English Renaissance Drama Hardcover 2

Peter Womack

The book considers the London theatrical culture which took shape in the 1570s and came to an end in 1642. * Places emphasis on those plays that are readily available in modern editions and can sometimes to be seen in modern productions, including Shakespeare. * Provides students with the historical, literary and theatrical contexts they need to make sense of Renaissance drama. * Includes a series of short biographies of playwrights during this period. * Features close analyses of more than 20 plays, each of which draws attention to what makes a particular play interesting and identifies relevant critical questions. * Examines early modern drama in terms of its characteristic actions, such as cuckolding, flattering, swaggering, going mad, and rising from the dead.

9780631226291

English

John Wiley And Sons Ltd

13 Oct 2006

336

Peter Womack is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of East Anglia. He is the co-author of English Drama: A Cultural History (Blackwell Publishing, 1996), and the author of Improvement and Romance: Constructing the Myth of the Highlands (1989) and Ben Jonson (Blackwell Publishing, 1986).

2

...Womack offers insightful critical comments on English Renaissance playwrights, some major plays, and a variety of contextual topics...Womack is an astute critic. CHOICE "Remarkably comprehensive ... a very fine introduction for the non-specialist." Touchstone