Special Collections
Wonderful William Shakespeare
Description: All his literature in all its many versions!
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The Merchant of Venice
by Cedric Watts and William ShakespeareThe Wordsworth Classics' Shakespeare Series presents a newly-edited sequence of William Shakespeare's works. The textual editing takes account of recent scholarship while giving the material a careful reappraisal. The Merchant of Venice is one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies, but it remains deeply controversial. The text may seem anti-Semitic; yet repeatedly, in performance, it has revealed a contrasting nature. Shylock, though vanquished in the law-court, often triumphs in the theatre. In his intensity he can dominate the play, challenging abrasively its romantic and lyrical affirmations. What results is a bitter-sweet drama. Though The Merchant of Venice offers some of the traditional pleasures of romantic comedy, it also exposes the operations of prejudice. Thus Shakespeare remains our contemporary. Suitable for all secondary level study up to GCSE/Standard Grade, this edition contains two sets of differentiated activities at the end of each act. The activities are designed to develop student understanding of the play and its themes.
Measure for Measure
by William ShakespeareWhen the Duke of Vienna leaves the city under the governance of Angelo, a strict judge, Claudio and Juliet find themselves in violation of Vienna's severe morality laws. With Claudio's life at risk, Isabella, his sister and a novice nun, agrees to plead the case before Angelo. The duke, disguised as a friar, helps Isabella when it becomes apparent Angelo will only help if she compromises herself, and her beliefs. One of Shakespeare's more complex comedies, Measure for Measure examines ethical and moral issues that still resonate today.
Macbeth
by William ShakespeareMacbeth dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those who seek power for its own sake. A brave Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. He is then wracked with guilt and paranoia. Forced to commit more and more murders to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, he soon becomes a tyrannical ruler. The bloodbath and consequent civil war swiftly take Macbeth and Lady Macbeth into the realms of madness and death.
Love's Labour's Lost
by William ShakespeareAt first glance, Shakespeare’s early comedy Love’s Labor’s Lost simply entertains and amuses. Four young men (one of them a king) withdraw from the world for three years, taking an oath that they will have nothing to do with women. The King of Navarre soon learns, however, that the Princess of France and her ladies are about to arrive. Although he lodges them outside of his court, all four men fall in love with the ladies, abandoning their oaths and setting out to win their hands. The laughter triggered by this story is augmented by subplots involving a braggart soldier, a clever page, illiterate servants, a parson, a schoolmaster, and a constable so dull that he is named Dull. Letters and poems are misdelivered, confessions are overheard, entertainments are presented, and language is played with, and misused, by the ignorant and learned alike. At a deeper level, Love’s Labor’s Lost also teases the mind. The men begin with the premise that women either are seductresses or goddesses. The play soon makes it clear, however, that the reality of male-female relations is different. That women are not identical to men’s images of them is a common theme in Shakespeare’s plays. In Love’s Labor’s Lost it receives one of its most pressing examinations.
Love's Labour's Lost
by William ShakespeareWhen Ferdinand, the king of Navarre, and his companions swear off of the company of women for three years in order to study and fast, they find themselves wholly unprepared for the lack of female company. By the time Princess of France and her ladies arrive, the men find themselves utterly beguiled by the women. Love's Labour's Lost is one of William Shakespeare's early comedies, believed to have been written in the mid-1590s for a performance at the Inns of Court before Queen Elizabeth I. The play draws on themes of masculine love and desire, reckoning and rationalization, and reality versus fantasy.
A Lover's Complaint
by William Shakespeare"A Lover's Complaint" is a narrative poem published as an appendix to the original edition of Shakespeare's Sonnets. It is given the title "A Lover's Complaint" in the book, which was published by Thomas Thorpe in 1609.
Although published as Shakespeare's work, the poem's authorship has become a matter of critical debate. The majority opinion is that it is by Shakespeare, though of inferior quality to his other works.
The poem consists of forty-seven seven-line stanzas written in the rhyme royal (with the rhyme scheme ababbcc), a metre and structure identical to that of Shakespeare's poem The Rape of Lucrece. After a scene-setting introduction, the poem takes the form of a lengthy speech by an abandoned young woman, including a speech within her speech, as she recounts the words by which she was seduced.
A Lover's Complaint
by William ShakespeareA young woman tells of her seduction and abandonment by a young man who proves to be unworthy of her charm and beauty. After a scene-setting introduction, the poem takes the form of a lengthy speech by the abandoned young woman, including a speech within her speech, as she recounts the words by which she was seduced.
Longman School Shakespeare
by William ShakespeareFully updated to meet the needs of the GCSE 2010 specifications, this text provides specific support to help students realise their full potential. The most accessible texts with supportive notes, activities and advice to engage students.
Longman School Shakespeare
by William ShakespeareFor pupils aged 11 to 16, this edition of 'Macbeth' includes photographs from a range of productions to encourage students to think about different productions, and targeted support to help all pupils understand the play and its language.
King Richard III (PDF)
by William Shakespeare and James R. SiemonRichard III is one of the great Shakespearean characters and roles. James R Siemon examines the attraction of this villain to audiences and focuses on how beguiling, even funny, he can be, especially in the earlier parts of the play. Siemon also places King Richard III in its historical context; as Elizabeth I had no heirs the issue of succession was a very real one for Shakespeare's audience. The introduction is well-illustrated and provides a comprehensive account of the play and of critical approaches to it. The edition also provides a clear and authoritative playtext, edited to the most rigorous standards of scholarship, with detailed notes and commentary on the same page. With a wealth of helpful and incisive commentary the Arden Shakespeare is the finest edition of Shakespeare you can find, giving a deeper understanding and appreciation of his work.
King Lear
by William ShakespeareKing Lear, growing old and too tired to reign, decides to divide his realm amongst his three daughters, leaving the largest share to the one who loves him the most. His two eldest daughters, Goneril and Regan, foolish and deceitful children, are rewarded for their insincere flattery. His youngest daughter, Cordelia, however, speaks honestly and truthfully, which enrages the old king. He disinherits Cordelia, and then drives himself to madness, left to wander the heath with only his Fool, his servant Caius, and the madman Tom O'Bedlam for company. Once reunited with Cordelia, Lear is too late repents his rashness, and must face the tragic consequences of his choices.
King Lear
by William ShakespeareYork Notes Advanced offer a fresh and accessible approach to English Literature. This market-leading series has been completely updated to meet the needs of today's A-level and undergraduate students. Written by established literature experts, York Notes Advanced intorduce students to more sophisticated analysis, a range of critical perspectives and wider contexts.
King John
by William ShakespeareTreachery and betrayal are the order of the day during the reign of King John of England (1199-1216). After he is forced to recognize the illegitimate son of his dead brother, King Richard I, King John finds himself under siege by the French king, Philip. Dealing with themes of royal legitimacy, succession, and the tenuous nature of diplomatic relationships, King John parallels issues prevalent in Shakespeare's own society at the time.
King Henry V
by William ShakespeareHistory play about the man Shakespeare portrays as the ideal king.