Webster, John (c. 1580–c. 1625)

English dramatist. His reputation rests on two tragedies, The White Devil (1612) and The Duchess of Malfi (c. 1613). Though both show the preoccupation with melodramatic violence and horror typical of the Jacobean revenge tragedy, they are also remarkable for their poetry and psychological insight. He collaborated with a number of other dramatists, notably with Thomas Dekker on the comedy Westward Ho (c. 1606).

Born in London, he was the son of a tailor and was apprenticed to the same trade, becoming a freeman of the Merchant Taylors' Company in 1603. But he was also active in the theatre by 1602, working on collaborations and perhaps also acting. His first independent work was The White Devil, printed (and probably first performed) in 1612.

Little is known of his life, and the details and dates of his various collaborations are still unclear. Among those usually credited to him (apart from the two major tragedies) are the following:

Comedies Northward Ho (c. 1605) and Westward Ho c. 1606 (both with Dekker), Any Thing for a Quiet Life (c. 1621) (with Thomas Middleton), and A Cure for a Cuckold (c. 1624) (with William Rowley).

Tragedies The Famous History of Sir Thomas Wyatt (c. 1606) (with Dekker) and Appius and Virginia (c. 1608) (probably with John Heywood).

Tragicomedy The Devil's Law Case (c. 1610).