The Cambridge History of English and American Literature in 18 Volumes (1907–21). Volume V. The Drama to 1642, Part One. V. Early English Comedy. § 6. His narrative power. Were Heywood’s place in dramatic history to be determined purely by his indisputable works, it would be matter of doubt whether he had not chosen the wrong channel for his great gifts. His narrative powers might have made him the last and most brilliant of Chaucer’s successors, while his services to the stage, great as they were, would be limited by his inability to portray action.   12