This book helps the reader make sense of the most commonly studied writer in the world. It starts with a brief explanation of how Shakespeare's writings have come down to us as a series of scripts for actors in the early modern theatre industry of London. The main chapters of the book approach the texts through a series of questions: 'what's changed since Shakespeare's time?', 'to what uses has Shakespeare been put?', and 'what value is there in Shakespeare?' These questions go to the heart of why we study Shakespeare at all, which question the book encourages the readers to answer for themselves in relation to their own critical writing. Key Features * A chronology of Shakespeare's career as an actor/dramatist that locates him within the theatre industry of his time * New readings of twelve plays that form a core of the Shakespeare canon: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, Richard 2, Henry 5, Hamlet, Othello, All's Well that Ends Well, The Winter's Tale, Macbeth, Measure for Measure, The Tempest, and Timon of Athens * Critical analyses organized by genre (comedies, histories, tragedies, and romance) and by four key critical approaches: authorship, performance, identities, and materialism * An extensive resources section, including a glossary of the important critical terms that are often used in debates about Shakespeare

About the Author
Gabriel Egan is Lecturer in English in the Department of English and Drama at Loughborough University.

Reviews
In a series of direct, clear, unpatrionising chapters, Egan shows some of the ways in which questions of genre, authorship, context, performance and readers' preoccupations can enter into critical readings of Shakespeare's plays...'Shakespeare' can be genuinely useful for undergraduates, teachers who are not Shakespeare specialists, and some bright A level students. Use of English In a series of direct, clear, unpatrionising chapters, Egan shows some of the ways in which questions of genre, authorship, context, performance and readers' preoccupations can enter into critical readings of Shakespeare's plays...'Shakespeare' can be genuinely useful for undergraduates, teachers who are not Shakespeare specialists, and some bright A level students.



Book Information
ISBN 9780748623723
Author Gabriel Egan
Format Paperback
Page Count 224
Imprint Edinburgh University Press
Publisher Edinburgh University Press