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This article examines the relationship between George Peele's 'The Battle of Alcazar' to 'Muly Molocco', a drama performed by Strange's Men in 1592-93, arguing that the wording of certain stage direction in 'The Battle of Alcazar' establish a link to Shakespeare's 'Henry IV', and therefore supports scolarly claims that 'Muly Molocco' is Peele's play. The author analyzes the printed versions of the quarto and the historical performances of the play to establish his case, and also provides a clarification of Peele's use of Moroccan chararcters' names.

It is not possible to fully define the Jew that William Shakespeare drew when he created the character of Shylock. However, it is worth trying to identify the Jew that Shakespeare knew before Sep 1598, when the role was reinvented by Richard Burbage or another actor. It is important to be aware that it is not true that everybody in Elizabethan England, and thus all the actors and members of the audience at 'The Merchant of Venice,' was anti-Semitic. In fact, many Jews lived in or visited the UK by the late 1590s. It is quite likely that some people in the audience saw lending money at the prevailing market rate, or obtaining commission for arranging a loan, as a socially useful activity.

A delightful popular tune of the 1960s goes Except now and then in Rome I get that old yen in Rome And when in Rome I do as the Romans [...]

A delightful popular tune of the 1960s goes Except now and then in Rome I get that old yen in Rome And when in Rome I do as the Romans [...]

Shakespeare's drama entitled 'Hamlet' has its share of sexual humor. Scenes of fencing used vocabulary that connote male genitalia. This discreet use of bawdy expressions is common in other Shakespearean plays and probably in other Renaissance works. The audience of his time needed a lighthearted relief from the seriousness and heavy tragedy that was the mark of many of his works. Thus, the insertion of such jokes was considered justified.

Amongst the many delights of Ben Jonson's 'Epicoene' is Morose's list of noisy events he would gladly endure, if only he could put an end to his marriage. Plays of the period containing sequences of the noise of 'fights at sea' are relatively rare, and there is some speculation regarding the play or plays Jonson may be parodying in 'Epicoene'.

The use of the word 'effects' in Claudius's prayer speech in 'Hamlet' is examined to clarify whether the word used was 'affect' or 'effect'. Three examples for plays written in Shakespeare's time help in concluding that even though 'affects' was far more common, both spellings were in use and the use of 'effects' by Claudius can be treated as correct.

Shakespeare and the Force of Modern Performance. By W.B. WORTHEN. Cambridge, New York, and Melbourne: Cambridge University Press. 2003. vii+274 pp. 42.50[pounds sterling]; $58 (pbk 15.95[pounds sterling]; $21). ISBN 0-521-81030-2 [...]

The character of Ancient Pistol in William Shakespeare's 'Henry V' challenges others while on guard with a French phrase. This challenge by an English soldier during a war with the French was nevertheless a well- established practice despite its apparently contradictory nature.

Amongst the many staging difficulties of Coriolanus,(1) few have bemused commentators more than the Folio stage direction of I.iv, where 'the army of the Volsces' (514) emerges from Corioles to [...]

The article presents a critique of the 17th-century English comedy "All Fools," by George Chapman, focusing on the literary allusion made in reference to a heifer and its horns within the narrative. Topics addressed include an overview of the passage referring to a heifer, description of its inaccurate interpretation regarding cuckoldry, and further alternative explanations of the figure of speech in connection to the works of the Roman poets Ovid and Terence.