Amazon.com: The Meaning of Shakespeare (Volume 2): Harold C. Goddard: Books

Product Description

In two magnificent and authoritative volumes, Harold C. Goddard takes readers on a tour through the works of William Shakespeare, celebrating his incomparable plays and unsurpassed literary genius.

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In two magnificent and authoritative volumes, Harold C. Goddard takes readers on a tour through the works of William Shakespeare, celebrating his incomparable plays and unsurpassed literary genius.

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Product Details

Paperback: 306 pages
Publisher: University Of Chicago Press (September 15, 1960)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0226300420
ISBN-13: 978-0226300429
Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #55,567 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
How could Shakespeare produce one of the most unblushing glorifications of war ever written and then face right about and utter an equally extreme denunciation of it? Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
third murderer, fair warrior, universal wolf

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
King Lear, Lady Macbeth, The Winter's Tale, Professor Stoll, Prince of Denmark, All's Well That Ends Well, Julius Caesar, The Brothers Karamazov, Bernard Shaw, First Citizen, King John, Caius Marcius, Emily Dickinson, Octavius Caesar, Timon of Athens, Battle of Actium, History Plays, Dark Lady, John of Lancaster, Mistress Overdone, Roman Empire, Second Lord, William Blake, King Henry, Midsummer-Night's Dream

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 79 books:

King Lear (The New Folger Library Shakespeare) by William Shakespeare on 47 pages
Measure for Measure (Oxford School Shakespeare) by William Shakespeare on 18 pages
Measure for Measure (Signet Classics) by William Shakespeare on 18 pages
Troilus and Cressida (Signet Classics) by William Shakespeare on 18 pages
Antony and Cleopatra (Folger Shakespeare Library) by William Shakespeare on 14 pages

See all 79 books this book cites

94 books cite this book:

Shakespeare and the Dialectic of Certainty by Lee Jacobus on 5 pages
Shakespeare: Seven Tragedies Revisited: The Dramatist's Manipulation of Response by E. A. J. Honigmann on 5 pages
Antony and Cleopatra (The New Cambridge Shakespeare) by William Shakespeare on 4 pages
Shakespeare: The Seven Ages of Human Experience by David Bevington on page 238, page 239, and Back Matter
Shakespeare and the Problem of Meaning by Norman Rabkin in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)

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Books on Related Topics (learn more)

Shakespeare by Harold Bloom

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The Complete Idiot's Guide to Shakespeare

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The Wheel of Fire by G. Wilson Knight

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	69% buy the item featured on this page: The Meaning of Shakespeare (Volume 2) 4.9 out of 5 stars (17) $17.10
	9% buy Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth (Penguin Classics) 5.0 out of 5 stars (6) $12.75
	9% buy Northrop Frye on Shakespeare 5.0 out of 5 stars (4) $18.90
	8% buy Shakespeare After All 4.5 out of 5 stars (17) $13.60

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Customer Reviews

17 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.9 out of 5 stars (17 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful, insightful, a good read after the play, May 23, 2001

By	Neri "Neri" (Himeji, Japan) - See all my reviews

Goddard is a wonderful and insightful soul. His words and insights compliment Shakespeare beautifully. I would, however, recommend that one does not read his commentary on the play until after one has developed their own view of the play's meaning. So, I suggest reading Goddard after seeing the play because Goddard is mostly interested in analyzing the play, and one can see how closely their opinion matches Goddard's. I would, however, recommend reading Isaac Azimov's "Guide to Shakespeare" before seeing or reading a play. Asimov is more interested in explaining the internal concepts, historical relevence of peoples, places, things, Elizabethan terms etc... - his book acts as more of a key to better understanding what is being said. Goddard is a beautiful interpreter of the moral meaning and in attempting to grasp at the soul of Shakespeare - which one should obviously do on their own first, before consulting "expert" opinion. So read Asimov before the play and Goddard a few days after. Each has their books divided into 10-20 page discussions on each play. Although note that Goddard has two books, be sure to get the right book.

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35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Shakespeare Criticism, May 4, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Meaning of Shakespeare, Volume 1 (Phoenix Books) (Paperback)

Other writers about Shakespeare have tried to equal Goddard's labor of love, most recently Harold Bloom's Shakespeare: The Art of the Human. None come close, although Jan Kott's Shakespeare Our Contemporary is also great, as is Allan Bloom's Shakespeare's Politics. In fact, Goddard makes Harold Bloom's effort look like it was written by a boy.

