---
title: "First Folio | British Literature I"
description: "First Folio is the 1623 collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays, preserving 36 works and shaping his place in British Literature I."
canonical: "https://fiveable.me/british-literature-i/key-terms/first-folio"
type: "key-term"
subject: "British Literature I"
unit: "Unit 7"
---

# First Folio | British Literature I

## Definition

The First Folio is the 1623 collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays. In British Literature I, it matters because it preserved 36 plays, including many that would otherwise be lost.

## What It Is

The First Folio is the first collected printed edition of William Shakespeare’s plays, published in 1623, seven years after his death. In British Literature I, you usually meet it as the book that saved a huge part of Shakespeare’s dramatic output and helped turn him into the literary giant we know now.

It was put together by Shakespeare’s fellow actors John Heminges and Henry Condell. They did not just gather texts at random. They chose plays they believed deserved preservation, then organized them into a large folio volume, the kind of format normally used for serious or expensive books. That choice matters because it signals that Shakespeare’s plays were being treated as literature worth collecting, not just scripts for a stage performance.

The First Folio contains 36 plays, including comedies, histories, and tragedies. Eighteen of those plays had never been printed before, which is why the book is such a big deal for literary history. Without it, works like Macbeth and Measure for Measure might survive only in weaker or incomplete forms, or not at all. For a course that studies Shakespeare’s career and the growth of English literature, that makes the First Folio more than a rare artifact. It is a source text.

You will also see the First Folio discussed alongside quartos, which were smaller, earlier print editions of individual plays. Quartos could be messy, abbreviated, or inconsistent, while the Folio aimed for a more complete collected version. That does not mean the First Folio is perfect, since early printing still involved errors, editorial choices, and differences from surviving play texts. But it is one of the main reasons Shakespeare’s canon became stable enough to study as a body of work.

In British Literature I, the First Folio sits at the intersection of authorship, print culture, and literary reputation. It shows how a writer’s legacy can depend on editing, publishing, and preservation, not just on the original act of writing.

## Why It Matters

The First Folio matters because it explains why Shakespeare’s plays reached later readers in the form we know today. In British Literature I, you are not only reading the plays themselves, you are also learning how those texts survived, changed, and became part of the canon.

It also gives you a concrete way to talk about print culture in the early modern period. Shakespeare’s plays were performed first, then circulated in print in uneven ways. The First Folio shows the shift from stage text to literary collection, which is a major part of Shakespeare’s long-term reputation.

This term also helps with arguments about textual authority. If a teacher asks why different versions of a Shakespeare play can vary, the First Folio is part of the answer. It gives you a real historical reason for line differences, editorial uncertainty, and the presence or absence of certain plays in the record.

When you write about Shakespeare, mentioning the First Folio can strengthen a paragraph about preservation, authorship, or the making of the canon. It is one of the clearest examples of how literature survives because people decide it should.

## Connections

### Folio

A folio is a book format, and the First Folio uses that format to present Shakespeare as a major literary figure. In British Literature I, this matters because the physical size and prestige of a folio helped distinguish collected literary works from cheaper printed materials. The format itself sends a message about value and authority.

### Quarto

Quartos were smaller printed editions of individual plays, often produced before or alongside the Folio. Students compare them to the First Folio when discussing textual differences, missing scenes, or editorial problems. If a play exists in both forms, the contrast can reveal how unstable early Shakespeare texts sometimes were.

### [Ben Jonson](/british-literature-i/key-terms/ben-jonson)

Ben Jonson’s literary world overlaps with the First Folio because he helped shape the idea that printed drama could be treated as serious literature. Shakespeare’s Folio also includes Jonson’s famous praise of Shakespeare, which matters in a course on reputation and canon formation. That kind of endorsement shows how writers framed each other’s legacy.

### [macbeth](/british-literature-i/key-terms/macbeth)

Macbeth is one of the plays preserved in the First Folio and is a good example of why the book matters. If a course discusses the Folio, it often connects to which versions of Macbeth you are reading and how the text was transmitted. The play’s presence in the Folio helps anchor its place in Shakespeare’s tragic canon.

## On the AP Exam

A passage analysis or short-answer question may ask you to identify where a Shakespeare play comes from, explain why a text survives in more than one version, or connect a play to print culture. If you see a question about the preservation of Shakespeare’s works, the First Folio is the obvious evidence to mention.

In an essay, you might use it to support a point about authorship, publication, or canon formation. It can also show up in discussion when your class talks about why Shakespeare became such a dominant figure in British literature. If the prompt asks how later readers know Shakespeare at all, the First Folio is one of the best historical answers.

## First Folio vs Quarto

The First Folio and a quarto are both early printed forms of Shakespeare’s plays, but they are not the same thing. A quarto is a smaller, separate edition of a single play, while the First Folio is the 1623 collected volume of 36 plays. If a question asks about Shakespeare’s major collected publication, think Folio.

## Key Takeaways

- The First Folio is the 1623 collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays, edited after his death by John Heminges and Henry Condell.
- It preserved 36 plays and includes many that had never been printed before, which is why it is so important for Shakespeare studies.
- In British Literature I, the First Folio shows how print culture shaped Shakespeare’s legacy and helped create the canon.
- The Folio is often discussed alongside quartos because the two formats can differ in text, completeness, and reliability.
- When you mention the First Folio, you are usually making a point about preservation, authorship, or the history of the Shakespeare text.

## FAQs

### What is the First Folio in British Literature I?

The First Folio is the first collected printed edition of Shakespeare’s plays, published in 1623. In British Literature I, it matters because it preserved 36 plays and helped secure Shakespeare’s reputation as a central English writer.

### Why is the First Folio important for Shakespeare?

It preserved plays that might have been lost and gave later readers a more complete Shakespeare canon. It also helped move Shakespeare from popular dramatist to major literary figure, which is a big theme in classes on British literature.

### Is the First Folio the same as a quarto?

No. A quarto is a smaller printed edition of a single play, while the First Folio is a large collected volume of Shakespeare’s plays. They can be compared in class because some plays survive in both forms and the texts may differ.

### Which Shakespeare plays are in the First Folio?

The First Folio includes 36 plays across comedies, histories, and tragedies. Many of them were printed for the first time there, including works that would otherwise have been much harder to study in their early forms.

## Related Study Guides

- [7.1 Shakespeare's Life and Career](/british-literature-i/unit-7/shakespeares-life-career/study-guide/CdSUiw6iSnQjq6pu)

## About This Document

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