Google Preview

• .

  • *** This comment contains spoilers! ***
  • 

  • For me, the tragedy of Shakespeare's historical dramatization of Richard III is that it has passed on to posterity the myth that Richard was a conniving, vicious, murderous machiavel who got what was coming to him. Many historians dissent from this view, but unfortunately, history is written by the ... Continue

    For me, the tragedy of Shakespeare's historical dramatization of Richard III is that it has passed on to posterity the myth that Richard was a conniving, vicious, murderous machiavel who got what was coming to him. Many historians dissent from this view, but unfortunately, history is written by the winners, as the saying goes, and the house of York lost the War of the Roses - and their name has been vilified through subsequent generations by Lancaster, and later Tudor, chroniclers. This play's perversion of the truth is nothing more than an example of Shakespeare pandering to the Tudor dynasty.

    However, there are some redeeming qualities. Several excellent speeches and an intense climax highlight this otherwise forgettable - and regrettable - "historical" play.

    Particularly interesting to modern readers is the mirroring of the haunting and taunting of Richard III on the night before his battle and the climax of "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire". It's a really nice "holler out" by Rowling to the immortal bard.

    

    Is this helpful?

• ― guaddess said on Oct 20, 2007 | Add your feedback

Richard III is one of Shakespeare's most popular plays on the stage and has been adapted successfully for film. This new and innovative edition recognizes the play's pre-eminence as a performance work: a perspective that informs every aspect of the editing. Challenging traditional practice,
the text is based on the 1597 Quarto which, brings us closest to the play as it would have been staged in Shakespeare's theater. The introduction, which is illustrated, explores the long performance history from Shakespeare's time to the present. The commentary gives detailed explanation of matters
of language, staging, text, and historical and cultural contexts, providing coverage that is both carefully balanced and alert to nuance of meaning.
Documentation of the extensive textual variants is organized for maximum clarity: the readings of the Folio and the Quarto are presented in separate sections, and more specific information is given at the back of the book. Appendices also include selected passages from the main source and a special
index of actors and other theatrical personnel.

• Tragedyplaysebooksclassicle pirebritishdrama