The Cambridge introduction to Shakespeare

178 Pages·2007·2.115 MB·English

by  Emma Smith

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TheCambridgeIntroductionto
Shakespeare
ThislivelyandinnovativeintroductiontoShakespearepromotesactive
engagementwiththeplays,ratherthanrecyclingfactualinformation.
Coveringarangeoftexts,itisdividedintosevensubject-basedchapters:
Character,Performance,Texts,Language,Structure,Sourcesand
History,anditdoesnotassumeanypriorknowledge.Instead,it
developswaysofthinkingandprovidesthereaderwithresourcesfor
independentresearchthroughthe‘Wherenext?’sectionsattheendof
eachchapter.Thebookdrawsonup-to-datescholarshipwithoutbeing
overwhelmedbyitand,unlikeotherintroductoryguidestoShakespeare,
itemphasisesthatthereisspacefornewandfreshthinkingbystudents
andreaders,evenonthemost-studiedandfamiliarplays.
emma smith isFellowandTutorinEnglishatHertfordCollege,
UniversityofOxford.
Cambridge Introductions to Literature
Thisseriesisdesignedtointroducestudentstokeytopicsandauthors.
Accessibleandlively,theseintroductionswillalsoappealtoreaderswho
wanttobroadentheirunderstandingofthebooksandauthorstheyenjoy.
(cid:1)
Idealforstudents,teachers,andlecturers
(cid:1)
Concise,yetpackedwithessentialinformation
(cid:1)
Keysuggestionsforfurtherreading
Titlesinthisseries:
EricBulson TheCambridgeIntroductiontoJamesJoyce
JohnXirosCooper TheCambridgeIntroductiontoT.S.Eliot
KirkCurnutt TheCambridgeIntroductiontoF.ScottFitzgerald
JanetteDillon TheCambridgeIntroductiontoEarlyEnglishTheatre
JanetteDillon TheCambridgeIntroductiontoShakespeare’sTragedies
JaneGoldman TheCambridgeIntroductiontoVirginiaWoolf
KevinJ.Hayes TheCambridgeIntroductiontoHermanMelville
DavidHoldeman TheCambridgeIntroductiontoW.B.Yeats
M.JimmieKillingsworth TheCambridgeIntroductiontoWaltWhitman
RonanMcDonald TheCambridgeIntroductiontoSamuelBeckett
WendyMartin TheCambridgeIntroductiontoEmilyDickinson
PeterMessent TheCambridgeIntroductiontoMarkTwain
JohnPeters TheCambridgeIntroductiontoJosephConrad
SarahRobbins TheCambridgeIntroductiontoHarrietBeecherStowe
MartinScofield TheCambridgeIntroductiontotheAmericanShortStory

EmmaSmith TheCambridgeIntroductiontoShakespeare
PeterThomson TheCambridgeIntroductiontoEnglishTheatre,1660–1900
JanetTodd TheCambridgeIntroductiontoJaneAusten
JenniferWallace TheCambridgeIntroductiontoTragedy
The Cambridge Introduction to
Shakespeare
EMMA SMITH
CAMBRIDGEUNIVERSITYPRESS
Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo
Cambridge University Press
TheEdinburghBuilding,CambridgeCB28RU,UK
Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York
www.cambridge.org
Information on this title: www.cambridg e.org /9780521855990
© Emma Smith 2007
Thispublicationisincopyright.Subjecttostatutoryexceptionandtotheprovisionof
relevantcollectivelicensingagreements,noreproductionofanypartmaytakeplace
withoutthewrittenpermissionofCambridgeUniversityPress.
Firstpublishedinprintformat 2007
ISBN-13 978-0-511-27149-6 eBook (Adobe Reader)
ISBN-10 0-511-27149-2 eBook (Adobe Reader)
ISBN-13 978-0-521-85599-0 hardback
ISBN-10 0-521-85599-3 hardback
ISBN-13 978-0-521-67188-0 paperback
ISBN-10 0-521-67188-4 paperback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracyofurls
forexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication,anddoesnot
guaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,accurateorappropriate.
Contents
Listoffiguresandtables page viii
Preface ix
Chapter 1 Character 1
Juliet’sbalcony,Verona 1
Shakespeare’srealism? 3
Shakespeare’s‘unreal’characters 4
ReadingShakespeare’scharactersonthepage 6
EmbodyingShakespeare’scharactersonstage 7
Doublingontheearlymodernstage 8
Writingforparticularactors 11
Falstaff:characterasindividualortype? 12
Namingandindividuality 12
Charactersasindividualsoras
inter-relationships 14
Character:interiororexterior? 17
Character:wherenext? 19

