The Comedy of Errors

The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeare’s earlier plays. The first recorded performance was in December of 1594, though it may well have been written several years earlier. The London theatrical scene was established and continued to grow: Playwrights such as Marlowe and Lyly entrenched the main genres of tragedy and comedy respectively, and history plays were also appearing. As the theatrical culture developed, some plays complicated or straddled these genres, as becomes increasingly common in Shakespeare’s later canon. The Comedy of Errors, in contrast, states its intended genre in its title and clearly aligns with the template of an Elizabethan comedy, including a happy ending without serious consequences for any of the characters. The play uses both verbal and physical comedy through its wordplay and its farcical scenes.

The Comedy of Errors uses the popular trope of mistaken identity as the center of its plot and comedy. This trope was already found across many literary genres and appeared in other playhouse comedies, such as Lyly’s Galatea. Shakespeare uses it in many of his other comedies, though generally, these other examples include deliberate disguises.