36. Tempest 1612 " Italian Tale.
37. Titus Andronicus 1593 Denied to Shakspeare; probably by
Marlowe or Kyd.
CHAPTER XV.
WILLIAM SHAKSPEARE, (CONTINUED.)
The Grounds of his Fame. Creation of Character. Imagination and Fancy.
Power of Expression. His Faults. Influence of Elizabeth. Sonnets.
Ireland and Collier. Concordance. Other Writers.
THE GROUNDS OF HIS FAME.
From what has been said, it is manifest that as to his plots and
historical reproductions, Shakspeare has little merit but taste in
selection; and indeed in most cases, had he invented the stories, his
merit would not have been great: what then is the true secret of his power
and of his fame? This question is not difficult to answer.
First, these are due to his wonderful insight into human nature, and the
philosophy of human life: he dissects the human mind in all its
conditions, and by this vivisection he displays its workings as it lives
and throbs; he divines the secret impulses of all ages and
characters--childhood, boyhood, manhood, girlhood, and womanhood; men of
peace, and men of war; clowns, nobles, and kings.
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