3 Review(s)

The tragedies of Shakespeare have been commented upon countless times. Revisiting Shakespeare’s Tragedies reveals the extent to which Shakespeare’s art is informed by various attitudes, beliefs, practices and discourses that pertained to the dichotomy of appearance and reality in his culture. It is an attempt to revisit this aspect through a theorised appreciation of his texts and their contexts. The book maps some of the ways in which Shakespeare might be enjoyed in terms of developments in approaches to gender, race, and class. It suggests an integrated and incremental approach to Shakespeare which utilizes theory resulting in a newly energised understanding and a reinvigorated interest in the plays. The texts have been analysed and commented upon with great care. There is a detailed Introduction on the role of literary theories in explaining and interpreting the multivocality of the texts followed by notes on individual text and a useful bibliography at the end. These features enhance the value of the book for students.