Shakespeare: The Late Plays

What makes Shakespeare''s late plays so special? Through detailed analyses of key passages, Kate Aughterson shows how these plays portray a world of political intrigue, familial chaos and crisis, which teeters continually into tragedy: a world we can recognise today.Part I of this engaging study:- Provides stimulating close readings of extracts from Tempest , The Winter''s Tale , Cymbeline and Pericles - Examines major topics such as openings, endings, familial roles, stage properties, spectacle and song- Offers suggestions for further work and summarizes the methods of analysisPart II supplies essential background material, including:- Detailed accounts of Shakespeare''s literary and historical contexts- Samples from important critical works and performancesWith a helpful Further Reading section, this illuminating volume is ideal for anyone who wishes to appreciate and explore Shakespeare''s late plays for themselves.>

List of contents

General Editor's Preface
A Note on Editions
Introduction: Ways of Reading
PART I: ANALYSING SHAKESPEARE'S LATE PLAYS
1. Openings
2. Turning Points: Tragedy and Comedy
3. Endings
4. Fathers, Sons and Husbands
5. Mothers, Daughters and Wives
6. Masters, Servants and Slaves: Society and Politics
7. Stage Properties
8. Spectacle and Theatricality
9. Music and Song
General Conclusions to Part I
PART II: THE CONTEXT AND THE CRITICS
Shakespeare's Literary Career
Jacobean Contexts
Sample Critical Views and Performances
Further Reading
Index.

About the author

Kate Aughterson

Product details

• Authors: Kate Aughterson
• Publisher: Macmillan
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 18.11.2013
• EAN: 9780230368620
• ISBN: 978-0-230-36862-0
• No. of pages: 296
• Series: Analysing Texts; Analysing Texts (Palgrave MacM; Analysing Texts
• Subjects: Fiction > Poetry, drama; Humanities, art, music > Linguistics and literary studies > General and comparative literary studies; B, Literature, Cultural and Media Studies, Literary studies: c 1600 to c 1800, Early Modern/Renaissance Literature, Early Modern and Renaissance Literature, Literature, Modern, Relating to Shakespeare / Shakespearean