A contextual guide to Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra : history, myth, gender / Jyotsna G. Singh and Daniel Vitkus.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Singh, Jyotsna G., 1951- author.

Vitkus, Daniel J., author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Antonius, Marcus, 83 B.C.?-30 B.C--In literature.

Antonius, Marcus.

Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, -30 B.C--In literature.

Cleopatra.

Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616. Antony and Cleopatra.

Shakespeare, William.

Antony and Cleopatra (Shakespeare, William).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (440 pages) : illustrations (black and white)

Place of Publication:

Edinburgh : Edinburgh University Press, [2026]

Summary:

This contextual guide to Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra highlights the ways in which the play was shaped by an interplay of political, cultural and social influences, existing in and beyond the playhouseReveals how tragedy, comedy, history, and mythology are all contained within the play's treatment of the well-worn storyShows us that the play still speaks to us today: about the making of art, the re-writing of history, the politics of empire, and the complexities of gender, love, and desireOffers a glimpse into the afterlives of Antony and Cleopatra on the British stage from the twentieth century to the present, reflecting the changing race and gender politics of late modernity and revealing the play's relationship with popular culture and its appeal to new audiencesEmploying commentary on the play's main themes, coupled with an editorial apparatus that connects selected primary texts (from Ovid to Montaigne) with Shakespeare's great tragedy, Jyotsna G. Singh and Daniel Vitkus guide the reader through a series of fascinating readings that serve to reconstruct the intellectual and artistic world of Antony and Cleopatra through varied perspectives. This includes chapters on History and Prophecy; Myth; Geography; Gender, Desire, and Eroticism; Theatricality, Festivity, and Spectacle; and Emblematic Perspectives; followed by a Coda describing and analysing some 'Afterlives' of the play on the modern stage. Through their exposure to these thematic frameworks, readers will come to understand more clearly the interpretive possibilities offered by Antony and Cleopatra as a complex and masterful work of art.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

List of Figures

About This Volume

Acknowledgments

Chronology: Key Historical Events, 82-19 BCE

Family Trees: Cleopatra, Mark Antony, Octavius Caesar, Pompey

Introduction. Infinite Variety: A Contextual Guide to Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra

1. History and Prophecy

2. Myth

3. Geography

4. Gender, Desire, Eroticism

5. Theatricality, Festivity, Spectacle

6. Emblematic Perspectives

Coda. Antony and Cleopatra's Afterlives

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Print version:

ISBN:

1-4744-9428-5

9781474494281

OCLC:

1566228483