Chapter 2 Performance 23
MeasureforMeasure:stagingsilence 23
‘Goingbacktothetext’:thechallengeof
performance 26
Performanceinterpretations:TheTamingofthe
Shrew 27
Topicalperformance:theplaysindifferent
theatricalcontexts 30
Citingperformances 32
Usingfilm 33
Usingfilmcomparatively:Macbeth 35
v
vi Contents
Hamlet:‘Tobeornottobe’ 39
Adaptations:Shakespeareanenough? 41
Performance:wherenext? 42
Chapter 3 Texts 46
Shakespeare’shand 46
SowhatdidShakespearewrite? 47
Stagetopage 48
QuartosandFolio 49
Editingasinterpretation 50
Thejoboftheeditor:theexampleofRichardII 53
Stagedirections 57
Speechprefixes 60
Thejoboftheeditor:theexampleofKingLear 61
Texts:wherenext? 65
Chapter 4 Language 71
‘Inadoublesense’(Macbeth5.7.50) 71
Didanyonereallytalklikethat? 72
Playingwithlanguage 77
Languageoftheplay/languageoftheperson 79
Proseandverse 81
Linguisticshifts:1HenryIV 82
Shakespeare’sverse 84
Linguisticvariation:AMidsummerNight’s
Dream 85
Language:wherenext? 87
Chapter 5 Structure 90
Findingtheheartoftheplay 90
Shakespeare’sgenres:dynamic,notstatic 93
Tragedyandcomedy 94
Tragedy–expandingthegenre 95
Comedy–expandingthegenre 98
History:isthisafixedgenre? 101
Structuringscenes:MuchAdoAboutNothing 103
Juxtaposingscenes,activatingironies:HenryV 104
Contents vii
Showingv.telling 106
Structure:wherenext? 107
Chapter 6 Sources 113
AntonyandCleopatraandPlutarch 113
Originality:wasShakespeareaplagiarist? 116
Shakespeareatwork:theintentionalfallacy? 118
Thesourcebitesback:RomeoandJulietand
TheWinter’sTale 120
Thestrongpoet?KingLear 127
Sources:wherenext? 131
Chapter 7 History 134
Politicpicklocks:interpretingtopically 134
Historyplays:politicalShakespeare? 136
Historyplays:Shakespeareaspropagandist? 138
Hamletashistoryplay? 140
Jacobeanpatronage:KingLearandMacbeth 142
Historicalspecificity:genderroles 144
RaceandOthello 148
History:wherenext? 153
Bibliography 157
Index 162
Figures and tables
Figures
3.1 EndingofKingLearq(1608)TrinityCollegeLibrary,
Cambridge page62
3.2 EndingofKingLearf(1623) 63
Tables
3.1 ComparingRichardIIinitsfirstedition(1597)andthe
CambridgetexteditedbyAndrewGurr.1597editionreproduced
bypermissionofTheHuntingtonLibrary,SanMarino,California 56
5.1 Aspectsofcomedyandtragedy 94
6.1 ProloguestoArthurBrooke’sRomeusandJulietandShakespeare’s
RomeoandJuliet 121

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