Why Is America the Greatest Nation on Earth?

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**BolingbrokeIV**

sebster wrote:
ENOZONE wrote:
Not really, we spent some time talking about it in my high school AP English class. There were 2-3 writers at the time who wrote almost exactly the same material and style he did. Considering how much political clout Shakespeare had at the time, it wasn't far fetched for these writers to have donned him as a moniker to escape persecution for their satirical views of the king at the time - an offense that could get your head chopped off.

This is a really good example of why you shouldn't just accept stuff you learned in highschool.

'Escaping persecution' just doesn't make sense. The plays weren't written, then distributed in secret. They were performed, the people involved in performing and financing the plays were known. They were in public by the sheer nature of putting on a play for the public. To think that the performers would perform the work of playwrights who were afraid to put their name to the work makes little sense. To think that the king might crack down on the performers, but have no means to discover the original author of the work... when he's got all these actors and stage hands under arrest makes absolutely none at all.

There's also the problem that Shakespeare's plays were written to support the existing monarchy. What is Richard II but a politcal attack on an old monarch, designed to shore up the present lineage?

Actually Richard II's character in the play has been argued to be analogous with Elizabeth the first in her last years of rule when it was released. Saying that I think the conspiracy theories regarding Shakespeare are pretty baseless and seem to be people looking for a more romantic story to put to the greatest playwright who ever lived. For one thing the only candidate which makes sense, Edward De Vere, died years before many of Shakespeare's plays were released.

**sebster**

Glorioski wrote:
Actually Richard II's character in the play has been argued to be analogous with Elizabeth the first in her last years of rule when it was released.

Sorry, type on my part, meant Richard III. Rise of the Tudors and all that.

I wasn't aware of that regarding Richard II (I've not seen the play yet), but it makes sense given what I know of his reign. Thanks for the information.

Saying that I think the conspiracy theories regarding Shakespeare are pretty baseless and seem to be people looking for a more romantic story to put to the greatest playwright who ever lived. For one thing the only candidate which makes sense, Edward De Vere, died years before many of Shakespeare's plays were released.

Yeah, I think like a lot of things the original reason for speculation was pretty distasteful - people disbelieving that a commoner could be such a great writer, but while the classism died away the speculation never did. So now it is, as you say, a romantic story, and one that hinges on the idea that so much is unknown from that period so we can have some fun making gak up.

**BolingbrokeIV**

There is actually a lot of evidence to support that William Shakespeare of Stratford upon Avon was indeed the writer of those plays. There was a study done on it where they applied an algorithm to all his works and the works of the other supposed Shakespeares, looking at language, sentence structure etc. and it showed a very high likeliness that all his plays were written by the same person and unlikely to be written by the others. He also came from a similar background to other playwrights like Ben Jonson which would suggest there was no problem there.

Btw Richard II is a brilliant play but has rarely been filmed. The BBC did it this year though (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A89wTSJ_j8g) well worth a watch if you're interested.

**htj**

It's also worth noting that it really doesn't matter who wrote Shakespeare's plays. It doesn't really affect the nature of them at all. They are what they are, no matter what kind of a person wrote them.

People love historical 'mysteries' though.

**Frazzled**

Cheesecat wrote:
I'm just joking, I just irks me a bit to see all these "my nation has a bigger dick than yours" -type comments, like you can somehow measure that just say you like your country and leave it that. You're not well traveled or experienced enough to know what the greatest nation is (Canada

obviously) besides every country has it's pros and cons (except Afghanistan it only has cons).

You're just jealous because we utterly kick your ass in the processed food department. Admit your inferiority and things will go much more smoothly.

**nomsheep**

George Orwell is the greatest writer ever.

**whembly**

Frazzled wrote:
Cheesecat wrote:
I'm just joking, I just irks me a bit to see all these "my nation has a bigger dick than yours" -type comments, like you can somehow measure that just say you like your country and leave it that. You're not well traveled or experienced enough to know what the greatest nation is (Canada

obviously) besides every country has it's pros and cons (except Afghanistan it only has cons).

You're just jealous because we utterly kick your ass in the processed food department. Admit your inferiority and things will go much more smoothly.

But, they have us beat by virtue of Maple Syrup.

You can't discount that! They have a FETHING strategic reserve!

**Alfndrate**

whembly wrote:
Frazzled wrote:
Cheesecat wrote:
I'm just joking, I just irks me a bit to see all these "my nation has a bigger dick than yours" -type comments, like you can somehow measure that just say you like your country and leave it that. You're not well traveled or experienced enough to know what the greatest nation is (Canada

obviously) besides every country has it's pros and cons (except Afghanistan it only has cons).

You're just jealous because we utterly kick your ass in the processed food department. Admit your inferiority and things will go much more smoothly.

But, they have us beat by virtue of Maple Syrup. You can't discount that! They have a FETHING strategic reserve!

Ohio has you covered... Gak's like 55 bucks for a half gallon, but it's damn fine...

Also Orwell is okay, I feel many of his essays are far better than his novels, but then again they are also shorter

**Frazzled**

whembly wrote:
Frazzled wrote:
Cheesecat wrote:
I'm just joking, I just irks me a bit to see all these "my nation has a bigger dick than yours" -type comments, like you can somehow measure that just say you like your country and leave it that. You're not well traveled or experienced enough to know what the greatest nation is (Canada

obviously) besides every country has it's pros and cons (except Afghanistan it only has cons).

You're just jealous because we utterly kick your ass in the processed food department. Admit your inferiority and things will go much more smoothly.

But, they have us beat by virtue of Maple Syrup. You can't discount that! They have a FETHING strategic reserve!

We have maple syrup too. PLus thats why we have Seal Team 27 constantly flying in stealth C17s on the border ready to deploy and recover these reserves at a moment's notice if it ever comes to that. The US will not allow a Maple Syrup Gap Mr. President!

**nomsheep**

Alfndrate wrote:

Also Orwell is okay, I feel many of his essays are far better than his novels, but then again they are also shorter

1984 is amazing.

**Alfndrate**

I've read it, it is amazing, but I prefer his essays. Though the version of 1984 I read was trippy... it was in full color and in some fashion it says Big Brother is Watching on every page, and when the book is close the pages themselves spell that out...

**nomsheep**

Alfndrate wrote:
I've read it, it is amazing, but I prefer his essays. Though the version of 1984 I read was trippy... it was in full color and in some fashion it says Big Brother is Watching on every page, and when the book is close the pages themselves spell that out...

I have only read one of his essays, which was about the destruction of the English language., It was actually really cool.

i read an eBook version so i didn't see the part with the pages, but it appears to be all bit of the effect.