The old English dramatists

A series of lectures surveys prominent Elizabethan and early Stuart playwrights, offering readable criticism and selected readings to illustrate stylistic traits, dramatic methods, and historical contexts. Beginning with a reflection on the stage's origins and the role of interludes, the speaker analyzes individual dramatists—including Marlowe, Webster, Chapman, Beaumont and Fletcher, Massinger, and Ford—attending to poetic power, moral ambiguity, plot construction, and performance needs. The essays balance appreciative close readings with biographical and theatrical commentary, emphasizing distinctive voices and the transition from medieval forms to the more literary, city-grown drama of the Renaissance.