Macbeth

by William Shakespeare , Edited by A. R. Braunmuller

• ISBN13: 9780521862400
• ISBN10: 052186240X
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-01-05
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

This is the most extensively annotated edition of Macbeth currently available, offering a thorough reconsideration of one of Shakespeare's most popular plays. A full and accessible updated introduction studies the immediate theatrical and political contexts of Macbeth's composition, especially the Gunpowder Plot and the contemporary account of an early performance at the Globe. It treats such issues as whether the Witches compel Macbeth to murder; whether Lady Macbeth is herself in some sense a witch; whether Banquo is Macbeth's accomplice in crime; and what criticism is levelled against Macduff. Several possible new sources are suggested, and the presence of Thomas Middleton's writing in the play is proposed. An extensive, well-illustrated account of the play in performance examines several cinematic versions, such as those by Kurosawa and Roman Polanski, and a brand new introductory section on recent performances and adaptations brings the edition completely up-to-date.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations
List of abbreviations and conventions
Introduction	p. 1
Macbeth in legend, Macbeth in history	p. 2
Topical Macbeth	p. 5
Occasional Macbeth	p. 8
Documents	p. 13
Macbeth in the mind	p. 15
Succession, time, and families	p. 15
Master of his time: 'doubly redoubled strokes'	p. 23
Prospect of belief: witches, women, and mediated knowledge	p. 29
'What do you mean?': the languages of Macbeth	p. 43
Macbeth in performance	p. 55
Performance and adaptation before 1800	p. 57
Later stagings and versions	p. 68
Further variations: Kurosawa, Polanski, Ninagawa	p. 83
Macbeth in the mind and in performance: Act 4, Scene 3	p. 88
Recent performances and adaptations	p. 93
Macbeth filmed	p. 100
Recent criticism and scholarship	p. 103
Macbeth in its time and just after	p. 103
Macbeth since about 1700	p. 106
Note on the text	p. 111
Note on the Commentary	p. 113
List of characters	p. 116
The Play	p. 118
Supplementary notes	p. 255
Textual analysis	p. 261
Casting Macbeth	p. 280
Additional text and music	p. 284
Relineation of the Folio	p. 291
Reading list	p. 295
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