Abstract
If this thesis were to proceed immediately to the point at issue by mentioning the name, Shakespeare, the reactions of each reader would be different. To some that name spells the magic charm of the best in English poetry; to others, the mention of Shakespeare brings to mind the achievement and the genius of the greatest playwright of the Elizabethan period, indeed, of the history of English drama; and there are likewise those to whom the enchantment of the name has no merit, who regard him as an overrated author, a man who could not possibly be as good as he is portrayed, and about whom too much has already been written.