This monograph is intended to provide a critical review andanalysis of recent studies of the electromagnetic structure ofnucleons. The first chapter is devoted to a precise definition ofwhat is meant by the electromagnetic form factors. Thedifferent types of experiments which have given informationon these form factors are discussed in Chapter II withemphasis on the theoretical assumptions and approximationsmade in analysing the experimental numbers in terms ofform factors. Chapter III is devoted to the recent dispersiontheoretic analyses of the form factors. The theoreticaldevelopment here has the two goals of serving as a firstintroduction to the dispersion methods for physicists at thegraduate level and of indicating clearly the various approximations made at present in implementing the dispersion theoryapproach. In Chapter IV the validity of quantum electrodynamics is discussed and it is shown how possible deviationsin this theory alter the nucleon form factor analyses. Twoappendices are included with formal developments.We wish to thank the Air Force Office of Scientific Research,of the United States Air Force, for partial support in preparation of the manuscript. Воспроизведено в оригинальной авторской орфографии издания 1961 года (издательство "Oxford University Press").