Henry V is a complex and challenging Shakespearean play that rewards detailed study. While few critics count it among Shakespeare's greatest works, the play is almost always successful in the theater. Compared to some of Shakespeare's more critically esteemed works, Henry V is more accessible to students, who find it easier to grasp as a text inviting lively discussion. In the early 1990's its popularity surged with the release of Kenneth Branagh's film version (1989), a hit with audiences on both sides of the Atlantic. This reference book is a comprehensive introductory...
Henry V is a complex and challenging Shakespearean play that rewards detailed study. While few critics count it among Shakespeare's greates...
One of Shakespeare's four major tragedies, Othello has captivated audiences for centuries. In its treatment of jealousy and racial tension, it offers an enduring study of universal themes. Part of the Greenwood Guides to Shakespeare, this reference book provides students with a comprehensive overview of the play. The early chapters discuss significant differences between Quarto and Folio texts of Othello and explore the play's sources and historical contexts--in particular, how Othello contributes to early seventeenth century discourses on racial otherness and the role...
One of Shakespeare's four major tragedies, Othello has captivated audiences for centuries. In its treatment of jealousy and racial tension, ...
In "Antony and Cleopatra, " Shakespeare dramatizes the classical love story of the Roman general and the Egyptian queen, their fatal romance, and the power struggle that leads to the triumph of Octavius Caesar. While the play has much to offer, it is also one of Shakespeare's least accessible tragedies. It can baffle readers with its difuseness and multiple perspectives, or intimidate directors eager to do justice to its huge canvass without overwhelming the audience. This reference provides a thorough overview of the play, its background, and its critical and dramatic legacy.
The early...
In "Antony and Cleopatra, " Shakespeare dramatizes the classical love story of the Roman general and the Egyptian queen, their fatal romance, and t...
With a raging bear, the figure of Time, and a statue that turns out to be a living woman, The Winter's Tale is one of Shakespeare's most unusual dramas. This book conveniently overviews the play and its contexts. The guide begins with a discussion of the play's textual history and its relation to early 17th-century political, social, and agrarian developments. It then examines Shakespeare's dramatic art, characters, and themes. The final chapters review the critical and scholarly response to Shakespeare's work and its performance history.
With a raging bear, the figure of Time, and a statue that turns out to be a living woman, The Winter's Tale is one of Shakespeare's most unu...
