Hamlet (The Annotated Shakespeare) [Paperback]

William Shakespeare (Author), Burton Raffel (Editor), Professor Burton Raffel (Introduction), Harold Bloom (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0300101058 | ISBN-13: 978-0300101058

The "Annotated Shakespeare" series allows readers to fully understand and enjoy the rich plays of the world's greatest dramatist. One of the most frequently read and performed of all stage works, Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is unsurpassed in its complexity and richness. This fully annotated version of "Hamlet" makes the play completely accessible to readers in the 21st century. It has been carefully assembled with students, teachers and the general reader in mind. Eminent linguist and translator Burton Raffel offers help with vocabulary and usage of Elizabethan English, pronunciation, prosody and alternative readings of phrases and lines. His on-page annotations provide readers with all the tools they need to comprehend the play and begin to explore its many possible interpretations. In his introduction, Raffel offers important background on the origins and previous versions of the Hamlet story, along with an analysis of the characters of Hamlet and Ophelia. And in a concluding essay, Harold Bloom meditates on the originality of Shakespeare's achievement.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The big H comes to Penguin's great revamped "Pelican Shakespeare" line. What else do you need to know? Buy it!
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

- The Annotated Shakespeare General Editor: Burton Raffel

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (October 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300101058
• ISBN-13: 978-0300101058
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (209 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #101,105 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #56 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > British > Shakespeare

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Golden Gate to Shakespeare, January 24, 2006

By 

Night Owl - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hamlet (No Fear Shakespeare) (Paperback)

Bravo to the writers, editors, and publishers of the entire No Fear Shakespeare series. Rendering Shakespeare into prosaic, colloquial American English not only explains what Shakespeare was saying, but reveals how much better he said it! Here's a few examples from HAMLET:

Hamlet sees the Ghost, but his mother doesn't. In modern lingo, she says, "This is only a figment of your imagination." That's a cliche. In the original, she says, "This is the very coinage of your brain." That's vivid.

Rosencrantz tells Hamlet in modern lingo, "You're not doing yourself any good by refusing to tell your friends what's bothering you." Sounds like a reprimand. The original line sounds like a threat: "You do surely bar the door upon your own liberty if you deny your griefs to your friend."

Hamlet remembers his mother's relationship with his father: "She would hang on to him, and the more she was with him the more she wanted to be with him; she couldn't get enough of him." Sounds good, but the original sounds disturbing: "Why, she would hang on him / As if increase of appetitite had grown / By what it fed on . . ." Change the word "she" to "it" and you have the image of a parasite. That alone says a lot about Hamlet's view of women and sex.

I know of no better guide to reading, understanding, and appreciating Shakespeare than Spark Notes' No Fear Shakespeare series.

16 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Performance....., November 19, 2003

By 

L. Shirley "Laurie's Boomer Views" (Huntington Beach,CA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hamlet (Audio Cassette)

This review refers to the Caedmon Audio/Full Cast Recording edition(HarperCollins) of "Hamlet"....

The first thing I need to clarify is exactly which audio edition this is. If you are on the product page with a light purple box pictured, this is the 1963, full cast recording, complete play in 5 acts, starring Paul Scofield as "Hamlet.It is not, as the audio file editorial states the one with Kenneth Branagh and Emma Thompson. And if the Scofield performance is what you'd like to hear, you are in for a real treat.(You can enlarge the product picture to see a better view of the box)

The entire cast including Diana Wynyard as Gertrude,Roland Culver as Claudius, Donald Houston as Laertes and Zena Walker as Ophelia turn in powerful performances and will captivate your imagination no matter how many versions of this brilliant play you have heard, or seen. Paul Scofield("A Man For All Seasons") is masterful as the complex Hamlet, wanting revenge for his father's death, yet torn by his own conscience.

There are so many different versions of Shakespeare's "Hamlet", and on this taped set you will find a performance worthy of his genius.It is one you will want to listen to many times and well worth the price. After listening to it at home, I now bring it with me in my car to keep me company in traffic and on long trips.

This three tape set(6 sides) has the entire play, Ronsencrantz and Guildenstern included,in five acts. The entire play runs about 3 1/2 hours, each side of the tapes running between 30 to 45 minutes. The scenes are nicely seperated by music and the sound quality remastered(1995) in Dolby B is excellent.Although the tapes are not enclosed in their own cassette cases, there are individual cardboard holders inside the box for each.

A brilliant performance that you will remember, and one we are fortunate to have on these fabulous recordings.

more great audio book experiences:

Great Expectations (The Classic Collection)

The London Tapes (City Tapes)

Carrie

The Shipping News

A Christmas Carol

Les Miserables (Focus on the Family Radio Theatre)

Enjoy...Laurie

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HAMLET - A great play made EASY, August 8, 2000

By 

Dean Redfern (Indian River Shores, Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Hamlet (Shakespeare Made Easy) (Paperback)

The Shakespeare Made Easy series makes reading the Elizabethan English understandable with the use of side-by-side text as oppose to traditional footnotes and annotation. By removing what is a reading obstacle for many, the plays of Shakespeare can be enjoyed for their brilliance and depth.

With the side-by-side text, I found myself unconsciously bouncing between the 'old' and the 'new' English based on my interest and comprehension of the words and the play. With the translated version, for example, it made reading Hamlet's famous soliloquies a pleasure to ponder and to begin to understand.

The editor's Introduction gives a concise overview of the life and times of William Shakespeare. It is certainly enough for the casual reader, and but just a rudimentary beginning for any serious student.

I have a better understanding of Hamet today than I did when I was in college more than two decades ago. The Shakespeare Made Easy series makes reading these great plays fun at any age; and probably a prerequisite for the undergraduate.