The Merry Wives of Windsor: William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare`s comic encore for one of his best-loved characters - the rascally Falstaff from Henry IV and Henry V - The Merry Wives of Windsor is edited by G.R. Hibbard with an introduction by Catherine Richardson in Penguin Shakespeare.
`We`ll leave a proof, by that which we will do,
Wives may be merry, and yet honest too`
In need of money, the fat and foolish Falstaff devises a scheme to seduce two married women and steal their husbands` wealth. By talking to each other, however, the wives soon discover his plan and begin to plot their own revenge. Relentlessly inventive, this comic humiliation of a foolish would-be seducer is a lively, compelling and ultimately joyous celebration of the all-conquering power of laughter.
This book contains a general introduction to Shakespeare`s life and Elizabethan theatre, a separate introduction to The Merry Wives of Windsor, a chronology, suggestions for further reading, an essay discussing performance options on both stage and screen, and a commentary.