How to Do Things With Shakespeare

This collection of 12 essays uses the works of Shakespeare to show how experts in their field formulate critical positions. How do writers find topics and develop their ideas? How To Do Things with Shakespeare: New Approaches, New Essays shows us how literary research is a reaction to experiences, thoughts, or feelings and illuminates the thought process that leads a reader to take a critical stance. Twelve experts take new critical positions in their field of study using the writings and analysis of Shakespeare. How do The Two Gentlemen of Verona and The Winter’s Tale frame discussions on animal ethics? What is the role of history as a character in Henry VIII and Love’s Labour’s Lost? Each contributor shares insights into what ignited his or her curiosity and led to the resulting essay on each topic. Illuminating the thought processes of these particular writers leads to larger questions: What problems, omissions, or dissatisfactions lead us to our critical positions? What is the internal dialogue that precedes the writing process? Research often moves in unanticipated directions, so here readers are invited to judge first-hand how closely each final essay relates to (and how far it develops from!) the initial questions that inspired it. HOW TO DO THINGS WITH SHAKESPEARE HOW TO DO THINGS WITH SHAKESPEARE “This is a companion to Shakespeare with a difference. Vive la différance!” DAVID BEVINGTON, UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO “Doing things with literature: scholarly articles are not the only way to go. Aristotle uses a lecture, Horace a letter, Sidney a mock oration. Laurie Maguire and the contributors to this book engage in a genial conversation that invites students in. Like all good conversations, this one admits first-person candor, keeps things lively by changing the subject five times, welcomes disagreements, and waits for what the reader-listener is going to do in response.” BRUCE SMITH, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES