932 D745

The publishers of the “Henry Irving Shakespeare” having decided to issue the General Introduction to that edition in a separate form, I have taken the opportunity to revise what was written, to add some paragraphs on the great tragedies, and to compile, from sources easily accessible, a brief notice of the interpretations of Shakespeare by great actors from Burbage to Macready.

If, in this little volume, there be anything of useful guidance or suggestion, I desire to connect it with the memory of my wife.

. D.

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1

CONTENTS.

Page

INTRODUCTION TO SHAKESPEARE:

1. Shakespeare's Life at Stratford and in London, i

II. The Poetical Creations of his Intellect and

Imagination,

43

III. The Pseudo-Shakespearian Plays,

85

iv. Influence of Shakespeare's Works on the

National Mind,

88

APPENDIX:

Dedication prefixed to the Folio of 1623, · 129

Address prefixed to the Folio of 1623, -

· 130

Commendatory Verses from those prefixed to the

Folio of 1623,

· 132

Note on the Early Editions of Shakespeare, · 134

-

Portrait of Shakespeare, after Droeshout, frontis.
Sketch of the Interior of the Swan Theatre, by
Johannes de Witt,

• 51