escence of abounding life, a life too sound and perfect
to be devoid of feeling. Their brilliancy does not conceal emptiness,
but adorns abundance. When such an occasion as Hero's undeserved
rejection called for it, the true affection of Beatrice and the true
manliness of Benedick appeared. Hence, although both seem duped by the
trick which forms the underplot, the ruse which was to make each think
the other to be the lovelorn one, it is really they who win the day.
Their feelings are not altered by this merry plot; they {167} are
merely given a chance to drop the mask of banter and to express without
confusion the love which had long been theirs. Thus the play which
began with the silvery laughter of Beatrice ends in general mirth which
is yet more joyous.

+Date+.--Since _Much Ado_ is not mentioned by Meres, it can hardly have
been written before 1598. Entries in the Stationers' Register for
August 4 and 24, 1600, and the appearance of a quarto edition in this
same year limit the possibilities at the other end. Since the
title-page of the quarto asserts that this play had been "sundry times
publicly acted," we may assign the date 1599 with considerable
confidence.

+Source+.--The main plot was derived originally from the twentieth
novel of Bandello, but there is no direct evidence that Shakespeare
used either this or its French translation in Belleforest. In this
story Benedick and Beatrice do not appear; there is no public rejection
of Hero; there is no discovery of the plot by Dogberry and his fellows;
and the deception of Claudio is differently managed. Shakespeare's
treatment of this last detail has its source in an episode of the fifth
book of Ariosto's _Orlando Furioso_, a work several times done into
English before Shakespeare's play was written. There is considerable
reason for assuming the existence of a lost original for _Much Ado_ in
the shape of a play, known only by title, called _Benedicke and
Betteris_; but it is, of course, impossible to say how much Shakespeare
may have owed to this hypothetical predecessor.

+As You Like It+.--Of this most idyllic of all Shakespeare's comedies,
the Forest of Arden is not merely the setting; it is the central force
of the play, the power which brings laughter out of tears and harmony
out of discord. It reminds us of Sherwood forest, the home of Robin
Hood and his merry men; but it is more than this. Not only does it
harbor beasts and trees never foun