Gossip, rumour, scandal and defamation are just some of the popular discourses examined in this collection of essays by an international group of scholars. Featuring research on a wide range of resource materials (including political literature, police reports, drama, ballads, contemporary fiction, poetry and caricatures) the volume provides an introduction to the history and sociology of dissent. Each chapter explores instances of subversion and scurrility in a particular historical context. Emphasis is placed on the political culture of early modern Britain where new relationships between the state and society were pioneered. From this base further chapters proceed to discuss manifestations of these relationships in other societies and during other periods. Subversion and Scurrility reveals that while the ways in which opposition is expressed are infinitely variable, the impulse to protest is a constant.

Shakespeare's history plays have always been pivotal to our understanding of his works. This collection renews attention to these crucial plays by exploring official and unofficial versions of the past, histories and counter-histories in the plays of Shakespeare and his contemporaries. By exploring the diversity of Shakespeare's engagement with history in all its forms, these contributors open up a range of new interpretive possibilities for understanding the way history 'plays' with the past. The book is divided into three sections: Memory and mourning, Counter-histories, Identity and performance. In each section, leading theorists, historicists and performance critics offer fresh perspectives on the key issues that are transforming our understanding of Shakespeare. These include: gender and violence, the mapping of Britain, cultural memory and religion. This collection will appeal to all critically engaged readers of Shakespeare. In particular it will command wide-ranging interest from undergraduates, postgraduates, academic researchers and students of early modern theatre, history and culture. -- .

This is a new edition of this established guide for students studying literature for the first time. This up-to-the minute foundational guide introduces the full range of literary forms, styles, theories and critical strategies which new students need to cover. By careful use of examples it demonstrates exactly how strategies for reading texts can be put to work and all texts discussed are conveniently available in the Norton Anthology of English Literature. The successful first edition is now updated with the latest in research and teaching by the academics based at one of the UK's leading university literature departments. It features a new Students Resources section with 3 new chapters on Reading, Writing, and Reflecting and including 'how to' features such as how to avoid plagiarism, and how to prepare a bibliography. It discusses both British and American authors, while the texts discussed in the book generally appear in the Norton Anthology of English Literature. It introduces a wide range of literary forms, styles and critical strategies, essential knowledge for the beginning student of literature.