Shakespeare was a Stratford playwright who arguably had the most influential influence on English literature and the English language. His works are still praised to this day for their divine superiority, but excessive controversies arose over contesting his authorship. This controversy has been the subject of much dispute between scholars with different opinions who hold opposing theories and beliefs (Friedman XV). “A difficult dilemma faces biographers who tell the story of the Stratford-on-Avon glovemaker's son, who is said to have become the world's greatest poet and playwright” (Whalen 3). It may seem strange that this confusion and doubt was revealed in the first place, since the origin of this argument was a mere allusion in an article written by a certain "Captain" Goulding. Researchers have scoured Shakespeare's works and any legal documentation relating to him to support their claims. Shakespeare's greatness also adds to the extraordinary nature of the controversy, as the discovery of fraudulent authorship could potentially change how the Stratfordian author is perceived (Whalen). Despite the vanity of an argument which requires the testimony of an author who has been dead for more than four centuries; Through cryptographic analysis and extensive research into the history of Shakespeare's environment, it will be easy to understand why the author of the plays was challenged and how his authorship was questioned. The theory of fraudulent authorship of Shakespeare first appeared in a book written by a "Captain" Goulding which alluded to the idea that Shakespeare was not the man who wrote the works commonly attributed to him . Fraudulent authorship can...... middle of article....... Friedman, William F. and Elizabeth S. Friedman. Shakespearean Figures Examined. Cambridge: University Press, 1957. Print. Hastings, William T. “Shakespeare was Shakespeare.” Streets of the Revolution. Flight. 28. No. 4. (1959): 479-488. The American Scholar. Internet. February 2, 2014. .Hope, Jonathan. The authorship of Shakespeare's plays. Cambridge: University Press, 1994. Print. McCrea, Scott. The case of Shakespeare. Westport: Praeger Publishers, 2005. Print.Whalen, Richard F. Shakespeare: Who Was He? London: Praeger Publishers, 1994. Print.Shakespeare, William. Sonnets. Ed. Thomas Tyler. London: D. Nutt, 1890. Shakespeare Online. December 22, 2013. .Shakespeare, William. The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice. Ed. Tucker Brooke and Lawrence Mason. New Haven: Yale UP, 1947. Print.