The Cambridge Companion to Shakespearean Comedy

An accessible, wide-ranging and informed introduction to Shakespeare's comedies, dark comedies and romances, first published in 2001.

Alexander Leggatt (Edited by)

9780521779425, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 20 December 2001

256 pages
22.8 x 15.3 x 1.6 cm, 0.4 kg

'This companion is invaluable to scholars of Shakespeare, early modern drama and theories of comedy. Wide ranging and eclectic in style and its appeal is far-reaching.' Renaissance Journal

First published in 2001, this is an accessible, wide-ranging and informed introduction to Shakespeare's comedies and romances. Rather than taking each play in isolation, the chapters trace recurring issues, suggesting both the continuity and the variety of Shakespeare's practice and the creative use he made of the conventions he inherited. The first section puts Shakespeare in the context of classical and Renaissance comedy and comic theory, the work of his Elizabethan predecessors and the traditions of popular festivity. The second section traces a number of themes through Shakespeare's early and middle comedies, dark comedies and late romances, establishing the key features of his comedy as a whole and illuminating particular plays by close analysis. Individual chapters draw on contemporary politics, rhetoric, and the history of Shakespeare production. Written by experts in the relevant fields, the chapters frequently challenge long-standing critical assumptions.

Preface
Chronology
Part I. Shakespeare and Comic Tradition: 1. Theories of comedy David Galbraith
2. Roman comedy Robert S. Miola
3. Italian stories on the stage Louis George Clubb
4. Elizabethan comedy Janette Dillon
5. Popular festivity François Laroque
Part II. Shakespearean Comedy: 6. Forms of confusion John Creaser
7. Love and courtship Catherine Bates
8. Laughing at 'others' Edward Berry
9. Comedy and sex Alexander Leggatt
10. Language and comedy Lynne Magnusson
11. Sexual disguise and the theatre of gender Barbara Hodgdon
12. Matters of state Anthony Miller
13. The experiment of romance Michael O'Connell
Select bibliography.

Subject Areas: Literary studies: plays & playwrights [DSG], Literary studies: c 1500 to c 1800 [DSBD]