Shakespeare and Sir Thomas More

Scholarly interest in The Book of Sir Thomas More has concentrated on the issue of Shakespeare's contribution to its revision. The play, which concerns the life of Sir Thomas More, was written in 1593–4, subjected to censorship by the Master of the Revels and revised by a group of playwrights which probably included Shakespeare. 148 lines have been claimed as Shakespeare's, and these were the focus of a collection of essays edited by A. W. Pollard in 1923. The range of topics in this volume is much wider than that of the 1923 collection, taking in the problems presented by the play as a whole, its authorship and revision, structure, occasion and staging. The terms of controversy are realigned, and the stature of the play re-established, making it appear more than ever likely that Shakespeare contributed to its revision.