Shakespeare, Love and Language

Comprehensive study of the concept of love in Shakespeare's work, exploring historical contexts, theory and philosophy of love.

David Schalkwyk (Author)

9781107187238, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 25 January 2018

260 pages
23.5 x 15.7 x 1.9 cm, 0.51 kg

'Schalkwyk's arguments are closely reasoned and insightful … Essential.' C. Baker, Choice

What is the nature of romantic love and erotic desire in Shakespeare's work? In this erudite and yet accessible study, David Schalkwyk addresses this question by exploring the historical contexts, theory and philosophy of love. Close readings of Shakespeare's plays and poems are delivered through the lens of historical texts from Plato to Montaigne, and modern writers including Jacques Lacan, Jean-Luc Marion, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Jacques Derrida, Alain Badiou and Stanley Cavell. Through these studies, it is argued that Shakespeare has no single or overarching concept of love, and that in Shakespeare's work, love is not an emotion. Rather, it is a form of action and disposition, to be expressed and negotiated linguistically.

Introduction. 1. Shaping fantasies
2. Love's troubled consummations
3. The impossible gift of love
4. The finality of the you
5. Is love an emotion?

Subject Areas: Philosophy [HP], Shakespeare studies & criticism [DSGS], Shakespeare plays [DDS]