French Literature Reviews - 2026

Th. Middleton, W. Rowley, Ph. Massinger, The Old Law / La Loi des anciens
Theatre and Performance

Études Épistémè
Issue 11 - Spring 2007

THE OLD LAW / LA LOI DES ANCIENS

By Thomas Middleton, William Rowley, Philip Massinger

Critical edition with introduction, translation, and notes,
established by Antoine Ertlé

For the third time, *Études Épistémè* dedicates a special issue to an overlooked play from the theatrical repertoire of the Baroque era. In this 11th issue, with which the journal celebrates its fifth anniversary, Antoine Ertlé offers us a translation of *The Old Law, or A New Way to Please You* (*La Loi des anciens, ou Comment vous plaire à nouveau*) by Thomas Middleton, William Rowley, and Philip Massinger. *The Old Law*—meaning both "The Ancient Law" and "The Law Concerning the Old"—depicts, in a fanciful Epirus, citizens hunted down, arrested, and condemned to death based on their age: in the name of an antique constitution, the monarch indeed orders that the elderly be sentenced to be hurled from a precipice. In fact, no one will perish, as it turns out that this ordinance was merely a stratagem devised by the king to test his subjects. Nonetheless, *The Old Law* is not merely a carnival play, a vast Feast of Fools permitting all manner of topsy-turvy reversals: beyond the game, the royal ruse acts as a catalyst for human passions, revealing that envy, greed, and ambition divide the hearts of these Epirotes. A biting and cruel tragicomedy echoing both Shakespearean motifs and the traditions of city comedy, *The Old Law* is a chiaroscuro play that is a pleasure to discover or rediscover.

Published as a special issue of Études Épistémè, this critical edition makes a lesser-known drama accessible. Early modern European drama frequently engaged with civic life, generational conflict and the moral limits of sovereign authority through complex tragicomedies. In theatrical history, collaborative playwriting was a common practice among Elizabethan and Jacobean dramatists, allowing multiple authors to combine distinct stylistic elements and dramatic tension within a single dramatic text for the early modern stage.

This volume provides a bilingual approach to a play that investigates social anxieties surrounding old age and the abuse of power through a fictional decree in Epirus. Readers interested in early modern European drama, collaborative Renaissance playwrights or the traditions of English tragicomedy may find this scholarly edition a useful resource. The text combines elements of farce and moral examination, reflecting the diverse theatrical repertoire of the Baroque era.