Testing the ”participatory state” in A Yorkshire Tragedy (c. 1605-8)

This article examines popular perceptions of the early modern state by considering the presentation of communal law enforcement in the play A Yorkshire Tragedy. . It understands the state as inherently embodied , where magistrates enacting legal process performed the state into being for those watching. It considers how the play in performance enacted a version of the state by staging communal justice. It offers a new reading of the play and local law enforcement, identifying clear pressure on communitiess to prevent crime as well as report it, arguing that the play presents a tragedy of failed prevention.