SHAKESPEARE'S POLITICAL ANIMAL is a delight. Hager quickly dismisses the deconstruction of Shakespeare by showing that the Bard has already deconstructed himself. Then he goes on to show that the new historicists miss the irony of Shakespeare's political background in Machiavelli, Montaigne and Sidney, and Shakespeare's own self-irony. Touching on an extraordinary number of Shakespeare's works, including sonnets and the so-called "Ill May Day" scene of SIR THOMAS MORE, Hager demonstrates a consistent view of Shakespeare on the need for indirection in sexual politics and realpolitik. Buy this book if you want to know the true underpinnings of Shakespearean thought.

This is a masterful study of Shakespeare's History plays written with the comfortable confidence of someone intent upon understanding rather than looking for what they already know. In this careful analysis Shakespeare emerges as a contemplative soul in pursit of understanding, but also someone who understands the constraints of political life.

In this light, Shakespeare stands in stark contrast with a thinker like Machiavelli who is so intent on purifying politics that he blinds himself to the fundamental limitations of mankind. Put simply, Machiavelli is a moralist who pursues a kind of justice at the expense of the rest of us. Despite the fact that Machiavelli thinks of his 'project' as hardboiled realism, he is in fact, a wimp. Shakespeare, on the other hand, is much more realistic in his assesment of theoretical and practical matters and as a consequence his plays educate readers about the nobility of the human mind without sacrificing the benefits of political life.

Many of today's readers - including many Shakespeare scholars - do not realise how frequently Shakespeare uses, or adapts, proverbs or similar sayings current and popular in his day. Thus, as not even the Oxford English Dictionary is strong in this area, a good reference book listing the proverbs we find in Shakespeare is quite indispensable: without it, we frequently cannot understand his originality and/or contact with 'folk wisdom" of his day, and even run the risk - quite often - of simply misunderstanding what he says. This compilation by Dent is generally recognised as the best of its kind: while much help is also provided by M.P. Tilley's famous Dictionary of the Proverbs in England in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries (1950), and by F.P. Wilson's updated Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs (1970), Dent is yet more comprehensive. He might have offered more explanation of the meaning of the proverbs, but usually that becomes clear from the many examples he quotes. A REPRINT IS VERY MUCH NEEDED. - Joost Daalder, Profesor of English, Flinders University (South Australia)

In a world locked behind Verona walls, the story of Romeo and Juliet questions the very meaning of love and the importance of it.. It puts forward the notion that a life without love is not worth living, and explains the decisions, the conflicts and tragedy that illustrate the journey in between. Trapped within an ongoing feud that denies the love that Romeo and Juliet posses, it is a struggle in itself to defy their parent's authority, which to some may seem adolescent, but in actual fact is quite honourable. It describes a tragedy so moving, so gripping. It lets us feel the emotionally charged characters, their beliefs, loyalties and values, in such a way that grips our very souls to feel such pity for the end result of their cursed love. They loved only for some hour's time, but sacrificed a lifetime's worth

Meagher's approach to analyzing seven of Shakespeare's plays (he claims this is the introduction to a larger work he is planning that will examine the entire canon) is a terrific new way of examining Shakespeare. In much the same way as a theatrical director would, Meagher searches the text for clues as to the original performance, explaining many of the inconsistencies and editorial confusions that have abounded since the 17th century. Quite readably, this book examines Shakespeare's treatment of place and time, his approach to his sources, and most interestingly - his use of the common theatrical practice of role-doubling to have fewer actors play many parts. Reading this book with a good facsimile of Shakespeare's First Folio (the first collected works of Shakespeare, published in 1623) is helpful, but not necessary. I highly recommend this to any student or teacher who thinks they understand Shakespeare.

The debate surrounding Shakespeare's Sonnets has raged on for a long time, and much of the scholarship on them has remained nebulous, repetitive, and overworked. James Schiffer's volume, however, is refreshingly brilliant and provocative: the essays he includes address an array of topics that are often overlooked, while many of the arguments are simultaneously revisionist and visionary, challenging the conventional wisdom that has guided the criticism on the Sonnets for so long. And what's even better, the arguments are beautifully and meticulously presented, crafted by some of the foremost Shakespeareans of our time.

Unless you're rich. Then go ahead

I have always loved Shakespeare but, even though I have studied it, sometimes, he is a little difficult to pin down on what exactly he is saying or meaning and it is often hard to get the feel or mood for certain scenes. After all, he was a playwright, not a journalist! And he wrote five centuries ago in the idiomatic English of that time. This critique is absolutely brilliant. Van Doren's feelings on Shakespeare are that he wrote his plays to be enacted on a mostly-bare stage in front of a noisy crowd of Joe Q. Publics, not enacted in an elaborate hushed stage setting in front of a group of phychologist, phychoanalists, etc. I have often felt that some critics see deep, mystical, dark meanings in Shakespeare that he never intended (I feel it is more a reflection of the critic's own phyche). Not to say that Shakespeare is shallow! I feel his "well-written" plays are awesome and unmatched by anyone, anywhere, anytime. Van Doren brings Shakepeare to the light of day in a clear, logical, yet so very elegant way. This book literally brings me to tears, it's so beautiful!

Excellent, easy to get into book about the Bard. For lovers or haters of Shakespeare. Fun to read no matter if you are an expert on the plays, or never heard of heard of him.

I'm no Shakespeare scholar, that's for sure, so I admit I was a bit apprehensive when I bought this book, thinking that perhaps it would be an "insider" book with obscure referents and references--you know, the kind that Shakespeare fanatics who write "tho" instead of "though," &tc. This book, though certainly filled with formidable scholarship, is a wonderfully readable book for everyone (or almost everyone!). I loved every page of it (or almost every page).