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A literary criticism of the play “Twelfth Night,” by William Shakespeare is presented. The author looks particularly at the possible meanings of the phrase "the whirligig of time," which the character Feste uses when speaking of Malvolio. The author argues that Feste's use of the phrase is not light-hearted but it indicates the grudge that he has against Malvolio because a whirligig is a torture device.

The article focuses on Ben Jonson's "Epigram 89: To Edward Alleyn." It cites that the epigram is generally accepted as a compliment paid to a man who is Jonson's friend and the outstanding actor of the age. In the epigram, Jonson compares Alleyn to his ancestors Roscius and Aesop. It explains Jonson's resentment of actors. It emphasizes that Jonson exhibited a kind of self-empowering gesture in the epigram.