Table of Contents

Introduction: was Shakespeare a Republican?; Part I. Republican Culture in the 1590s: 1. Forms of Republican culture in late sixteenth-century England; 2. Literature and Republicanism in the age of Shakespeare; Part II. Shakespeare and Republicanism: Introduction: Shakespeare's early Republican career; 3. Shakespeare's Pharsalia: the first Tetralogy; 4. The beginning of the Republic: Venus and Lucrece; 5. The end of the Republic: Titus Andronicus and Julius Caesar; 6. The Radical Hamlet; 7. After the Republican moment; Conclusion; Bibliography.

Promotional Information

This highly praised book, first published in 2005, reveals how political thought critical of the government underpins Shakespeare's writing.

About the Author

Adrew Hadfield is Professor of English at the University of Sussex.

Reviews

'... scintillating study ... This challenging, innovative book should permanently transform the way we think about Shakespeare's politics.' Times Literary Supplement 'groundbreaking study ... His convincing argument subverts assumptions concerning the political orthodoxy of Shakespeare.' John King, Literature and History 'This brilliant reading comes just when we thought there was nothing more to be said about Shakespeare and politics.' Peter Holbrook, The Review of English Studies 'The suggestive power of Shakespeare and Republicanism lies in the seriousness with which it links Shakespeare's stories, characters and themes to intellectual and political ideas.' Heather James, Shakespeare Quarterly 'Hadfield has performed a valuable service in urging us to think again about how and why Englishmen learned to think of themselves as citizens, and mapping out some of the textual routes by which they arrived at that destination.' Anne McLaren, Textual Practice