Shakespeare

Description

An authoritative, accessible overview of history's greatest literary figure

The great dramatist Ben Jonson wrote that William Shakespeare "was not of an age, but for all time." In the nearly four centuries since his death, Shakespeare's plays still have a tremendous impact on everything from the classroom to popular culture. Now you can have at your fingertips all the vital details on the most influential writer in the history of the English language--straight from one of the most trusted sources of information in the world.

In Shakespeare, Encyclopedia Britannica presents a concise and balanced overview of the Bard's life, work, and legacy. From his upbringing in Stratford to his early theater career in London, from his poetry and plays to the controversy surrounding his authorship, from his contemporaries and collaborators to his critics past and present, this comprehensive guide provides the necessary background to appreciate Shakespeare's unique place in world literature.

This informative volume also looks at new interpretive approaches to Shakespeare and his work and offers insights from the foremost Shakespeare scholars in the world, including David Bevington (University of Chicago), Stephen J. Greenblatt (Harvard University), and Gail Kern Paster (Folger Shakespeare Library), among others. Every concise entry--from All's Well That Ends Well to The Winter's Tale--promotes a deeper understanding of Shakespeare's life, times, writings, and influence that only Encyclopedia Britannica can provide.

Since 1768, Encyclopedia Britannica has been a leading provider of learning products and one of the world's most trusted sources of information.

Sujets

• Shakespeare
• Shakespare
• Literary Criticism
• Encyclopedia Britannica
• List of British playwrights
• British literature
• William Shakespeare
• Encyclopædia Britannica

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 01 décembre 2006
• Nombre de lectures: 6
• EAN13: 9781620459683
• Langue: English

Extrait

Shakespeare
The Essential Guide to the Life and Works of the Bard

Encyclop dia Britannica
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Copyright 2007 by Encyclop dia Britannica, Inc. Britannica, Encyclop dia Britannica, and the Thistle logo are registered trademarks of Encyclop dia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved
Published by John Wiley Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey Published simultaneously in Canada
Design and composition by Navta Associates, Inc.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Shakespeare : the essential guide to the life and works of the Bard / Encyclopaedia Britannica.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN-13: 978-0-471-76784-8 (pbk.)
ISBN-10: 0-471-76784-0 (pbk.)
1. Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616-Encyclopedias. 2. Dramatists, English- Early modern, 1500-1700-Biography-Encyclopedias. I. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.

PR2892.S55 2007
822.3 3-dc22
2006012523
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Note to the Reader

Introduction by Gail Kern Paster
All s Well That Ends Well
Antony and Cleopatra
As You Like It
Assessment
Authorship
Bacon, Sir Francis
Beaumont, Francis
Blackfriars Theatre
A Closer Look: Theaters in the Liberties by Steven Mullaney
Burbage, Richard
Collaborations and Spurious Attributions
The Comedy of Errors
Coriolanus
Criticism
Cymbeline
The Dark Lady
Davenant, William
Dekker, Thomas
Derby, William Stanley, 6th Earl of
Early Plays
Edward III
Elizabeth I
Elizabethan Poetry and Prose
Elizabethan Theater
A Closer Look: Shakespeare on Theater by Alvin B. Kernan
The First Folio
Fletcher, John
Folger Shakespeare Library
The Globe Theatre
Greene, Robert
Hamlet
Hathaway, Anne
Henry IV, Part 1
Henry IV, Part 2
Henry V
Henry VI, Part 1
Henry VI, Part 2
Henry VI, Part 3
Henry VIII
Holinshed, Raphael
Jonson, Ben
Julius Caesar
King John
King Lear
A Closer Look: Music in Shakespeare s Plays by Mary Springfels
Kyd, Thomas
Life
The Lord Chamberlain s Men
Love s Labour s Lost
Macbeth
Marlowe, Christopher
Mature Plays
Marston, John
Massinger, Philip
Measure for Measure
The Merchant of Venice
The Merry Wives of Windsor
Middleton, Thomas
A Midsummer Night s Dream
A Closer Look: Shakespeare and Opera by Chantal Sch tz
Much Ado about Nothing
Othello
Oxford, Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of
Pericles, Prince of Tyre
Poetry
Raleigh, Sir Walter
Richard II
Richard III
Romeo and Juliet
A Closer Look: Viewing Shakespeare on Film by Kenneth S. Rothwell
Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)
Sexuality
Sidney, Sir Philip
Social and Intellectual Context
Sources
Southampton, Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of
Spenser, Edmund
Stratford-upon-Avon
The Taming of the Shrew
The Tempest
The Theatre
Timon of Athens
Titus Andronicus
Troilus and Cressida
Twelfth Night
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Two Noble Kinsmen
University Wits
Wars of the Roses
Webster John
W. H., Mr.
The Winter s Tale

