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Series
Summary
Collection of essays by Shakespeare scholars that have been selected for students at the high school or undergraduate college level. Each entry includes an introduction; a plot synopsis; a character list; a discussion of the work's principal themes; information about the style and literary devices used; a conversation about the work's historical context; and a critical overview.
Summary
Shakespeare's plays are as relevant today as when they were written. The plays focus on timely concerns including war, corruption, political rivalry, racism, imperialism, women's rights, and sexual politics--as well as the great human themes of love, death, family, marriage, faith, patriotism, courage, and honor. Shakespeare wrote comedies that still delight, political histories that still provoke, and tragedies that still break the heart.
Author
Summary
"Speculative and articulate, Gross's book sees Shylock as a breakthrough for Shakespeare, an early realization of the Bard's power to create dramatic voices that speak for unconscious, even inhuman impulses - characters larger than the plays that contain them. Shylock is a figure who gains strength from those who hate him. He supplies a mask for Shakespeare's own need, rage, vulnerability, generosity, and ambition, as well as his anxious bond with...
Author
Summary
James Shapiro's unvarnished look at how Jews were portrayed in Elizabethan England challenged scholars to recognize the significance of Jewish questions in Shakespeare's day. From accounts of Christians masquerading as Jews to fantasies of settling foreign Jews in Ireland, Shapiro's work delves deeply into the cultural insecurities of Elizabethans while illuminating Shakespeare's portrayal of Shylock in The Merchant of Venice. In a new preface, Shapiro...