Shakespeare's Irrational Endings - The Problem Plays (Hardcover)

Shakespeare's plays are too often analysed as if they existed in a vacuum. This book looks at the Problem Plays as designed to produce a response in the audience, and offers a vision of them quite different from conventional judgements. Extending the category from the traditional "Troilus and Cressida, All's Well That Ends Well" and "Measure for Measure" to include "The Merchant of Venice, Much Ado About Nothing "and" Othello," the author closely examines the texts to argue that Shakespeare purposely disturbs his audience. The endings in particular reveal an intention to cause frustration by first creating expectations through the form and then contradicting them in the content. Thus, the marriages which seem to fulfil the expectations of a comedy's happy ending clash unresolvably with the audience's recognition of their doubts about the specific match. Shakespeare's cynicism feels surprisingly relevant today, while the plays' increasing skill and subtlety continue to offer real pleasure.

General

Imprint:	Palgrave Macmillan
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	August 2012
First published:	August 2012
Authors:	D. Margolies
Dimensions:	216 x 140 x 16mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Hardcover
Pages:	183
ISBN-13:	978-0-230-27761-8
Categories:	Books > Language & Literature > Literature: history & criticism > Literary studies > 16th to 18th centuries Books > Language & Literature > Literature: history & criticism > Plays & playwrights > 16th to 18th centuries > Shakespeare studies & criticism
LSN:	0-230-27761-6
Barcode:	9780230277618

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