"Titus Andronicus" (Arden Shakespeare: Third Series) - Softcover

Shakespeare, William

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0174435754 ISBN 13: 9780174435754

Publisher: Thomson Learning, 1995

Synopsis

The author described by "The Guardian" as "one of Shakespeare's best contemporary critics", offers a reappraisal of Shakespeare's bloodiest tragedy. "Titus Andronicus" resonates in an age in which the dramatic representation of violence has become an issue of enormous controversy. The text puts forward arguments regarding the date of the play, its sources and its early stage history, recognizing "Titus" as one of Shakespeare's early masterpieces.

About this title

Review:

Shakespeare's most violent and gory play, Titus Andronicus was written in 1592, and represents the dramatist's first foray into the popular genre of revenge tragedy (many editors argue with at least one other collaborator). The result was spectacular, including scenes of murder, human sacrifice, rape, bodily mutilation and cannibalism. Set in late-imperial Rome, the action begins with the Roman general Titus Andronicus and his triumphant return from wars with the Goths. Leading Queen Tamora and her sons as prisoners, Titus stumbles into a power struggle between Saturninus and his brother Bassianus. Titus fatally backs Saturninus, who rapidly turns on the old general and marries Tamora. The implications for the Andronicus family are disastrous. More of Titus' sons are killed, his daughter Lavinia is brutally raped by Tamora's sons, and as Titus begins his descent into madness and despair he even has his own hand cut off in an act of awful trickery. As Titus plots his bloody revenge, he reflects that "Rome is but a wilderness of tigers". The ending is one of the most gruesome conclusions to any dramatic tragedy, and leaves Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs looking quite restrained. Although the play has put audiences off for centuries due to its apparently gratuitous violence, more recently critics have discerned something more to it than pure shock, but that might say more about us than the Elizabethans. .--Jerry Brotton

Review:

"This is an outstanding edition of "Titus", especially for its treatment of textual questions and of recent performance history. It supersedes all previous editions."--Dr. Paul Hartle, St. Catharine's College, Cambridge "Bate makes a really positive virtue of his treatment of the play in performance . . . putting a vigorous account of "Titus" on stage at very stage-centre in his Introduction. Using this section as a means for raising fundamental questions as to the play's style, coherence, and meaning, Bate achieves a remarkable fusion between performance history and criticism."--John Jowett, "Shakespeare Survey"

"This is an outstanding edition of "Titus," especially for its treatment of textual questions and of recent performance history. It supersedes all previous editions."--Dr. Paul Hartle, St. Catharine's College, Cambridge "Bate makes a really positive virtue of his treatment of the play in performance . . . putting a vigorous account of "Titus" on stage at very stage-centre in his Introduction. Using this section as a means for raising fundamental questions as to the play's style, coherence, and meaning, Bate achieves a remarkable fusion between performance history and criticism."--John Jowett, "Shakespeare Survey"

This is an outstanding edition of "Titus," especially for its treatment of textual questions and of recent performance history. It supersedes all previous editions. "Dr. Paul Hartle, St. Catharine's College, Cambridge"

Bate makes a really positive virtue of his treatment of the play in performance . . . putting a vigorous account of "Titus" on stage at very stage-centre in his Introduction. Using this section as a means for raising fundamental questions as to the play's style, coherence, and meaning, Bate achieves a remarkable fusion between performance history and criticism. "John Jowett, Shakespeare Survey""

This is an outstanding edition of Titus, especially for its treatment of textual questions and of recent performance history. It supersedes all previous editions. Dr. Paul Hartle, St. Catharine's College, Cambridge

Bate makes a really positive virtue of his treatment of the play in performance . . . putting a vigorous account of Titus on stage at very stage-centre in his Introduction. Using this section as a means for raising fundamental questions as to the play's style, coherence, and meaning, Bate achieves a remarkable fusion between performance history and criticism. John Jowett, Shakespeare Survey

"

"This is an outstanding edition of Titus, especially for its treatment of textual questions and of recent performance history. It supersedes all previous editions." --Dr. Paul Hartle, St. Catharine's College, Cambridge

"Bate makes a really positive virtue of his treatment of the play in performance . . . putting a vigorous account of Titus on stage at very stage-centre in his Introduction. Using this section as a means for raising fundamental questions as to the play's style, coherence, and meaning, Bate achieves a remarkable fusion between performance history and criticism." --John Jowett, Shakespeare Survey

My students loved reading and discussing the play and found the extensive notes and introduction very helpful. Surprisingly, Titus Andronicus is turning out to be a new students' favourite.
Maria Fleischhack, Leipzig University, Germany

About this edition

• Publisher: Thomson Learning
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0174435754
• ISBN 13: 9780174435754
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 3
• Number of pages: 300
• Editor: Bate Jonathan