Review (PDF) Richard II (Folger Shakespeare Library)
Shakespeare’s Richard II presents a momentous struggle between Richard II and his cousin Henry Bolingbroke. Richard is the legitimate king; he succeeded his grandfather, King Edward III, after the earlier death of his father Edward, the Black Prince. Yet Richard is also seen by many as a tyrant. He toys with his subjects, exiling Bolingbroke for six years. When he seizes the title and property that should be Bolingbroke’s, Richard threatens the very structure of the kingdom. Bolingbroke returns with an army that is supported by nobles and commoners alike, both believing themselves oppressed by Richard. This sets the stage for a confrontation between his army and the tradition of sacred kingship supporting the isolated but now more sympathetic Richard. The authoritative edition of Richard II from The Folger Shakespeare Library, the trusted and widely used Shakespeare series for students and general readers, includes: -Freshly edited text based on the best early printed version of the play -Full explanatory notes conveniently placed on pages facing the text of the play -Scene-by-scene plot summaries -A key to the play’s famous lines and phrases -An introduction to reading Shakespeare’s language -An essay by a leading Shakespeare scholar providing a modern perspective on the play -Fresh images from the Folger Shakespeare Library’s vast holdings of rare books -An annotated guide to further reading Essay by Harry Berger, Jr. The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world’s largest collection of Shakespeare’s printed works, and a magnet for Shakespeare scholars from around the globe. In addition to exhibitions open to the public throughout the year, the Folger offers a full calendar of performances and programs. For more information, visit Folger.edu.
Series: Folger Shakespeare Library
Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1 edition (July 1, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743484916
ISBN-13: 978-0743484916
Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 6.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (710 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #52,916 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #77 in Books > Literature & Fiction > British & Irish > Dramas & Plays #84 in Books > Literature & Fiction > British & Irish > Shakespeare > Works #84 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Literature > English Literature
I cannot more highly recommend this particular book, No Fear Shakespeare's Hamlet.I am approaching 50 years old and my only real experience trying to read Shakespeare was in high school where we were assigned roles in class and made to read, without comprehension, Romeo and Juliet and Julius Cesar. In the interim, I tried watching a few plays and dragged my kids to see the play Taming of the Shrew, which they hated because they couldn't understand the language nor the plot. Rather than becoming a Shakespeare hater, I've always felt inadequate and dumb for this huge hole in my education.My current inspiration to try Shakespeare again was my desire to try and help my high school aged son become more educated and cultured than I have been.I tried first with the Folger annotated editions of Shakespeare. They look excellent and define the unfamiliar words, but I still could not make sense of a substantial portion of the dialogue. I guess maybe I'm just dumb, I don't know.Anyway, I saw good reviews about this No Fear series, and I ordered several. So far I have read the modern English translations of Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, King Lear, and The Tempest. While I feel a bit like I'm 'cheating', I actually have really enjoyed all the plays and at least now I know the plots and the characters and even some of the more subtle themes. I can't answer the complaints that the translations don't adequately translate Shakespeare's meanings. There are a few side notes that point out double meanings and things like that, though there are not extensive footnotes or sidenotes.
I find this very interesting, at least one of the reviewers who gave such a low review not only reviewed this book, but every other book in this Ignatius Critical Series edit by Joseph Peace. In each one, he gives only one star, basially saying the book is a waste of time and money.Something is rotten in the state of Denmark!Why would someone, keep on reading all the books in this series, and then say that reading them is a waste of time? It just does not make sense! Not only that, but the majority of the book is giving nothing but the text of Hamlet. How can any true fan of Shakespeare give that one star. Just the text of Hamlet alone would make it at least 2 stars.So it seems to me that there are some here who have a hidden agenda of not wanting me to read this book - not because of its allegedly poor literary value. So the more they protested, the more I was intrigued.So I got the book, and I am so glad I did! For the first time, Hamlet came alive to me. The footnotes were enough to hep be understand the arachaic phrases, but I was not overwhelmed with them. The editor wanted Shakespear to speak for himself. None of the footnotes tried to persuade you to their interpretations. That was left to the commentaries after you read the Hamlet story.The commentaries were extremely insightful, looking at Hamlet from a Catholic perspective. And why not? Other commentaries look at Hamlet from a modernist or a feminist perspective. Why not from a Catholic perspective? Again, I do not understand these one-star critics. If they were really fans of Shakespeare, they would be happy to see a book like this that would broaden Shakespeare's audience.
King Lear (Folger Ed.) (New Folger Library Shakespeare) Richard III (Folger Shakespeare Library) Richard II (Folger Shakespeare Library) Shakespeare Set Free: Teaching Romeo & Juliet, Macbeth & Midsummer Night (Folger Shakespeare Library) Measure for Measure (Folger Shakespeare Library) Hamlet ( Folger Library Shakespeare) Macbeth (Folger Shakespeare Library) Romeo and Juliet (Folger Shakespeare Library) A Midsummer Night's Dream (Folger Shakespeare Library) The Tempest (Folger Shakespeare Library) Much Ado About Nothing (Folger Shakespeare Library) Twelfth Night (Folger Shakespeare Library) The Taming of the Shrew (Folger Shakespeare Library) Henry IV, Part 1 (Folger Shakespeare Library) Henry V (Folger Shakespeare Library) The Winter's Tale (Folger Shakespeare Library) As You Like It (Folger Shakespeare Library) Titus Andronicus (Folger Shakespeare Library) Hamlet (Folger Shakespeare Library) Othello (Folger Shakespeare Library)
