David Bevington 
Shakespeare 
The Seven Ages of Human Experience

The extended second edition of this inspiring introduction to
Shakespeare offers readers more insights into what makes
Shakespeare great, and why we still read and perform his works.

* * A highly innovative introduction to the extraordinary
phenomenon of Shakespeare

* * Explores Shakespeares works through the ‚Seven Ages of Man‘,
from childhood to ’second childishness and mere oblivion‘

* * Now includes more material on fathers and sons, the perils of
courtship, the circumstances of Shakespeares own life, the
performance history of his plays on stage and on screen, and
more

* * A new final chapter on ‚Shakespeare Today‘ looks at the
remarkable diversity of interpretations in modern criticism and
performance of Shakespeare

* * Discusses a wide range of plays and poems

* * Suitable for both non-specialist readers, and scholars seeking
a fresh approach to the study of Shakespeare

Inhaltsverzeichnis

List of illustrations.

To the Reader.

1 All the World’s a Stage: Poetry and Theatre.

2 Creeping Like Snail: Childhood, Education, Early Friendship,
Sibling Rivalries.

3 Sighing Like Furnace: Courtship and Sexual Desire.

4 Full of Strange Oaths and Bearded Like the Pard: The
Coming-of-Age of the Male.

5 Jealous in Honour: Love and Friendship in Crises.

6 Wise Saws: Political and Social Disillusionment,
Humankind’s Relationship to the Divine, and Philosophical
Scepticism.

7 Modern Instances: Misogyny, Jealousy, Pessimism, and Midlife
Crises.

8 The Lean and Slippered Pantaloon: Ageing Fathers and their
Daughters.

9 Last Scene of All: Retirement from the Theatre.

10 Shakespeare Today.

Notes.

Further Reading.

Index

Über den Autor

David Bevington is the Phyllis Fay Horton Distinguished
Service Professor in the Humanities at the University of Chicago.
His numerous publications include The Bantam Shakespeare, in 29
paperback volumes (1988, new edition forthcoming), and The
Complete Works of Shakespeare (fifth edition, 2003), as well as
the Oxford Shakespeare edition of Henry IV Part I (1987),
the New Cambridge Shakespeare edition of Antony and
Cleopatra (second edition, 2005), and the Arden Shakespeare
edition of Troilus and Cressida (1998). He is the senior
editor of the Revels Student Editions, and is a senior editor of
the Revels Plays and of the forthcoming Cambridge edition of the
works of Ben Jonson. He is also general editor of English
Renaissance Drama: A Norton Anthology (2002).