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Is King Lear an autonomous text, or a rewrite of the earlier and anonymous play King Leir? Should we refer to Shakespeare’s original quarto when discussing the play, the revised folio text, or the popular composite version, stitched together by Alexander Pope in 1725? What of its stage variations? When turning from page to stage, the critical view on King Lear is skewed by the fact that for almost half of the four hundred years the play has been performed, audiences preferred Naham Tate's optimistic adaptation, in which Lear and Cordelia live happily ever after. When discussing King Lear, the question of what comprises ‘the play’ is both complex and fragmentary. These issues of identity and authenticity across time and across mediums are outlined, debated, and considered critically by the contributors to this volume. Using a variety of approaches, from postcolonialism and New Historicism to psychoanalysis and gender studies, the leading international contributors to King Lear: New Critical Essays offer major new interpretations on the conception and writing, editing, and cultural productions of King Lear. This book is an up-to-date and comprehensive anthology of textual scholarship, performance research, and critical writing on one of Shakespeare's most important and perplexing tragedies. Contributors Include: R.A. Foakes, Richard Knowles, Tom Clayton, Cynthia Clegg, Edward L. Rocklin, Christy Desmet, Paul Cantor, Robert V. Young, Stanley Stewart and Jean R. Brink

Of the five major Shakespearean tragediesHamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, and OthelloKing Lear is perhaps the most challenging. Issues of rulership, family and blood, are overlaid with bastardy, loyalty, lust, and deceit. Add to this the apparently gratuitous on-stage blinding of Gloucester, the deaths of Cordelia, Lear, Gloucester, and Kent, and one might be inclined to agree with Samuel Johnson that The good suffer more than the evil, that love and suffering, in this play, are almost interchangeable terms and the driving force of the action is derived from the power of the evil to inflict mental agony upon the good (quoted in Kermode, 505). However, one would be mistaken to accept wholeheartedly the happy endings of the eighteenth and nineteenth century revisionists. While the pleasant ending would certainly ease the sensibilities of the audience, it would omit the Aristotlean concepts of hamartia and the purgation of fear and pity attendant upon actually witnessing Shakespeares King Lear, the necessary catharsis, a possible scapegoat for our own emotions. Of course, the ending is to some extent unpleasant and even shocking; however, one can argue that the ending is organic to the play; the ending IS, to a great extent, the play.

Unlock the more straightforward side of Julius Caesar with this concise and insightful summary and analysis! This engaging summary presents an analysis of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare, one of the Bard of Avon’s best-known tragedies. It tells the story of the group of noblemen who are alarmed by Caesar’s increasingly unchecked hold on power in Ancient Rome, and their decision to murder him before his ambition can devolve into tyranny and corruption. However, Caesar’s closest friend Mark Antony is determined to exact revenge upon the conspirators, leading to a bloody war that sees even those who acted with good intentions punished for their betrayal. The story of Julius Caesar has been a popular source of inspiration for many centuries, but Shakespeare’s version is arguably the best-known iteration of the tale, and has been performed and adapted countless times. Find out everything you need to know about Julius Caesar in a fraction of the time! This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you: • A complete plot summary • Character studies • Key themes and symbols • Questions for further reflection Why choose BrightSummaries.com? Available in print and digital format, our publications are designed to accompany you on your reading journey. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time. See the very best of literature in a whole new light with BrightSummaries.com!

All but W.a.319 contain the printed pages of one play, removed from an unidentified edition of Shakespeare's works. Extensive annotations and regroupings of lines from the plays were made for lectures and readings from Shakespeare; most of the volumes begin with drafts of prefatory remarks or lectures in draft form preceding the annotated printed text. Plays include: Taming of the shrew (W.a.319; text of play in manuscript), King John (W.a.320), King Henry IV, part 1 ((W.a.321), King Henry IV, part (W.a.322), King Richard III (W.a.323), Macbeth (W.a.324), Hamlet (W.a.325), King Lear (W.a.326), Julius Caesar (W.a.327), Othello (W.a.328), Merchant of Venice (W.a.329), and Merry wives of Windsor (W.a.330).