Lines 17-19 "The problem is that, as an Elizabethan playwright, Webster has become a prisoner of our critical presuppositions."
Here the author is telling us that something is wrong with the critics presuppositions about Webster. We know that his contemporaries were influenced by the morality plays of the early renaissance. (19-22), (28-30). However, Webster was not as influenced by the morality plays as they were. (30-33).
Lines (35-38) "Consequently, his characters cannot be evaluated according to reductive formulas of good and evil, which is precisely what modern critics have tried to do."
Therefore, because he was not influenced by the same plays as his contemporaries were, critics are making a mistake by judging Webster by them.
Answer choice (E) clearly states how the critics interpreted Webster to be influenced by the same source as his contemporaries, which is why they judged him so harshly.
Hope that was helpful! Let me know if you have any other questions!
