SOURCE: Reid, Robert L. “Humoral Psychology in Shakespeare's Henriad.” Comparative Drama 4, no. 4 (winter 1996-97): 471-502.
In the following essay, Reid maintains that the four principal characters of Henry IV, Part 1 depict the varied and relational psychological temperaments associated with the classical, Galenic system of “humors.” Based on this system, Reid interprets King Henry IV as melancholic, Hotspur as choleric, Falstaff as phlegmatic, and Hal as sanguine.
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