Cymbeline (1609)
Introduction “Cymbeline” is an experimental play, not easy to classify by genre. It has features of a Romance, especially in the love Imogen nurses for Posthumus, fitfully reciprocated. There are elements of the History genre too, in the dysfunctional relationship between Imperial Rome and Celtic Britain, resolved on the battlefield. It is generally classified somewhat […]
King Lear (1606)
Introduction Shakespeare inherited his plots from a wide range of sources. His Histories speak for themselves: in charting the course of the Hundred Years War and the Wars of the Roses, Shakespeare’s project was to bring recent events vividly to life in flesh and blood. Similarly with his Classical plays – “Julius Caesar” for example […]
The Merchant of Venice (1598)
Introduction “The Merchant of Venice” is essentially two quite separate plays forged into one. In Venice – urban, cosmopolitan, overwhelmingly male – conflict and competition are routine, resolved by law if you’re lucky, by violence otherwise. It’s a world where people are degraded for their racial background, where money is protected by blood, where punishment […]
Pericles (1608)
Introduction In the century in which it was written, “Pericles” seems to have been among Shakespeare’s most popular plays. Its first publication in 1609 announced it had been performed at the Globe Theatre “diverse and sundry times”. For readers (as opposed to theatre-goers), the printed edition in quarto went through five reprints. The play’s popularity […]
Romeo and Juliet (1595-6)
Introduction “Romeo and Juliet” has over 3,000 lines. But from line 6, we know how it will end. A pair of unlucky lovers will “take their life”. So the audience knows from the start of the play that whatever attempts are made to reach a happy ending – by parents, perhaps, or by priests – […]
The Tempest (1611)
Introduction From the angle of the Elizabethan playwright, there was no money to be made from publishing the fruits of your labours. The profit lay in selling your manuscript to a theatre company in a one-off deal, and then getting back to work on your next project. For the theatre companies in turn, publishing the […]