Goddard writes thoughtful, highly readable, analytic essays about each of the plays. His interpretations are the most original, but well-argued I've ever seen. Yet they frequently deviate from traditional interpretations. For example, Goddard makes a case against the much-loved, jingoistic interpretation of Henry V; Goddard reads much darker implications. In his essay about Romeo and Juliet, Goddard argues that the play is not about star-crossed lovers, but about Romeo's inability to match Juliet's love, which is the real source of tragedy.

It's hard to disagree once you've read Goddard's interpretations, but even when you do, you'll be richer for the experience.

For those of you interested in "old-fashioned" literary criticism, when writers considered it their duty, not to obscure the text or to deconstruct it, but to make difficult works more accessible, than this is for you. This is a purchase you will never regret.

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33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply the Best, January 3, 2004

By	T. Hooper "thdizzy" (Osaka, Japan) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Meaning of Shakespeare, Volume 1 (Phoenix Books) (Paperback)

This first volume covers Shakespeare up to Hamlet. For later plays, see volume two. In my opinion, Goddard is by far the best critic of Shakespeare's plays. He far outranks Bloom, who seems to be the popular Shakespeare critic these days. Goddard gets to the heart of the characters and stories without being sidetracked by modern ideologies and -isms. He doesn't try to distort the plays for something they are not.

I particularly love the comedies of Shakespeare and Goddard gives them the attention they deserve that other critics don't. His insight into these lighter works are quite interesting. If you are more interested in Shakespeare's tragedies rather than his comedies or histories, you should get volume two instead, however I recommend getting both.

As for the writing style, it is very enjoyable and not at all scholarly or incomprehensible. Actually I've read both volumes over and over, and I consider them to be a few of the best books in my library. They are a must have for Shakespeare fans.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Solid Writing
Sometimes, the best writing the isn't by Shakespeare is writing ABOUT Shakespeare. Goddard proves this in both volumes of "The Meaning of Shakespeare. Read more

Published 1 month ago by D. Spector

5.0 out of 5 stars Shakespeare Illuminated!
"Enthusiastic admiration is the first principle of knowledge, and the last."

That quotation from William Blake (as cited by Goddard) sums up the value of this book... Read more

Published 3 months ago by Kirk Petersen

5.0 out of 5 stars A messenger worthy of the message
I will describe my reaction to these volumes in two ways: first, I have never read a work of criticism that provoked a standing ovation at the end of a chapter, as Goddard's work... Read more

Published 11 months ago by Kieran F. Johnston

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Shakespeare criticism
This is Goddard on the play he considers Shakespeare's greatest: " The predestined end of unmastered human passion is the suicide of the species. Read more

Published on November 12, 2006 by Shalom Freedman

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book on Shakespeare for Novices
I don't know much about Shakespeare, but I know great writing when I read it. This book is an absolute pleasure to read (with volume 2). Read more

Published on August 9, 2006 by Barbara

5.0 out of 5 stars Reading Deeper
I once knew a young man who thought Polonius was a wise and noble character. He had taken Polonius's advice, such as "brevity is the soul of wit," at face value without noticing... Read more

Published on March 21, 2006 by playscribbler

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb criticism
There's not much praise I can add to that offered by earlier reviewers. Goddard is, for me, one of the premier Shakespeare critics -- up there with Johnson, Coleridge, Bradley,... Read more

Published on May 1, 2005 by Christopher H. Hodgkin

5.0 out of 5 stars Totally enjoyable criticism
Wow, thought I was the only adult fan of Shakespeare who watches the plays and then runs home to read what insights Goddard has into 'em -- guess not, from these reviews. Read more

Published on January 31, 2004 by tahl2

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reference for Shakespearean actors and scholars
I first came to know these books from my director in Winter's Tale. We were using it to delve into the characters and though I was only playing a minor character, the book helped... Read more

Published on February 16, 2001 by lavinia_222

5.0 out of 5 stars Wisdom Literature
It can be put quite simply--this book must be considered within the tradition of Wisdom Literature. It stands on it's own apart from the plays it interprets and analyses. Read more

Published on July 8, 2000 by Douglas A. Storm

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