The Project Gutenberg EBook of Shakespeare: His Life, Art, And Characters,
Volume I., by H. N. Hudson

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Title: Shakespeare: His Life, Art, And Characters, Volume I.
With An Historical Sketch Of The Origin And Growth Of The Drama In
England

Author: H. N. Hudson

Release Date: September 7, 2004 [EBook #13387]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SHAKESPEARE: HIS LIFE, ART, ***

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SHAKESPEARE:

HIS

LIFE, ART, AND CHARACTERS.

WITH

AN HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE DRAMA IN ENGLAND.

_FOURTH EDITION, REVISED_.

BY

THE REV. H.N. HUDSON, LL.D.

VOLUME I.

GINN AND COMPANY

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1872, by

HENRY N. HUDSON,

In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.

TO

MR. JOSEPH BURNETT,
OF SOUTHBOROUGH, MASS.

Sir:

The Memories of a Friendship running, I believe, without interruption
through a period of more than five-and-twenty years, prompt the
inscribing of these volumes to you.

H.N. HUDSON.

BOSTON, January 1, 1872.

CONTENTS.

LIFE OF SHAKESPEARE

ORIGIN AND GROWTH OF THE DRAMA IN ENGLAND
MIRACLE-PLAYS
MORAL-PLAYS
COMEDY AND TRAGEDY

SHAKESPEARE'S CONTEMPORARIES

SHAKESPEARE'S ART
NATURE AND USE OF ART
PRINCIPLES OF ART
DRAMATIC COMPOSITION
CHARACTERIZATION
HUMOUR
STYLE
MORAL SPIRIT

SHAKESPEARE'S CHARACTERS
A MIDSUMMER-NIGHT'S DREAM
THE MERCHANT OF VENICE
THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
AS YOU LIKE IT
TWELFTH NIGHT
ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL
MEASURE FOR MEASURE
THE TEMPEST
THE WINTER'S TALE

[Illustration: Etched by Leopold Fluming after the Chandos painting.]

LIFE OF SHAKESPEARE.

* * * * *

Shakespeare,[1] by general suffrage, is the greatest name in
literature. There can be no extravagance in saying, that to all who
speak the English language his genius has made the world better worth
living in, a