A Companion to Shakespeare's Works, Volume III: The Comedies (Blackwell Companions to Literature and Culture)

This four-volume Companion to Shakespeare's Works, compiled as a single entity, offers a uniquely comprehensive snapshot of current Shakespeare criticism. Brings together new essays from a mixture of younger and more established scholars from around the world - Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Examines each of Shakespeare's plays and major poems, using all the resources of contemporary criticism, from performance studies to feminist, historicist, and textual analysis. Volumes are organized in relation to generic categories: namely the histories, the tragedies, the romantic comedies, and the late plays, problem plays and poems. Each volume contains individual essays on all texts in the relevant category, as well as more general essays looking at critical issues and approaches more widely relevant to the genre. Offers a provocative roadmap to Shakespeare studies at the dawning of the twenty-first century. This companion to Shakespeare's comedies contains original essays on every comedy from The Two Gentlemen of Verona to Twelfth Night as well as twelve additional articles on such topics as the humoral body in Shakespearean comedy, Shakespeare's comedies on film, Shakespeare's relation to other comic writers of his time, Shakespeare's cross-dressing comedies, and the geographies of Shakespearean comedy.

this Four-volume companion To Shakespeare's Works, Compiled As A Single Entity, Offers A Uniquely Comprehensive Snapshot Of Current Shakespeare Criticism.

• brings Together New Essays From A Mixture Of Younger And More Established Scholars From Around The World - Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, The United Kingdom, And The United States.
  
• examines Each Of Shakespeare’s Plays And Major Poems, Using All The Resources Of Contemporary Criticism, From Performance Studies To Feminist, Historicist, And Textual Analysis.
  
• volumes Are Organized In Relation To Generic Categories: Namely The Histories, The Tragedies, The Romantic Comedies, And The Late Plays, Problem Plays And Poems.
  
• each Volume Contains Individual Essays On All Texts In The Relevant Category, As Well As More General Essays Looking At Critical Issues And Approaches More Widely Relevant To The Genre.
  
• offers A Provocative Roadmap To Shakespeare Studies At The Dawning Of The Twenty-first Century.

this Companion To Shakespeare’s Comedies Contains Original Essays On Every Comedy From the Two Gentlemen Of Verona To twelfth Night As Well As Twelve Additional Articles On Such Topics As The Humoral Body In Shakespearean Comedy, Shakespeare’s Comedies On Film, Shakespeare’s Relation To Other Comic Writers Of His Time, Shakespeare’s Cross-dressing Comedies, And The Geographies Of Shakespearean Comedy.

