NEW LONGMAN LITERATURE Series

John Dover Wilson's New Shakespeare, published between 1921 and 1966, became the classic Cambridge edition of Shakespeare's plays and poems until the 1980s. The series, long since out-of-print, is now reissued. Each work is available both individually and as a set, and each contains a lengthy and lively introduction, main text, and substantial notes and glossary printed at the back. The edition, which began with The Tempest and ended with The Sonnets, put into practice the techniques and theories that had evolved under the 'New Bibliography'. Remarkably by today's standards, although it took the best part of half a century to produce, the New Shakespeare involved only a small band of editors besides Dover Wilson himself. As the volumes took shape, many of Dover Wilson's textual methods acquired general acceptance and became an established part of later editorial practice, for example in the Arden and New Cambridge Shakespeares.

Julius Caesar

by William Shakespeare

Published 1 January 1920

Part of The New Penguin Shakespeare which offers a complete edition of the plays and poems by Shakespeare. Each volume has been prepared from the original texts and includes an introduction, a commentary and a short account of the textual problems of the play.

Coriolanus

by William Shakespeare

Published 1 April 1900

Set in the earliest days of the Roman Republic, Coriolanus begins with the common people, or plebeians, in armed revolt against the patricians. The people win the right to be represented by tribunes. Meanwhile, there are foreign enemies near the gates of Rome.

The play explores one reason that Rome prevailed over such vulnerabilities: its reverence for family bonds. Coriolanus so esteems his mother, Volumnia, that he risks his life to win her approval. Even the value of family, however, is subordinate to loyalty to the Roman state. When the two obligations align, the combination is irresistible.

Coriolanus is so devoted to his family and to Rome that he finds the decision to grant the plebians representation intolerable. To him, it elevates plebeians to a status equal with his family and class, to Rome’s great disadvantage. He risks his political career to have the tribunate abolished—and is banished from Rome. Coriolanus then displays an apparently insatiable vengefulness against the state he idolized, opening a tragic divide within himself, pitting him against his mother and family, and threatening Rome’s very existence.

The authoritative edition of Coriolanus from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers, includes:

-The exact text of the printed book for easy cross-reference
-Hundreds of hypertext links for instant navigation
-Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play
-Full explanatory notes conveniently placed on pages facing the text of the play
-Scene-by-scene plot summaries
-A key to the play’s famous lines and phrases
-An introduction to reading Shakespeare’s language
-An essay by a leading Shakespeare scholar providing a modern perspective on the play
-Fresh images from the Folger Shakespeare Library’s vast holdings of rare books
-An annotated guide to further reading

Essay by Heather James

The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare’s printed works, and a magnet for Shakespeare scholars from around the globe. In addition to exhibitions open to the public throughout the year, the Folger offers a full calendar of performances and programs. For more information, visit Folger.edu.

The "Merchant of Venice"

by William Shakespeare

Published 1 January 1920

"SparkNotes Literature Guides" is an invaluable series tackling some of the most important novels ever written and studied. Created by Harvard students for students everywhere, these indispensable study aids are thorough and informative. They feature explanations of key themes, motifs, and symbols, detailed analyses of major characters and important quotes, plot summaries and analysis, an exploration of historical context, plus key facts and potential essay topics - everything a student needs to be thoroughly prepared!

The Winter's Tale

by William Shakespeare

Published December 1931

The Newly Revised Signet Classic Shakespeare Series The work of the world’s greatest dramatist edited by outstanding scholars

The Winter’s Tale

Unique Features of the Signet Classic Shakespeare

•An extensive overview of Shakespeare’s life, world, and theater by the general editor of the Signet Classic Shakespeare series, Sylvan Barnet

•Special introduction to the play by the editor, Frank Kermode, Fellow of the British Academy

•Source from which Shakespeare derived The Winter’s Tale—a generous selection from Robert Greene’s Pandosto

•Dramatic criticism from the past and present: commentaries by Simon Forman, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, E.M.W. Tillyard, G. Wilson Knight, Carol Thomas Neely, and Coppelia Kahn

•A comprehensive stage and screen history of notable productions of The Winter’s Tale, then and now

•Text, notes, and commentaries printed in the clearest, most readable type

•Up-to-date list of recommended readings

King Henry IV

by William Shakespeare

Published December 1923

The Arden Shakespeare is the established edition of Shakespeare's work. Justly celebrated for its authoritative scholarship and invaluable commentary, Arden guides you a richer understanding and appreciation of Shakespeare's plays.This edition of King Henry IV Part II provides, a clear and authoritative text, detailed notes and commentary on the same page as the text, a full introduction discussing the critical and historical background to the play and appendices presenting sources and relevant extracts.

Romeo and Juliet Cased

by William Shakespeare and Roy Blatchford

Published 21 February 1994

In addition to the complete text of Romeo and Juliet, this book includes: activities; a synopsis at the beginning of each act; notes opposite the text; photographs showing various productions of each play; an introduction which places Shakespeare in context; and ideas for Key Stage 3.

Macbeth Cased

by William Shakespeare and Roy Blatchford

Published 21 February 1994

In addition to the complete text of Macbeth, this book includes: activities; a synopsis at the beginning of each act; notes opposite the text; photographs showing various productions of each play; an introduction which places Shakespeare in context; and ideas for Key Stage 3.

Midsummer Night's Dream,A Cased

by William Shakespeare and Roy Blatchford

Published 21 February 1994