ABSTRACT
Astudy of the structure of the early comedies up to and including Twelfth Night establishes at once their astonishing variety and the energy of Shakespeare's creative mind. Shakespeare did not simply choose one of the several patterns in common use, but modified and supplemented whatever he borrowed. And having once pleased his audience, he was not content to repeat a single pattern but continued to modify his basic structure, adding or rejecting certain elements, and sometimes rejecting one for a time only to return to it later. This does not suggest a writer at ease with a formula which works to his own satisfaction and the pleasure of his audience, nor an artist indulging some trifling fancies for his own amusement; the impression is of an artist seeking to express a vision which was always eluding a completely satisfactory presentation.
