Timon of Athens : the life of Timon of Athens

Introduction -- Date of Composition -- The Structure of a Theatre Work: Acts and Scenes -- Early Staging: Possibilities -- Plutarch and Lucian -- Satire and Tragedy -- Misanthropy -- Giving and Sacrifice -- Male and Female -- Debt -- Gold -- The Iron Age -- Mammon -- Friends -- Alcibiades -- Apemantus -- Thieves -- Steward -- Poet and Painter -- Four Words, Three Epitaphs -- 'The Man-hater' and After -- Modern Worlds: Britain -- Modern Worlds: Europe -- Modern Worlds: North America -- Timon: Approaches to the Role -- Staging the Masque -- Staging the Alcibiades Plot -- 'Timon of Athens' on Television -- Text -- A Divided Play -- Middleton's Hand -- Shakespeare and Middleton -- Editorial Procedures -- Text and Collation -- Commentary -- Abbreviations and References -- Appendix A: Alterations to Lineation -- Appendix B: Narrative Source Materials -- Appendix C: Tabulation of Forms Favoured by Middleton -- Appendix D: Major Productions -- Index.;Timon of Athens is an bitterly intriguing study of a fabulously rich man who wastes his wealth on his friends, and, when he is finally impoverished, learns to despise humanity with a hatred that drives him to his grave. This edition offers an up-to-date commentary on the play that is more detailed and more thorough than any previously published, as well as a detailed discussion of Thomas Middleton's collaboration with Shakespeare. - ;Timon of Athens is a bitterly intriguing study of a fabulously rich man who wastes his wealth on his friends, and, when he is finally impoverished, learns to desp. Timon Of Athens Is A Bitterly Intriguing Study Of A Fabulously Rich Man Who Wastes His Wealth On His Friends, And, When He Is Finally Impoverished, Learns To Despise Humanity With A Hatred That Drives Him To His Grave. Its Response To Matters Topical In Jacobean London Sharpens Its Thrust As Satire. Yet The Setting In Ancient Athens Allows It To Read As A Timeless Fable, Deeply Relevant To A Modern Society That Sees Itself As Pursuing Material Prosperity To The Point Of Self-destruction. The Play's Plot Structure Is Schematically Clear, And The Poetry Of Timon's Rage Is Arresting In Its Savage Intensity. Yet Readers Have Often Detected Loose Ends, And The Tone Of Writing Is Uneven. In His Introduction, John Jowett Explains How These Characteristics Arise Because The Play Was Written As A Collaboration Between Shakespeare And Thomas Middleton. This Edition Pays Full Justice To Middleton's Presence, Explaining How His Contribution Gave The Play Its Distinctive Edge. We As Readers Need To Read This Play As A Dialogue Between Writers Of Different Temperaments, And This Edition Is The First To Make Such A Reading Possible. The Introduction Provides The Fullest Account Of The Play's Performance History Available. The Commentary Is The Most Detailed Ever To Have Been Published. Appendices Include Source Materials And A Listing Of Major Productions Worldwide.--book Jacket. By William Shakespeare And Thomas Middleton ; Edited By John Jowett. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 155-164) And Index. The Oxford Shakespeare General Editor: Stanley Wells The Oxford Shakespeare offers authoritative texts from leading scholars in editions designed to interpret and illuminate the plays for modern readers - A new, modern-spelling text, collated and edited from all existing printings - On-page commentary and notes explain meaning, staging, language, and allusions - Detailed introduction provides a full account of the play's performance history and explores issues of gender, gift-theory, and ecology - Appendices include source materials and a chronology of major productions worldwide - Illustrated with production photographs and related art - Full index to introduction and commentary - Durable sewn binding for lasting use 'not simply a better text but a new conception of Shakespeare. This is a major achievement of twentieth-century scholarship.' ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more. The generous and sociable Timon is snubbed by the Athenians when he falls on hard times, although they fawned and flattered him when he was rich. Timon becomes a bitter misanthropist and dies alone This book demonstrates events in the life of Timon, a man known for his great and universal generosity, who spends his fortune and then is spurned when he requires help.