Marx and Freud: Great Shakespeareans: Volume X

Description

This volume looks at Marx and Freud, who, though not 'Shakespeareans' in the usual academic or theatrical sense, were both deeply informed by Shakespeare's writings, and have both had enormous influence on the understanding and reception of Shakespeare. The first section of this volume consists of a discussion of Marx's use of Shakespeare by Crystal Bartolovich followed by an essay on Shakespeareans' recent uses of Marx by Jean E. Howard. The volume's second half, written by David Hillman, juxtaposes a discussion of Freud's use of Shakespeare with a meditation on Shakespeare's 'use' of Freud. Each part can be read fruitfully independently of the others, but the sum is greater than the parts, offering an engagement with two of the most influential thinkers in Western modernity and their interchanges with, arguably, the most influential figure of early modernity: Shakespeare.

Crystal Bartolovich is Associate Professor in the English Department at Syracuse University, USA. David Hillman is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Cambridge, UK and a Fellow of King's College, Cambridge. His books include Shakespeare's Entrails: Belief, Scepticism and the Interior of the Body (2007) and Representation in Early Modern Discourse (editor; 1996). Jean Howard is George Delacorte Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University, USA. Her many books include Marxist Shakespeares (edited with Scott Shershow, 2000) and four Companions to Shakespeare (edited with Richard Dutton, 2001). She is co-editor of The Norton Shakespeare and General Editor of the Bedford Contextual Editions of Shakespeare. From 1999-2000 she was President of the Shakespeare Association of America.

The Arden Shakespeare has provided a benchmark for textual interpretation on the stage and academically for over a century. * Morning Star *