Tales from Shakespeare's Comedies (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from Tales From Shakespeare's Comedies

I believe that the book, thus annotated and illustrated, will be useful not only as' supplementary reading for young children (the teacher or the parent will of Course see what portions of the notes are suited to their age and capacity), but also as an introduction to the study of Shakespeare for those who are old enough to begin that study in earnest. For this, as we have seen, the T ales were intended, but the authors builded better than they knew. The child's story-book has become an English classic for children of larger growth. Even as a contribution, to Shakespearian criticism it has no mean value, as more than one good critic has pointed out. Mr. Ainger, in his introduction to the edition of 1878, referring to Mary Lamb's work on the Comedies, remarks She constantly evinces a rare shrewdness and tact in her incidental criticisms, which show her to have been, in her way, as keen an observer of human nature as her brother. Mary Lamb had not lived so much among the wits and hu'morists of her day without learning some truths which helped her to interpret the two chief characters of Mar/t Ado About Nothing As there is no one who so little likes to be made a jest of as those who are apt to take the same liberty themselves, so it was with Benedick and Beatrice these two sharp wits never met in former times but a perfect war of raillery was kept up between them, and they always parted mutually displeased with each other.' And again: The hint she gave him that he was a coward, by saying she would eat all he had killed, he did not regard, knowing himself to be a brave man but there is nothing.

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