John Falstaff

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A fat and jolly knight. The character was invented by William Shakespeare for his plays Henry IV (parts 1 and 2) and also appeared in The Merry Wives of Windsor.

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-'''Sir John Falstaff''' is a [[fictional character]] who appears in three plays by [[William Shakespeare]] as a companion to Prince Hal, the future King Henry V. A fat, vainglorious, and cowardly knight, Falstaff leads the apparently wayward Prince Hal into trouble, but he is ultimately repudiated after Hal becomes king.
+#A [[fat]] and [[jolly]] [[knight]]. The character was invented by [[w:William Shakespeare|William Shakespeare]] for his [[play]]s ''Henry IV'' (parts 1 and 2) and also appeared in ''The Merry Wives of Windsor''.
-Shakespearean scholar [[Edmond Malone]] claimed, on uncertain authority, that [[John Heminges]] was the actor Shakespeare had in mind to portray Falstaff; an alternative is that Falstaff was written for [[William Kempe|Will Kempe]], the clown of Shakespeare's company. The original actor was later succeeded by [[John Lowin]], another comic actor.
+===Derived terms===
+*[[Falstaffian]]
-Though primarily a comic figure, Falstaff still embodies a kind of depth common to Shakespeare's tricky comedy. In Act II, Scene III of ''[[Henry V (play)|Henry V]]'', his death is described by the character "Hostess", possibly the [[Mistress Quickly]] of ''Henry IV'', who describes his body in terms that echo the death of [[Socrates]].
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