"Characters of Shakespeare's Plays" by William Hazlitt is a work of literary criticism published in 1817. This pioneering study examines all thirty-five plays Hazlitt considered genuine, focusing on Shakespeare's characters with psychological insight and memorable observations. Written in reaction to neoclassical criticism, it followed the approach of German critic August Wilhelm Schlegel and helped revolutionize Shakespeare appreciation. Initially acclaimed, then harshly criticized for political reasons, the book later regained recognition as a major Romantic-era interpretation that continues to provoke thought alongside the work of Coleridge. (This is an automatically generated summary.)