more effectively analyze the meaning of the work. Hidden
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symbols that may have been lost otherwise become apparent when connections are made about

the author’s intent and their work. By doing prior research on an author, not only can readers

better analyze and understand an author’s motivation and the meaning of their works as a whole,

but they can truly enter the story and get more out of it than they ever thought possible.
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Works Cited

Ackroyd, Peter. Shakespeare: the Biography. Royal National Institute for the Blind, 2007.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Divine Right of Kings.” Encyclopædia Britannica,

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 22 Mar. 2017

History.com Editors. “William Shakespeare .” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 3 Oct.

2011

“John Shakespeare.” Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, 2016, www.shakespeare.org.uk/explore-

shakespeare/shakespedia/william-shakespeare/william-shakespeares-family/john-

shakespeare/.

Neilson, William Allan, and Ashley H. Thorndike. The Facts about Shakespeare. Vol. 40,

Macmillan, 1916.

Shakespeare, William, and Stanley Wells. Macbeth. Penguin Classics, 2015.

Shakespeare, William. Sonnets: By William Shakespeare. Cliffs Notes, Incorporated., 1965.