Shakespeare Books

Of all of Coleridge's penetrating criticism of Shakespeare perhaps the most well- known is his analysis of the character of Hamlet. I quote the heart of it because it is simple pleasure to read this analysis of the great critic- creator on the master literary creator.

"In Hamlet he seems to have wished to exemplify the moral necessity of a due balance between our attention to the objects of our senses, and our meditation on the workings of our minds, - an equilibrium between the real and the imaginary worlds. In Hamlet this balance is disturbed : his thoughts, and the images of his fancy, are far more vivid than his actual perceptions, and his very perceptions, instantly passing through the medium of his contemplations, acquire, as they pass, a form and a colour not naturally their own. Hence we see a great, an almost enormous, intellectual activity, and a proportionate aversion to real action consequent upon it, with all its symptoms and accompanying qualities. This character Shakspere places in circumstances, under which it is obliged to act on the spur of the moment :- Hamlet is brave and careless of death; but he vacillates from sensibility, and procrastinates from thought, and loses the power of action in the energy of resolve. Thus it is that this tragedy presents a direct contrast to that of "Macbeth;" the one proceeds with the utmost slowness, the other with a crowded and breathless rapidity.

The effect of this overbalance of the imaginative power is beautifully illustrated in the everlasting broodings and superfluous "

Anyone who wishes to know what great literary criticism is should read and study this volume.

The title says it all. This book outlines all of Shakespeare's plays, act by act, and describes each character and his/her relationship to others, where applicable. Each summary is about 3-5 pages (average of about 3.5pgs), and some include important quotations. In addition to the outlines, the book features notes on Shakespeare's life, his theatre, the structure of his plays, sources of his inspiration, by play, and suggestions on reading Shakespeare. Of course, they are not meant as a substitute to the plays, nor are they as thorough as Cliff's Notes, but the succinct format allows you to get a decent sense of the play. Best use: read it before reading the play. It makes for a faster understanding of what is going on and lets you focus on the language, art, plot devices, etc.

Scene-by-scene analysis, in plain English, of the Bard's great plays. Seek it out, true believer.

This is great reading materil-what can I say? In this book is a great storyline and a fun, exciting plot. It has its high points and sad points, like any other, with other things mixed in. Shakespeare again displays his wonderful talent in writing and acting. This is a perfect book for anyone.

We all know about Shakespeare, so a review of his writing is not required. However, I would like to say that the Everyman's Library series are worth getting. Unlike omnibus editions (such as the Riverside Shakespeare), these are actually portable so you don't need a table to hold them up while you are reading. The Everyman's Library series have good hardbindings, are conveniently sized to carry around, and have illuminating and extensive introductions. The typeface used is old, but the letters are large and easily readable (something that is a concern with some other editions).

Comedies, Volume 2 contains: The Merchant of Venice; the Merry Wives of Windsor; Much Ado About Nothing; As You Like It; Twelth Night; All's Well That Ends Well; Measure for Measure

When performing on stage, you obviously need two actors for each set of twins (or you get into bad trouble at the end when they all meet). A recording needs no such casting, and yet the Arkangel set gets roles for two extra men. Fine with me. This recording starts with the long tale of the Father recited to piano music, thereby causing instant confusion as to the time frame of this production. (The "All's Well That Ends Well" has a locomotive pulling into a station!) Also a good deal of the humor is removed from the speech, which is indeed a spoof on the genre. But when we hear a good old fashioned Laurel and Hardy metallic clunk to let us know that one of the Dromios has just gotten a konk on the noggin, we know where we stand. Between the older Harper set [see the review on this page by a Reader from Florida] and this there is little to choose castwise, except the sound on the Penguin tapes is naturally much better. Since both are available, you might almost toss between them. But on its own terms, this is a fine production of a very silly play, the likes of which Shakespeare wisely chose never to repeat.

I bought this book as "homework" for myself before seeing the play performed at a Shakespeare festival. I read through the comtemporary English on the right hand pages, skimming the Shakespearean left pages so I would recognize the dialog when I heard it. I saw the performance later the next day and was delighted with how many of the details I was able to understand, especially compared to the previous year at the festival, when I hadn't read the play ahead of time and couldn't follow the dialog as well. In the future, I will buy No Fear guides whenever I have tickets to a Shakespeare play.

In High School I tried to get through Shakespeare but failed miserably. Fortunately I was not deterred in my after life. By the end of this book, I didn't need the translations to understand what I was reading, and actually laughed out loud until I cried! It is that funny. Too bad my teacher didn't pick this one. I highly recommend this book. As a matter of fact, I'm going to look for my copy after I write this, because I could use a good laugh.

That is awesome!!!! Thank you for writing the script and directing us I am looking forward to next year. I have had a hard time in the past understanding Shakespeare, but Richard's way of mixing current English with that of the past really helps me ease into it. Thank you Richard!
Sincerely,
CHASE

As someone who as taken 4 Shakespeare courses over the past 3 years, this book has really helped me out with research papers. Granville-Barker is widely-known as one of the best critics to look to for information on Shakespeare. This book proves that. It's a great resource for any student of Shakespeare. If you can find a copy, buy it immediately! There's a reason it's out of print!