William Shakespeare is one of the world’s most renowned and celebrated writers. With iconic playwrights such as Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and Hamlet, his works remain as some of the most widely performed and studied pieces of literature in history. Even to this day, centuries after his death, Shakespeare’s works continue to captivate audiences around the world.

But there are certain things that can’t be said of the Bard. Although there is much to admire and appreciate about him, there are some assertions that can’t be made. Below are a few of the things that cannot be said of Shakespeare.

• No Childhood Education: Shakespeare had an enviable education for a man of his time. He attended both a grammar school and a prestigious university, where he was given an excellent foundation of knowledge in the classics. Shakespeare’s education was far more advanced than that of most of his contemporaries.
• Not an Innovator: While some of Shakespeare’s works are considered groundbreaking, it is a mistake to consider him an innovator. He was deeply inspired by earlier writers and his works often draw from older material. Furthermore, his plays are filled with references to Greek and Roman authors, a sign that he was more of an admirer of past works than an innovator of new ones.
• No Singular Writing Style: Despite being an incredibly prolific writer, Shakespeare did not have a writing style that was particularly consistent. His works range from comedies to tragedies, and from lyrical poetry to prose. This makes his work challenging to categorize and it is nearly impossible to find a writing style that could be associated with him across all of his works.
• No Authoritative Source: There is no authoritative source for Shakespeare’s works. Despite the best efforts of scholars over the years, there is still some disagreement about how some of his plays were originally performed and what words were originally used.

In conclusion, while Shakespeare remains an iconic figure in the world of literature, there are certain things that cannot be said of him. He was a highly educated man with a great deal of knowledge of the classics, but his work is still impossible to categorize and there is no authoritative source for his writings.