{"product_id":"shakespeare-and-the-nature-of-man-paperback-9781108003773","title":"Shakespeare and the Nature of Man (Paperback \/ softback) 9781108003773","description":"\u003cfont face=\"Georgia\"\u003e\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"6\"\u003eShakespeare and the Nature of Man\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eSpencer's 1943 book investigates how conflicting Renaissance understandings of human nature are expressed in Shakespeare's works.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eTheodore Spencer (Author)\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e9781108003773, Cambridge University Press\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003ePaperback \/ softback, published 20 July 2009\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e256 pages\u003cbr\u003e22.9 x 15.2 x 1.5 cm, 0.38 kg\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003cp align=\"justify\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eAnalysing Shakespeare's historical background and craft, Spencer's 1943 study investigates the intellectual debates of Shakespeare's age, and the effect these had on the drama of the time. The book outlines the key conflict present in the sixteenth century – the optimistic ideal of man's place in the universe, as presented by the theorists of the time, set against the indisputable and ever-present fact of original sin. This conflict about the nature of man, argues Spencer, is perhaps the deepest underlying cause for the emergence of great Renaissance drama. With detailed reference to Shakespeare's great tragedies, the book demonstrates how Shakespeare presents the fact of evil masked by the appearance of good. Shakespeare's last plays, especially The Winter's Tale and The Tempest, are also analysed in detail to show how they embody a different view from the tragedies, and the discussion is related to the larger perspective of general human experience.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003ePreface\u003cbr\u003e 1. Man in nature: the optimistic theory\u003cbr\u003e 2. Man in nature: the Renaissance conflict\u003cbr\u003e 3. The dramatic convention and Shakespeare's early use of it\u003cbr\u003e 4. Hamlet and Troilus and Cressida\u003cbr\u003e 5. Othello and King Lear\u003cbr\u003e 6. Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra\u003cbr\u003e 7. Shakespeare's last plays\u003cbr\u003e 8. Literature and the nature of man\u003cbr\u003e Index.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eSubject Areas: Literary studies: general [\u003ca title=\"See our other books on Literary studies: general\" href=\"https:\/\/freshlyprintedbooks.co.uk\/search?q=%22Literary%20studies:%20general%20%5BDSB%5D%22\"\u003eDSB\u003c\/a\u003e]\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\r\n\r\n\r\n\u003c\/font\u003e","brand":"Cambridge University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46005471150360,"sku":"9781108003773","price":24.69,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0730\/2037\/5320\/products\/9781108003773i_8fffca06-36f9-41e5-8d99-defaf121f6a5.jpg?v=1694867189","url":"https:\/\/freshlyprintedbooks.co.uk\/products\/shakespeare-and-the-nature-of-man-paperback-9781108003773","provider":"Freshly Printed Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}