In this highly entertaining study, De Sousa argues that Shakespeare reinterprets, refashions and reinscribes his alien characters - Jews, Moors, Amazons and gypsies. In this way, the dramatist questions the narrowness of a European perspective which caricatures other societies and views them with suspicion. De Sousa examines how Shakespeare defines other cultures in terms of the interplay of gender, text and habitat. Written in a provocative style, this readable book provides a wealth of fascinating information both on contemporary stage productions and on race and gender relations in early...

Confronted with the formidable and at times daunting mass of materials on Shakespeare, where does the beginning student--or even a seasoned one--turn for guidance? Answering that question remains the central aim of this new edition of a guide that has been a much admired mainstay of Shakespeare studies for two decades.

Thoroughly revised and updated, this widely used teaching and study tool adds concise analyses of more than 100 new books on Shakespeare published since the 1987 edition. It also greatly expands the section on the history plays and provides separate new categories for film...