"Armine ... thou art a foole and knaue" : the fools of Shakespeare’s romances

This thesis analyses in detail the comic characters of Shakespeare's romances (Pericles, Cymbeline, The Winter’s Tale and The Tempest), in particular those created for Robert Armin, the leading comedian of the King's Men in the period. The first chapter focuses on the relationship between actor and role: after an introductory section including an overview of the life and works of Robert Armin along with the particular features of his clowning style as opposed to those of Will Kemp, his predecessor in Shakespeare’s company, the research moves on to consider the parts in the romances he was likely to have played in the early performances: Boult, Cloten, Autolycus and Caliban.