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Evidence found in legal and literary texts from early modern England undermines and complicates any notions of a monolithic, stable ideal of female conduct. This study of over 5000 important folios of court depositions contemporary with Shakespeare's plays demonstrates the complex ways those plays participate in and comment upon their culture, rather than stand apart from it. The depositions from the Consistory Court of London for 1586-1611 and the texts of Shakespeare's dramas represent two dif...

This study considers the plays by Shakespeare produced during the reign of Elizabeth I, and discusses some of the key issues of the day in their historical context. Using a comparative method that seeks to move away from the division of Shakespeare's works into categories of tragedies, comedies and histories, plays are compared and contrasted for the purpose of analyzing wider contextual questions. The plays considered include "Hamlet", "Julius Caesar", "Twelth Night", "The Merchant of Venice" a...

A large number of women writers, directors, and performers have created works that talk back to Shakespeare, or to more earlier and more traditional interpretations of his plays, in the late 20th-century. For example, Jane Smiley's "A Thousand Acres", which rewrites "King Lear", and Marina Warner's "Indigo", which rewrites "The Tempest", protest biases against women and colonialist attitudes that Shakespeare's plays have come to symbolize. In this collection, feminist critics, and Jane Smiley he...

In Virgil's third Eclogue, Palaemon concludes the poetry competition between Menalcas and Damoetas by saying that he cannot choose between them, a judgment that is emblematic of the contest between Neo-Latin and vernacular poetry in Renaissance France. Both forms of poetry draw on similar roots, both are equally accomplished, and the contest between them is largely amicable. The Judgment of Palaemon illustrates the almost symbiotic relationship between Renaissance Latin and French poetry, while...

Smith deals with those plays from the late period of Shakespeare's career that are not comedies, tragedies or histories: Pericles; Cymbeline; The Winter's Tale; The Tempest and The Two Noble Kinsmen.

In Renaissance drama, madness links personal crisis to political crisis. Duncan Salkeld covers a range of psychiatric, political and dramatic literature from the renaissance to the presene day to examine the interplay between madness and drama in the plays of Shakespeare and other key dramatists, such as Jonson, Kyd, Dekker, Webster, Beaumont and Fletcher. The cultural history of madness is a fascinating topic and Salkeld uses theorists such as Foucault, Derrida, Shoshana Felman and Luce Irigara...

English Literary Afterlives traces life narratives of early modern authors created for them after their deaths by readers or publishers, who retrospectively tried to make sense of the author's life and works. In a series of case-studies of the reception history of major poets - Sidney, Spenser, Donne, Herbert, as well as Robert Greene, the first 'celebrity author' - within a generation of their deaths, it shows how those authors were posthumously fashioned and refashioned. It argues that during...

An electrifying new study that investigates the challenges of the Bard’s inconsistencies and flaws, and focuses on revealing—not resolving—the ambiguities of the plays and their changing topicality   A genius and prophet whose timeless works encapsulate the human condition like no other. A writer who surpassed his contemporaries in vision, originality, and literary mastery. A man who wrote like an angel, putting it all so much better than anyone else. Is this Shakespeare? Well, sort of. But it...

This clear and succinct book is designed for general readers who want to know how to go about reading Shakespeare's works for pleasure. * Encourages readers to approach Shakespeare's works aggressively, interactively, and questioningly * Focuses on six popular Shakespeare plays - A Midsummer Night's Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Henry IV Part I, Hamlet, King Lear and The Tempest * Recommends the best editions, recordings and DVDs / videos of these plays * Discusses the production of the plays on st...

In 1603, James VI of Scotland ascended the English throne, becoming James I of England. London was alive with an interest in all things Scottish, and Shakespeare turned to Scottish history for material. He found a spectacle of violence and stories of traitors advised by witches and wizards, echoing James's belief in a connection between treason and witchcraft. In depicting a man who murders to become king, Macbeth teases us with huge questions. Is Macbeth tempted by fate, or by his or his wif...

This 14-volume set contains titles originally published between 1926 and 1992. An eclectic mix, this collection examines Shakespeare's work from a number of different perspectives, looking at history, language, performance and more it includes references to many of his plays as well as his sonnets.