Appendix 1: Chronology of the Plays
Appendix 2: Selected Filmography
Bibliography
Credits
Note to the Reader
In 2005 a special rendition of Macbeth , one told from the perspective of Lady Macbeth, had its world premiere at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Acclaimed director and cultural figure Sh zo Sat staged the production with American actors and English dialogue but melded it with the conventions of kabuki theater, including traditional Japanese music, makeup, costumes, and stage props; it was East-meets-West in a theater form known as fusion kabuki. Staged at the same theater the following year was another unusual version of Macbeth . This time a single actor, the Canadian-born, classically trained thespian Rick Miller, performed Shakespeare s shortest tragedy in 50 strange but highly recognizable voices: all dead-on impersonations of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and many other wacky characters from The Simpsons , the hit animated TV series; the hilarious absurdity of combining Shakespeare and The Simpsons has led to sold-out shows around the world. Performances like these, especially ones as disparate as Kabuki Lady Macbeth and the inimitable MacHomer , only confirm the obvious: Shakespeare remains the quintessential man for all seasons whose far-flung influence is never hard to find. Or as Gail Kern Paster puts it in her wonderful introduction that follows, The sun never sets on the Shakespeare industry.
Britannica is proud to contribute to this prolific industry with Shakespeare: The Essential Guide to the Life and Works of the Bard . Encyclop dia Britannica is one of the most trusted sources of information in the world, and its legendary print set, first published in 1768 and the basis for the first encyclopedia on the Internet in 1994, is the oldest continuously published and revised work in the English language. And so it is with great pleasure that we offer today, in conjunction with John Wiley Sons, yet another way to access Britannica s wealth of information: the Essential Guide series.
The entries that follow derive from articles commissioned for the encyclopedia and largely edited by Britannica s senior editor for world literature, Kathleen Kuiper, and they make up but a fraction of Britannica s extensive coverage of Elizabethan life and letters. They are written by the world s leading authorities on Shakespeare. David Bevington of the University of Chicago, for example, is the main author of Britannica s large biography of Shakespeare, which has been broken up here into convenient short entries (such as Assessment, Authorship, Criticism, and Sexuality ), and he composed the summaries of each Shakespeare play; Stephen J. Greenblatt of Harvard University, author of the acclaimed Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare , wrote the biography of Elizabeth I; Alvin Kernan of Princeton University contributed Shakespeare on Theater ; Kenneth Rothwell of the University of Vermont wrote Shakespeare on Film ; and the introduction, by Gail Kern Paster, director of the Folger Shakespeare Library, surveys the social, cultural, and political factors contributing to Shakespeare s success and influence. These are but a few of the distinguished scholars featured in this volume. There are also discussions of various controversies-concerning Shakespeare s identity, the Bard s sexual orientation, and the mysterious Dark Lady and fair youth -as well as appendixes offering a chronology of Shakespeare s plays and an extensive filmography.
The entries are arranged alphabetically for easy access to specific subjects, but many readers will doubtless choose to read this book straight through, from beginning to end, and we have developed the entries with this in mind. So whether you choose to skip around or to read this book cover to cover, we trust you will find the information and explanations you are looking for.
The combination of these various article types, ranging from plot summaries to special essays, all organized in this easy-to-use format, will provide you with a quick, concise, and informative overview of Shakespeare s life and legacy. And if still more information on the Bard is desired, there is an extensive bibliography of additional sources at the end of this book. We also invite you to visit www.britannica.com , where authoritative answers-and even a multimedia spotlight on Shakespeare and his world-are just a click away.
Theodore Pappas Executive Editor Encyclop aedia Britannica, Inc.
Introduction
Gail Kern Paster
He was not of an age, but for all time! exclaimed Ben Jonson in his poem To the memory of my beloved, the Author Mr. William Shakespeare, one of several dedicatory poems prefacing the great 1623 Folio of Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies , the first collected volume of Shakespeare s works. Time has thus far supported this bold declaration: no writer before or since has equaled Shakespeare in influence, reverential acclaim, or enduring commercial and popular success. Although his work has been studied more than that of any other writer, the facts of his life remain maddeningly elusive: