The Two Sir John Fastolfs

Abstract

It is now several years ago that Mr. James Gairdner wrote an essay on ‘The Historical Element in Shakespeare's Falstaff’ Since then many have ventured to gather where lie has strawed; only last year, for example, the public were presented with ‘The Case of Sir John Fastolf,’ by Mr. Duthie. I mention this instance because Mr. Gairdner himself reviewed the book, and therefore if he had by any chance changed his opinions, there was an opportunity for stating the fact, of which he would doubtless have availed himself. We may consequently assume that the views of the two recognised authorities on Falstaff remain unchanged. The other authority is of course the late Mr. Halliwell-Phillipps, who penned a monograph on this subject.