The video of the spirited three-way debate on “Who is the Dark Lady of Shakespeare’s Sonnets?” at the Shakespeare Oxford Fellowship’s annual conference, is now online. Hank Whittemore argued in favor of Queen Elizabeth; John Hamill argued for Penelope Rich; and Katherine Chiljan argued for Anne Vavasour. The debate took place on October 13, 2018 in Oakland, California and was introduced by Earl Showerman and moderated by Jeff Falzone.
Shakespeare’s Sonnets 127 to 152 introduce a woman known by commentators as the “Dark Lady.” The author of the Sonnets clearly has a love-hate relationship with the Dark Lady, and there appears to be some kind of triangular relationship involving the author, the Dark Lady, and the “Fair Youth,” i.e., the young man to whom most of the Sonnets are addressed. All three debaters agreed that Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, was the author of the Sonnets and that the Fair Youth was Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton, to whom Shakespeare’s two long narrative poems, Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece, were expressly dedicated.
You may click on the following links to read: Dark Lady Sonnets, Hank Whittemore’s essay on Queen Elizabeth, John Hamill’s essay on Penelope Rich, and Katherine Chiljan’s essay on Anne Vavasour.
