The Merry Wives of Windsor, Shakespeare's only thoroughly English comedy, created an archetypal literary figure in the shape of the devious, irrepressible John Falstaff. This stimulating new edition celebrates the play as a joyous exploration of language, but also places elements of its plot firmly in a continental, specifically Italian, tradition of romantic comedy. It draws out the complexities of Merry Wives as a multi-plot play, and takes a fresh and challenging look at both textual and dating issues; a facsimile of the first Quarto is included as an appendix. The play's extensive performance history, both dramatic and operatic, is fully explored and discussed.`This is a significant and substantive edition, in that nothing has been taken for granted, everything has been opened to reconsideration. The commentary is exceptionally detailed and attentive to questions of language and meaning.'John Jowett, Shakespeare Institute, University of Birmingham, Shakespeare Quarterly
| ISBN: | 9781904271123 |
| Publication date: | 9th December 1999 |
| Author: | William Shakespeare, Giorgio Melchiori |
| Publisher: | The Arden Shakespeare an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 344 pages |
| Series: | The Arden Shakespeare : Third Series |
| Genres: |
Classic and pre-20th century plays Literary studies: general |