Under the Spell of Shakespeare's Histories

ISBN-13: 9783639097801 / Angielski / Miękka / 2008 / 112 str.

Pter Szaffk

Opis

One of the most ambiguous terms in English literary history and theory has turned out to be historical drama and all of its available alternatives-such as history (play), chronicle (play), chronicle history, etc.-used relatively widely during the past centuries. Under the Spell of Shakespeares Histories presents the exciting story of the theoretical approaches to the above term starting from the ancient times up until the end of the twentieth century with a special emphasis on the English-language sources. After providing a critical summary of the theories of such major critics as Samuel Johnson, Coleridge, A. W. Schlegel, Tillyard, Ribner, Lindenberger and others in the first part, the present study proposes a new definition which takes into consideration all the earlier achievements and shortcomings of the relevant literature. The author of the present book does not at all consider the proposed definition as final or faultless but rather hopes that it will generate a new interest in a better understanding of a genre so essential in the dramatic literature of each and every nation in Europe and elsewhere.

O autorze

Péter Szaffkó is a professor of English at the University of
Debrecen, Hungary, where he has been teaching for more than 30
years. His main research interest is theatre and drama, both
theoretical and practical. In addition to Hungary, he has also
been teaching as a visiting professor in the USA, the UK and
Canada.