The Tragedies of William Shakespeare (Modern Library) [Hardcover]

William Shakespeare (Author)

Book Description

Series: Modern Library | Publication Date: November 22, 1994

Contains the complete text of such Shakespeare tragedies as Romeo and Juliet, King Lear, and Macbeth.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1280 pages
• Publisher: Modern Library (November 22, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679601295
• ISBN-13: 978-0679601296
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,670,966 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in April 1564, and his birth is traditionally celebrated on April 23. The facts of his life, known from surviving documents, are sparse. He was one of eight children born to John Shakespeare, a merchant of some standing in his community. William probably went to the King's New School in Stratford, but he had no university education. In November 1582, at the age of eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway, eight years his senior, who was pregnant with their first child, Susanna. She was born on May 26, 1583. Twins, a boy, Hamnet ( who would die at age eleven), and a girl, Judith, were born in 1585. By 1592 Shakespeare had gone to London working as an actor and already known as a playwright. A rival dramatist, Robert Greene, referred to him as "an upstart crow, beautified with our feathers." Shakespeare became a principal shareholder and playwright of the successful acting troupe, the Lord Chamberlain's Men (later under James I, called the King's Men). In 1599 the Lord Chamberlain's Men built and occupied the Globe Theater in Southwark near the Thames River. Here many of Shakespeare's plays were performed by the most famous actors of his time, including Richard Burbage, Will Kempe, and Robert Armin. In addition to his 37 plays, Shakespeare had a hand in others, including Sir Thomas More and The Two Noble Kinsmen, and he wrote poems, including Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece. His 154 sonnets were published, probably without his authorization, in 1609. In 1611 or 1612 he gave up his lodgings in London and devoted more and more time to retirement in Stratford, though he continued writing such plays as The Tempest and Henry VII until about 1613. He died on April 23 1616, and was buried in Holy Trinity Church, Stratford. No collected edition of his plays was published during his life-time, but in 1623 two members of his acting company, John Heminges and Henry Condell, put together the great collection now called the First Folio.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Useful, June 18, 2000

By 

richard_t "richard_t" (Overseas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Tragedies of William Shakespeare (Modern Library) (Hardcover)

This is an extremely useful volume. Brings together all thirteen of Shakespeare's tragedies, more readable than the bulky "collected works" volumes with tiny type; includes fifty pages of text notes and a fifty page glossary of unfamiliar usages.

5.0 out of 5 stars A fine, easy-to-read (but large!) edition of these classic plays, June 9, 2011

By 

Duncan Brown "Duncan Brown" (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: THE TRAGEDIES OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE (The 100 Geatest Books Ever Written, The Easton Press Shakespeare) (Leather Bound)

This is a beautiful hand-tooled leather-bound copy of Shakespeare's tragedies. I especially like the large, legible typeface. (I would have appreciated notes at the bottom of each page on obscure archaic Elizabethan terms, etc.)

Also, Easton press should have separated this book into two volumes; it's pretty darn large and unwieldy. The other two volumes (comedies and histories) are more manageable. I guess Shakespeare shined when he wrote tragedies, and he knew it.

5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent collection if you are like me & love the tragedies, December 12, 2000

By 

LA VONDA R. STAPLES (DELLWOOD, MISSOURI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tragedies of William Shakespeare (Modern Library) (Hardcover)

The tragedy of Titus Andronicus is my favourite work by Billy Shakes (high school kids thought that one up and I like it, shows affection). When we think of Shakespearean Tragedy we constantly drag the same tired old Lear, Hamlet & MacBeth in and prop them up on the carpet. Complete Works will also bring to your acquaintance Coriolanus and the Andronici. Maybe it is me, but I have never considered Romeo & Juliet a tragedy, I see it as more of a Romance, a bad one, but a Romance just the same. My advice is to buy the book NOW and only read the sections that you are unfamilliar with. Save the others for cold nights with warm fires both of which are the optimum mediums for becoming re-acquainted with old friends.