Shakespeare's Ill Will and the Style of Consensus

This article shows that Shakespeare's play Twelfth Night dramatizes a body of Elizabethan political theory that responded to the challenges of Puritanism by inquiring into the meaning and value of consensus. In doing so, it establishes debates about Puritanism--including their theatrical representation--as part of the history of consensus politics, a term today associated with Jürgen Habermas and his followers, who believe a government's legitimacy derives from the collective consent of the governed. I show that Puritans made similarly structured arguments about Church government, and that Shakespeare's critique of their style reflects an overlooked theoretical contribution with contemporary resonance.