Disguise

Louis Dupre writes, “Shakespeare’s comedies, the accomplished masterpieces of this playful oscillation [between appearance and reality], leave the viewer utterly confused about what must count as real and what as illusion. The theatre here parodies a real-life fear of deception concerning the true nature of the outside world. The constantly shifting appearances of that world irresistibly drives the reflective mind inwardly.”

Well, maybe. But then every Wodehouse story originates from the same device of mistaken identity, and he hardly betrays any anxiety about the true nature of the outside world. Maybe Shakespeare put mistaken identities into his comedies because he thought they were funny.