About the Book:

Rare book, very limited quantities available

The problems posed by Shakespeare's great tragedies have challenged generations of critics and provoked a wide-ranging and varied critical reaction. In this book Professor Dennis Bratchell provides a clear introductory guide through the maze of interpretation. He explains the development of Shakespeare criticism, selecting examples of original writing to illustrate the main lines of approach to Shakespearean tragedy. He shows how critical perceptions have changed from Renaissance to modern times, and helps the reader to develop an informed, individual response to Shakespeare's great tragedies.

An introductory chapter in Shakespearean Tragedy traces the development of the concept of tragedy from classical times, and its dramatic expression in the time of Shakespeare. Carefully chosen extracts chart the changing emphasis from the neo-classical and Romantic, to approaches through character, performance studies, and language; a linking commentary maintains the continuity of the central theme. Each of Shakespeare's great tragedies — Hamlet, Macbeth, Lear, and Othello — is considered in turn, and a final chapter summarizes contemporary critical approaches so that the reader can link the best of the critical past with the present critical scene.

About the Author:

D.F. Bratchell (1921 – 2011) was Professor Emeritus at the University of Wales. Prior to that he was Professor and Head of the Department of English at the University of Wales Institute of Science and Technology.