Henry IV, Part One - Softcover

Shakespeare, William

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0553212931 ISBN 13: 9780553212938

Publisher: Bantam Doubleday Dell, 1988

Synopsis

This edition of Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1 uses a variety of approaches to Shakespeare, including historical and cultural studies approaches. Shakespeare's text is accompanied by an intriguing collection of thematically arranged historical and cultural documents and illustrations designed to give a firsthand knowledge of the contexts out of which Henry IV, Part 1 emerged. Hodgdon's intelligent and engaging introductions to the play and to the documents (most of which are presented in modern spelling and with annotations) offer a richly textured understanding of Elizabethan culture and Shakespeare's work within that culture.

About this title

Review

Written between 1596 and 1597, Henry IV Part One represents Shakespeare's increasingly mature talent in staging the history of the early Tudor monarchy. Midway in the cycle of Shakespeare's History Plays, which begin with Richard II and ultimately culminate in his last play, Henry VIII, Henry IV Part One tells the story of the troubled reign of Henry IV following his deposition of Richard II. The historical action revolves around the attempt by Henry Percy (known as Hotspur) to overthrow Henry at the Battle of Shrewsbury. However, over half the play deals with the transformation of Henry's profligate son, Prince Hal (the future King Henry V), from tavern joker to national icon.

The whole play is stolen from its kings and princes by Shakespeare's greatest comic creation, the "fat-kidneyed rascal" Sir John Falstaff, king of his own dominions--the taverns and brothels of London's Eastcheap district. The tavern scenes of the play are some of the most evocative accounts of 16th-century popular London life. They revolve around the comical but ultimately sinister relationship between Falstaff and his young apprentice Hal, who learns to "so offend to make offence a skill" as he learns the slippery ropes of realpolitik and kingship. The play is considered by many to be the liveliest and most profound of Shakespeare's History Plays, and remains one of its most popular examples. --Jerry Brotton

Review

`The Oxford Shakespeare is without doubt an important publishing event ... a complete rethinking of Shakespeare scholarship, textual, critical, and stage history all to be considered afresh with the aid of the most up-to-date knowledge and research resources ... a workman-like survey of most of what has been known and thought about the play up to the time of going to press' Joan Rees, University of Birmingham, Review of English Studies, Vol. 38 No. 155

`Professor Bevington has compiled in this attractively produced volume the best critical edition of Henry IV currently available' Michael G. Brennan, University of Leeds, Notes and Queries

Edition details

• Publisher: Bantam Doubleday Dell
• Publication date: 1988
• ISBN 10: 0553212931
• ISBN 13: 9780553212938
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 304
• Editor: Bevington David, Kastan David Scott