ABSTRACT
The opening scene of the second act with its court setting and large cast of characters resembles the third scene of the previous act, and is in marked contrast to the murder-scene, Scene iv. But the unhurried pace of the first act, where each scene presents a rounded-off incident, now gives way to a quicker-moving and more energetic mode of presentation 1 — a series of short scenes in which the links in the chain of plot follow more rapidly one upon the other. This increase in the pace at which the plot unfolds can be observed in most of the other Histories as well.
