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Ian Ward, "A Kingdom for a Stage, Princes to Act: Shakespeare and the Art of Government", Law and Critique VIII/2 (1997), 189-213: This article attempts to reveal the insights which can be gained from an interdisciplinary study of law, literature and history. It takes a series of Shakespeare's plays and suggests the extent to which their study can illustrate, not just our understanding of constitutional thought in Shakespeare's time, but also the textuality of our present constitutional order. In particular, it suggests that the way in which Shakespeare addresses the art of government, and its description on the stage, reveals a more ready recognition that government is ultimately a matter of art and theatre. The first part of the essay addresses contemporary understandings of government as a form of art. The second part then introduces a number of Shakespeare's magistrates and monarchs. The third part suggests that extent to which the acceptance of government as art and theatre effects a rewriting of Shakespeare's constitution. Finally, the conclusion emphasises the degree to which a better appreciation of Shakespeare's constitution, as art, can inform us as to the aesthetic nature of our present constitutional order.

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