The merchant of Venice : a critical reader
Sarah Hatchuel (Editor), Nathalie Vienne-Guerrin (Editor)
Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice has often been labelled a 'problem play', and throughout the ages it has been an object of both fascination and repulsion. Without neglecting the socio-political and religious issues that are at the heart of the play, this collection of critical essays invites readers to rediscover the variety of approaches that this multifaceted work calls for, exploring its gender aspects, its rich mythological background, its legal matters and the ways in which it has been adapted to the screen. Essays consider the play in relation to its sources, genre and religion, historical and socio-political context and its critical reception and performance history
Criticism, interpretation, etc
xx, 296 pages ; 21 cm
9781350082298, 1350082295
1137736422
Series Introduction The Merchant of Venice Timeline, by S. Hatchuel (University Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, France) and N. Vienne-Guerrin (University Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, France)Introduction: The Merchant of Venice: the unruly play, by S. Hatchuel and N. Vienne-Guerrin The Critical Backstory, by John Drakakis (University of Sterling, UK)Performance History, by Jay Halio (University of Delaware, USA)The State of the Art, by Shaul Bassi (Università Ca’Foscari Venezia, Italy)New Directions:New Direction 1: “Affections dark as Erebus” – religion, gender, and the passions in The Merchant of Venice, by Sabine Schülting (Freie Universität Berlin, Germany)New Direction 2: “The moon shines bright”: re-viewing the Belmont mythological tapestry in Act 5 of The Merchant of Venice, by Janice Valls-Russell (CNRS, Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 3, France)New Direction 3: “That ugly treason of mistrust”: rhetoric of credit and the credit of rhetoric in The Merchant of Venice, by Gary Watt (University of Warwick, UK)New Direction 4: Screening The Merchant of Venice, by Douglas M. Lanier (University of New Hampshire, USA)Learning and teaching Resources, by Lieke Stelling (University of Utrecht, Netherlands)Notes on ContributorsIndex