ABSTRACT
First published in The Examiner, I, 22 May 1808, pp. 331–3. Reprinted in Hunt, Dramatic, pp. 15–20. Dealing with a revival of King Lear, a controversial play with a reigning king prone to madness, the essay demonstrates Hunt’s knowledge of the tragedy and the commentary on it; it also finds him praising Charles Kemble at the expense of his more famous brother, John Philip. For an earlier appreciation of Kemble, see Critical Essays, pp. 5–15.
