I have just finished reading the book Elegy By W. S.: A Study in Attribution by Donald W. Foster. Being more of an academic work than I usually read, I did find it interesting.
In January of 1612, one William Peter of Exeter, England was brutally murdered. Shortly thereafter, a elegiac poem was published only under the initials of W.S.
The question is, Who is W.S.?
In this book, which started as Foster's doctoral dissertation, the author does various investigations (including statistical analysis comparing spelling, word choice/vocabulary, sentence length and structure, diction, verb tenses, and other aspects of writing) on the "Elegy" and the works of William Shakespeare and William Strachey, two of the most well-known authors of the time who have the initials W.S.
He also looked at internal evidence, meaning clues about the author’s life hidden in the poem itself, and external evidence, meaning any possible connections between author and subject in the real world. Could they have meet and become friends in real life? Did they go to school together? Even if they never met personally, could the author have met any of the subject’s friends or family?
After presenting all his evidence, the end-————SPOILER ALERT-------
Foster concludes that W.S. is, in fact, William Shakespeare. Based on the evidence presented, I agree with him.
As this is, ultimately, an academic work, it was a little hard to get through at times, however, as a writer, I did find it interesting to see this kind of study of a literary work. Well worth reading, but I probably won't read again. Having said that, I will be keeping my copy as a resource, should I ever need this kind of information in my own work.
I give this book a 4/5.
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