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bosoms, with John's misgivings and doubts, as of a man conscious and feeling that he has no right to the love of his subjects in the scene of his recoronation: "And looked upon, I hope, with cheerful eyes." And again, “I have a way to win their loves again;" as well as his storm of reproach and remorse, and base endeavour to shift the ponderous load of his guilt on to the shoulders of his instrument, Hubert.

After this comparison, they who fortunately witnessed the two performances, will not forget the manner in which Mr Macready impersonated the two kings, and the artistical way in which he demonstrated the unhappiness of wickedness throughout his King John; the gradual and constant declension of his spirit, its tide being always at the ebb; his small amount of confidence, his suggested consciousness of meanness, guilt, and the loss of all respect; his bearing latterly as that of a man who felt that indignant eyes were flashing on him, and his gait as if surrounded by pitfalls; in short, the general substratum of wretchedness which pervades the whole character, and yet is only known and felt, not blazoned; all this unprotruded demeanour, and which the million do not appreciate, greatly surpassed in merit the conception, even of his dying scene, terrifically real as that was.

Alexander placed the poems of Homer in a jewelled casket of inestimable price, the shrine being an emblem only of the offering; and the late theatrical regenerator presented the public with illuminated editions of the world's poet; superb, indeed, and wholly worthy of the text, were it only by reason of the zeal with which they were executed.

XIV.

The Winter's Tale.

XIV.

THE WINTER'S TALE.

THE general plot and incidental circumstances of "The Winter's Tale" are more varied, exciting, and sensuously appealing than perhaps any other of Shakespeare's plays.

The jealousy of Leontes, which occasions the distressful portion of the story, is not, like the jealousy of Othello, cautiously and gradually introduced, artfully developed, fanned, heightened, and exasperated to its awful climax of assassination and suicidal punishment; but it bursts forth at once with a sudden explosion, it partakes more of the character of a paroxysm of disease; and it as quickly subsides into the humility of self-reproach, and the very abandonment to a meek and pliant repentance. The character of Leontes is essentially that of a weak man; his contrition is not more extreme and pitiable than his rage; and no one knew better than Shakespeare that the one is almost invariably the consequent of the other. In these contrasted impulses, nothing can be more opposed than the two natures of Leontes and Othello. Both are jealous men, both pursue the same cruel course, both are touched with remorse; yet, from their several intellectual conformations, as the one (Othello) never wholly loses our sympathy, not to say even our respect; the other (Leontes) never commands them.

In the laying forth of this character, some writers have objected that the jealous change brought forth in his disposition and conduct is too sudden and too extreme, and that there appears no previous indication to render plausible so complete a subversion of his ostensible ordinary nature.

It is, no doubt, an unusual course with Shakespeare to introduce abrupt, as well as violent antagonisms in character; he more commonly, nay, indeed, he almost constantly allows a dormant passion to germ and sprout forth, and effloresce by slow degrees, so that we recognise and accompany the alteration from its first development to its conclusion. Nature herself, however, has her anomalies, her freaks, her caprices; and that person's observation and knowledge of character have made no great strides in acquirement, that cannot verify the most remarkable as well as sudden transformations in the conduct of certain individuals, and which, not unusually, have arisen from some casual and slight inducement. Such mental transfigurations almost uniformly take place in highly excitable and impulsive natures; and it is to be observed that this was precisely the component of the mind of Leontes, whose every action betrays the weak and unstable man. As, therefore, there was not the time allowed in the progress of the drama for his passion of jealousy to be gradually preindicated, we may fairly give the poet the advantage of its extempore explosion. We are to bear in mind that the passion of Othello forms the great master-feature of that tragedy, and there is no episode to sever its interest; it is one integral history. The episode in "The Winter's Tale "-the history of Perdita and her Florizel-bears almost equal sway of importance with the serious and pathetic portion; the original cause of it, the jealousy of Leontes, could not therefore have been brought to occupy a larger space in the combined plot.

Upon the causes and consequences of Leontes's passion,

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