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compiled By Dutton (english, Ohio State Univ.; Editor, Palgrave Literary Lives Series) And Howard (english, Columbia Univ.; Editor, The Norton Shakespeare), This Four-volume Set Offers A Comprehensive View Of Current Shakespeare Criticism, Concentrating On Ongoing Critical Research On Shakespeare's Works. It Is Meant To Complement The Publisher's Companion To Shakespeare, Which Focuses On Shakespeare As An Author. The Essays Are Organized Generically And Represent A Diversity Of Approaches, Including Historicist, Derridaen, Marxist, Performance-oriented, Feminist, And Textual/editorial. A Variety Of Organizing Rubrics Such As Race, Class, Gender, Reader Response, Political Theory, And Religion Are Also Presented. The Resulting Multifaceted Work Provides A Stimulating Matrix For Future Critical Research. Vol. 1: The Tragedies Contains An Essay On Each Tragedy And 13 Additional Essays On Topics Such As The Roman Tragedies, Film Versions Of The Tragedies, And The Tragic Hero. Vol. 2: The Histories Contains An Essay On Each History Play And 14 Additional Essays On Topics Such As Riot And Rebellion, Censorship In The Histories, And Shakespeare's Portrayal Of Men And Women. Vol. 3: The Comedies Contains One Essay Each On Most Of The Comedies And 12 Essays Discussing Subjects Such As Shakespeare's Use Of English Stage Comedy Traditions, Social Relationships In Comic Households, And Cross-dressing. Vol. 4: The Poems, Problem Comedies, Late Plays Contains Essays On Troilus And Cressida, Measure For Measure, All's Well That Ends Well, Venus And Adonis, The Rape Of Lucrece, Pericles, The Winter's Tale, Cymbeline, The Tempest, Henry Viii, The Two Noble Kinsmen, And The Sonnets, And Another 11 Essays On Topics Such As Place And Space In The Late Plays, Generic Classification Of The Late Plays, And Scatology And Satire. Each Essay Is Enriched With Notes And Ample Bibliographies, And Indexes Are Provided For Each Volume. The Intended Audience Of Scholars And Graduate Students Will Be Well Served By This Work.-shana C. Fair, Ohio Univ., Zanesville Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Notes on Contributors......Page 7 Introduction......Page 11 1 Shakespeare and the Traditions of English Stage Comedy......Page 14 2 Shakespeare’s Festive Comedies......Page 33 3 The Humor of It: Bodies, Fluids, and Social Discipline in Shakespearean Comedy......Page 57 4 Class X: Shakespeare, Class, and the Comedies......Page 77 5 The Social Relations of Shakespeare’s Comic Households......Page 100 6 Shakespeare’s Crossdressing Comedies......Page 124 7 The Homoerotics of Shakespeare’s Elizabethan Comedies......Page 147 8 Shakespearean Comedy and Material Life......Page 169 9 Shakespeare’s Comic Geographies......Page 192 10 Rhetoric and Comic Personation in Shakespeare’s Comedies......Page 210 11 Fat Knight, or What You Will: Unimitable Falstaff......Page 233 12 Wooing and Winning (Or Not): Film/Shakespeare/Comedy and the Syntax of Genre......Page 253 13 The Two Gentlemen of Verona......Page 276 14 “Fie, what a foolish duty call you this?” The Taming of the Shrew, Women’s Jest, and the Divided Audience......Page 299 15 The Comedy of Errors and The Calumny of Apelles: An Exercise in Source Study......Page 317 16 Love’s Labour’s Lost......Page 330 17 A Midsummer Night’s Dream......Page 348 18 Rubbing at Whitewash: Intolerance in The Merchant of Venice......Page 368 19 The Merry Wives of Windsor: Unhusbanding Desires in Windsor......Page 386 20 Much Ado About Nothing......Page 403 21 As You Like It......Page 421 22 Twelfth Night: “The Babbling Gossip of the Air”......Page 439 Index......Page 457 This Companion to Shakespeare's comedies contains original essays on every comedy from The Two Gentlemen of Verona to Twelfth Night. In addition, the volume features twelve essays on such topics as the humoral body in Shakespearean comedy, Shakespeare's comedies on film, Shakespeare's relation to other comic writers of his time, Shakespeare's cross-dressing comedies, and the geographies of Shakespearean comedy. Contains original essays on every Shakespearean tragedy from Titus Andronicus to Coriolanus. Includes thirteen additional essays on such topics as Shakespeare's Roman tragedies, Shakespeare's tragedies on film, Shakespeare's tragedies of love, Hamlet in performance, and tragic emotion in Shakespeare The four-volume Companion to Shakespeare's Works, compiled as a single entity, offers a uniquely comprehensive snapshot of current Shakespeare criticism. This volume looks at Shakespeare's comedies. Contains original essays on every comedy from The Two Gentlemen of Verona to Twelfth Night. The four Companions to Shakespeare's Works (Tragedies; Histories; Comedies; Poems, Problem Comedies, and Late Plays) were compiled as a single entity designed to offer a uniquely comprehensive snapshot of current Shakespeare criticism. Here Shakespeare signals his awareness, in a relatively early play, written in 1594-5, of a conscious departure from existing stage tradition.