SOURCE: Gilbert, Allan. “The Merry Wives of Windsor.” In The Principles and Practice of Criticism: Othello, The Merry Wives, Hamlet, pp. 67-93. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1959.

In the following excerpt, Gilbert provides an overview of The Merry Wives of Windsor, reviewing its plot, structure, date, sources, and characters.

I. the “rejection” of the Falstaff of the Merry Wives

What has happened to Falstaff is a tribute to Shakespeare's power to make his personages real. Falstaff has become a man who lived in the flesh, a friend to various literary men so close and dear that they are indignant at any slur on his conduct or character. The chain began in 1777, when Maurice Morgann, Esquire, published his Essay on the Dramatic Character of Sir John Falstaff. He tells us that he declared in conversation that Falstaff was not a coward, was challenged to write out his reasons, and...