Shakespeare and London: A Dictionary is a topographical reference book of all the London locations, allusions and colloquial terms mentioned in Shakespeare's complete works. For many years critics have argued that Shakespeare did not engage with the city in which he lived, however London's topography and life is present in all his work, in its language, its locations and its characters. This dictionary offers a concise and fascinating insight into the city's impact on the Shakespearean imagination and provides readers with a wide-ranging guide to early modern London, its contemporary meanings and the ways in which Shakespeare employs these throughout the canon.

Issues of gender, religion, and landscape in the works of Shakespeare and Spenser are examined through the lens of colonialism and national identity in this literary critical analysis. This period in early modern English literature is marked by a redefinition of what it means to be British, and close readings of the texts reveal Spenser's developing (and ambivalent) sense of Irishness and Shakespeare's alleged Catholic recusancy. The relationship between biographical details and imaginative writing reveal the conflicting issues of literary reputation and identity that make discussions of nationalism so complex. Pastoralism versus ruralism and internal insurrection versus foreign invasion are among the themes discussed.

Shakespeare's history plays make up nearly a third of his corpus and feature iconic characters like Falstaff, the young Prince Hal, and Richard III--as well as unforgettable scenes like the storming of Harfleur. But these plays also present challenges for teachers, who need to help students understand shifting dynastic feuds, manifold concepts of political power, and early modern ideas of the body politic, kingship, and nationhood. Part 1 of this volume, "Materials," introduces instructors to the many editions of the plays, the wealth of contextual and critical writings available, and other resources. Part 2, "Approaches," contains essays on topics as various as masculinity and gender, using the plays in the composition classroom, and teaching the plays through Shakespeare's own sources, film, television, and the Web. The essays help instructors teach works that are poetically and emotionally rich as well as fascinating in how they depict Shakespeare's vision of his nation's past and present.

Ted Hughes, Poet Laureate, was one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century. He was one of Britain’s most important poets. With an equal gift for poetry and prose, he was also a prolific children’s writer and has been hailed as the greatest English letterwriter since John Keats. His magnetic personality and insatiable appetite for friendship, love, and life also attracted more scandal than any poet since Lord Byron. His lifelong quest to come to terms with the suicide of his first wife, Sylvia Plath, is the saddest and most infamous moment in the public history of modern poetry. Hughes left behind a more complete archive of notes and journals than any other major poet, including thousands of pages of drafts, unpublished poems, and memorandum books that make up an almost complete record of Hughes’s inner life, which he preserved for posterity. Renowned scholar Jonathan Bate has spent five years in the Hughes archives, unearthing a wealth of new material. His book offers, for the first time, the full story of Hughes’s life as it was lived, remembered, and reshaped in his art.

Statues coming to life and lively portraits ready to breathe in Shakespeare? This new volume re-assesses the key role played by visual culture in his drama and poetry by providing readers with an up-to-date guide to the main publications on the subject as well as offering a synthesis on the main literary and historical sources for inspiration. While scrutinising the complex issue of image on an Elizabethan stage and exploring the codification of colours in Shakespeare's poetry, this dictionary highlights the fierce rivalry between the poet, the dramatist and the visual artist. This volume will be of great interest and value to students of Shakespeare, students of art history or anyone working on the interdisciplinary subject of literature and art.

An account of popular Shakespeare performances in America, and of musicals based on Shakespeare's plays.