Were shakepheres sonnets autobiographical

Answer 1

The sonnets do not tell a story, and so cannot tell the life of Shakespeare or anyone else. They are, however, personal in the sense that the sentiments expressed were Shakespeare's own. However, we might have a tendency (partly from desperation, knowing so little about Shakespeare's life) to read more into them than they can really bear. The affection which he expresses, for example, may have been Platonic more than romantic or sexual, although we would like to read it in the latter senses.