Twelve of Shakespeare’s most profound and moving dramas in one elegant volume. William Shakespeare’s tragedies introduced the world to some of the most well-known characters in literature, including Romeo, Juliet, Macbeth, Hamlet, King Lear, and Othello. This handsome Word Cloud volume includes all twelve works from the First Folio that are commonly classified as tragedies—but the feelings that Shakespeare’s words can evoke range across the spectrum of human emotion.

The authoritative edition of Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, and Macbeth from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers. The star-crossed lovers of Romeo and Juliet, the madness and vengeance of Hamlet, and the corrupting lust for power of Macbeth—this collection of three of Shakespeare’s greatest tragedies is based on the acclaimed individual Folger editions of the plays. This edition includes: -Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play -Full explanatory notes -Scene-by-scene plot summaries The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare’s printed works, and a magnet for Shakespeare scholars from around the globe. In addition to exhibitions open to the public throughout the year, the Folger offers a full calendar of performances and programs. For more information, visit Folger.edu.

Every generation develops its own approach to tragedy, attitudes successively influenced by such classic works as A. C. Bradley’s Shakespearean Tragedy and the studies in interpretation by G. Wilson Knight. A comprehensive new book on the subject by an author of the same calibre was long overdue. In his book, originally published in 1981, John Bayley discusses the Roman plays, Troilus and Cressida and Timon of Athens as well as the four major tragedies. He shows how Shakespeare’s most successful tragic effects hinge on an opposition between the discourses of character and form, role and context. For example, in Lear the dramatis personae act in the dramatic world of tragedy which demands universality and high rhetoric of them. Yet they are human and have their being in the prosaic world of domesticity and plain speaking. The inevitable intrusion of the human world into the world of tragedy creates the play’s powerful off-key effects. Similarly, the existential crisis in Macbeth can be understood in terms of the tension between accomplished action and the free-ranging domain of consciousness. What is the relation between being and acting? How does an audience become intimate with a protagonist who is alienated from his own play? What did Shakespeare add to the form and traditions of tragedy? Do his masterpieces in the genre disturb and transform it in unexpected ways? These are the issues raised by this lucid and imaginative study. Professor Bayley’s highly original rethinking of the problems will be a challenge to the Shakespearean scholar as well as an illumination to the general reader.

Enjoy four of Shakespeare’s tragedies told with LEGO bricks. Here are Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and Julius Caesar enacted scene by scene, captioned by excerpts from the plays. Flip through one thousand color photographs as you enjoy Shakespeare’s iconic poetry and marvel at what can be done with the world’s most popular children’s toy. Watch the brick Hamlet give his famous “To be or not to be” soliloquy, and feel brick Ophelia’s grief as she meets her watery end. Lady Macbeth in brick form brings new terror to “Out, out, damn spot!” and brick Romeo and Juliet are no less star-crossed for being rectangular and plastic. The warm familiarity of bricks lends levity to Shakespeare’s tragedies while remaining true to his original language. The ideal book for Shakespeare enthusiasts, as well as a fun way to introduce children to Shakespeare’s masterpieces, this book employs Shakespeare’s original, characteristic language in abridged form. Though the language stays true to its origins, the unique format of these well-known tragedies will give readers a new way to enjoy one of the most popular playwrights in history.

Contains Hamlet, Othello, King Lear and Macbeth. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.