The Merry Wives of Windsor

A new edition of one of William Shakespeare's most delightful comedies, The Merry Wives of Windsor, first published in 1602. The Merry Wives of Windsor features one of the most memorable comic characters from Shakespeare's Henriad history plays, Sir John Falstaff, who finds himself in desperate financial straits and commits himself to finding a wife whose dowry he hopes would save him from bankruptcy. Merry Wives is Shakespeare inventing the romantic sitcom, placing a beloved set of comic characters in a high-stakes situation, where antics are sure to ensue.



This reading edition is based on the original Cambridge editions, first published for the general public in the 1860s, and contains line numberings based on those editions, omitting scholarly footnotes that detract from the easy-reading experience.