Art and Artifice in Shakespeare: A Study in Dramatic Contrast and Illusion

Originally published in 1933, this book by famed Shakespeare critic Elmer Edgar Stoll argues that Shakespeare’s concern was more for plot and contrast than character. Stoll examines many of Shakespeare’s plays, predominantly Othello, Macbeth, King Lear, and Hamlet, and compares their method to that of earlier Renaissance and medieval plays as well as more modern compositions. This book will be of value to anyone with an interest in Shakespearean psychology or in the history of the study of Shakespeare.