Comic Transformations in Shakespeare
Title | Comic Transformations in Shakespeare PDF eBook |
Author | Ruth Nevo |
Publisher | Routledge |
Pages | 264 |
Release | 2013-10-11 |
Genre | Literary Criticism |
ISBN | 1136557121 |
First published in 1980. In this study of Shakespeare's ten early comedies, from The Comedy of Errors to Twelfth Night, the concept of a dynamic of comic form is developed; the Falstaff plays are seen as a watershed, and the emergence of new comic protagonists - the resourceful, anti-romantic romantic heroine and the Fool - as the summit of the achievement. The plays are explored from three complementary perspectives - theoretical, developmental and interpretative which lead to a further understanding of the powerful relation between the plays' formal complexity and their naturalistic verisimilitude.
Shakespeare’s comic theory
Title | Shakespeare’s comic theory PDF eBook |
Author | Thomas Allen Nelson |
Publisher | Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |
Pages | 100 |
Release | 2019-03-18 |
Genre | Language Arts & Disciplines |
ISBN | 3111629724 |
No detailed description available for "Shakespeare's comic theory".
The Evolution of Shakespeare's Comedy
Title | The Evolution of Shakespeare's Comedy PDF eBook |
Author | Larry S. Champion |
Publisher | Harvard University Press |
Pages | 260 |
Release | 1970 |
Genre | Literary Criticism |
ISBN | 9780674271418 |
The evolution of Shakespeare's comedy, in Larry Champion's view, is apparent in the expansion of his comic vision to include a complete reflection of human life while maintaining a comic detachment for the audience. Like the other popular dramatists of Elizabethan England, Shakespeare used the diverse comic motifs and devices which time and custom had proved effective. He went further, however, and created progressively deeper levels of characterization and plot interaction, thereby forming characters who were not merely devices subordinated to the needs of the plot. Shakespeare's development as a comic playwright, suggests Champion, was "consistently in the direction of complexity or depth of characterization." His earliest works, like those of his contemporaries, are essentially situation comedies: the humor arises from action rather than character. There is no significant development of the main characters; instead, they are manipulated into situations which are humorous as a result, for example, of mistaken identity or slapstick confusion. The ensuing phase of Shakespeare's comedy sets forth plots in which the emphasis is on identity rather than physical action, a revelation of character which occurs in one of two forms: either a hypocrite is exposed for what he actually is or a character who has assumed an unnatural or abnormal pose is forced to realize and admit the ridiculousness of his position. In the final comedies involving sin and sacrificial forgiveness, however, character development is concerned with a "transformation of values." Although each of the comedies is discussed, Champion concentrates on nine, dividing them according to the complexity of characterization. He pursues as well the playwright's efforts to achieve for the spectator the detached stance so vital to comedy. Shakespeare obtained this perspective, Champion observes, through experimentation with the use of material mirroring the main action--mockery, parody, or caricature--and through the use of a "comic pointer" who is himself involved in the action but is sufficiently independent of the other characters to provide the audience with an omniscient view.
The Metamorphoses of Shakespearean Comedy
Title | The Metamorphoses of Shakespearean Comedy PDF eBook |
Author | William C. Carroll |
Publisher | Princeton University Press |
Pages | 304 |
Release | 2014-07-14 |
Genre | Drama |
ISBN | 1400854814 |
This book argues that the idea of metamorphosis is central to both the theory and practice of Shakespearean comedy. It offers a synthesis of several major themes of Shakespearean comedy--identity, change, desire, marriage, and comic form--under the master trope of transformation. Originally published in 1985. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Shakespeare's Rhetoric of Comic Character
Title | Shakespeare's Rhetoric of Comic Character PDF eBook |
Author | Karen Newman |
Publisher | Routledge |
Pages | 176 |
Release | 2013-10-11 |
Genre | Literary Criticism |
ISBN | 1136557407 |
First published in 1985. In this revisionist history of comic characterization, Karen Newman argues that, contrary to received opinion, Shakespeare was not the first comic dramatist to create self-conscious characters who seem 'lifelike' or 'realistic'. His comic practice is firmly set within a comic tradition which stretches from Plautus and Menander to playwrights of the Italian Renaissance.
The Taming of the Shrew
Title | The Taming of the Shrew PDF eBook |
Author | Harold Bloom |
Publisher | Infobase Publishing |
Pages | 209 |
Release | 2009 |
Genre | Criticism |
ISBN | 1438112602 |
Presents a collection of essays discussing aspects of William Shakespeare's comedy portraying the ageless battle between the sexes.
The Shakespearean Grotesque
Title | The Shakespearean Grotesque PDF eBook |
Author | Willard Farnham |
Publisher | Oxford : Clarendon Press |
Pages | 200 |
Release | 1971 |
Genre | Literary Criticism |
ISBN |