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The Riverside Shakespeare
The Second Edition of this complete collection of Shakespeare's plays and poems features two essays on recent criticism and productions, fully updated textual notes, a photographic insert of recent productions, and two works recently attributed to Shakespeare. The authors of the essays on recent criticism and productions are Heather DuBrow, University of Wisconsin at Madison, and William Liston, Ball State University, respectively.
2057 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1974
About the author
William Shakespeare
17.9k books48.6k followersWilliam Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "the Bard"). His extant works, including collaborations, consist of some 39 plays, 154 sonnets, three long narrative poems, and a few other verses, some of uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright. Shakespeare remains arguably the most influential writer in the English language, and his works continue to be studied and reinterpreted.
Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner ("sharer") of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men after the ascension of King James VI and I of Scotland to the English throne. At age 49 (around 1613), he appears to have retired to Stratford, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive; this has stimulated considerable speculation about such matters as his physical appearance, his sexuality, his religious beliefs, and even certain fringe theories as to whether the works attributed to him were written by others.
Shakespeare produced most of his known works between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were primarily comedies and histories and are regarded as some of the best works produced in these genres. He then wrote mainly tragedies until 1608, among them Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth, all considered to be among the finest works in the English language. In the last phase of his life, he wrote tragicomedies (also known as romances) and collaborated with other playwrights.
Many of Shakespeare's plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime. However, in 1623, John Heminge and Henry Condell, two fellow actors and friends of Shakespeare's, published a more definitive text known as the First Folio, a posthumous collected edition of Shakespeare's dramatic works that includes 36 of his plays. Its Preface was a prescient poem by Ben Jonson, a former rival of Shakespeare, that hailed Shakespeare with the now famous epithet: "not of an age, but for all time".
Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. At the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith. Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner ("sharer") of a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later known as the King's Men after the ascension of King James VI and I of Scotland to the English throne. At age 49 (around 1613), he appears to have retired to Stratford, where he died three years later. Few records of Shakespeare's private life survive; this has stimulated considerable speculation about such matters as his physical appearance, his sexuality, his religious beliefs, and even certain fringe theories as to whether the works attributed to him were written by others.
Shakespeare produced most of his known works between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were primarily comedies and histories and are regarded as some of the best works produced in these genres. He then wrote mainly tragedies until 1608, among them Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth, all considered to be among the finest works in the English language. In the last phase of his life, he wrote tragicomedies (also known as romances) and collaborated with other playwrights.
Many of Shakespeare's plays were published in editions of varying quality and accuracy during his lifetime. However, in 1623, John Heminge and Henry Condell, two fellow actors and friends of Shakespeare's, published a more definitive text known as the First Folio, a posthumous collected edition of Shakespeare's dramatic works that includes 36 of his plays. Its Preface was a prescient poem by Ben Jonson, a former rival of Shakespeare, that hailed Shakespeare with the now famous epithet: "not of an age, but for all time".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 180 reviews
January 25, 2011
Need a comprehensive volume of all of Shakespeare's works? This book is for you.
How about a security system? I guarantee any burglar you bash over the head with this book is going to have at least a concussion, if not brain damage.
What about a doorstop? do you live in a drafty house with doors slamming all the time? You need one of these then, any door parked behind this tome is going nowhere.
Got kids? Are they too big for a high chair but still a little too short for a regular chair? Park one of these babies under their butt with a pillow on top. Problem solved!
Great literature with multiple household uses! I'd like to see a Kindle edition try and do that.
How about a security system? I guarantee any burglar you bash over the head with this book is going to have at least a concussion, if not brain damage.
What about a doorstop? do you live in a drafty house with doors slamming all the time? You need one of these then, any door parked behind this tome is going nowhere.
Got kids? Are they too big for a high chair but still a little too short for a regular chair? Park one of these babies under their butt with a pillow on top. Problem solved!
Great literature with multiple household uses! I'd like to see a Kindle edition try and do that.
February 10, 2014
My Riverside Shakespeare is one of my most prized possessions. All battered and marked up* and with all kinds of ephemera jammed down into it. I don't really read from it anymore - it's much easier for me to buy a $3 used edition with just one play in it; Riverside is very large. But when I re-read Shakespeare I usually revisit the Riverside intros, which are excellent.
* I should note, it's marked up with the dumbest shit. I don't understand any of the notes I took in college.
Anyway, a while back Jason challenged me to rate Shakespeare from best to worst; because I want that list to live somewhere, here it is.
Hamlet
Lear
Tempest
Cardenio
Henry IV 1 and 2 and Henry V, as a trilogy
Macbeth
Othello
As You Like It
Winter's Tale
Philip Marlowe, just in general
Merchant of Venice
Midsummer Night's Dream
Richard II & III
Julius Caesar
Antony & Cleopatra
Most of the comedies / the shittier of the tragedies
Titus
Henry VI
King John
Anything co-written with anyone
Henry VIII
* I should note, it's marked up with the dumbest shit. I don't understand any of the notes I took in college.
Anyway, a while back Jason challenged me to rate Shakespeare from best to worst; because I want that list to live somewhere, here it is.
Hamlet
Lear
Tempest
Cardenio
Henry IV 1 and 2 and Henry V, as a trilogy
Macbeth
Othello
As You Like It
Winter's Tale
Philip Marlowe, just in general
Merchant of Venice
Midsummer Night's Dream
Richard II & III
Julius Caesar
Antony & Cleopatra
Most of the comedies / the shittier of the tragedies
Titus
Henry VI
King John
Anything co-written with anyone
Henry VIII
December 2, 2007
This one will probably always be on my currently reading shelf. Right now I am working on scenes from Richard III and Twelfth Night and monologues from Cymbeline and Henry IV, part ii, also the sonnets. My least favorite play so far is the Merry Wives of Windsor - the opening scene makes no sense and if Shakespeare wrote it he must have been drunk.
Now I'm working on a new scene from Twelfth Night and one from All's Well That Ends Well. The latter one I have never read so more on what I think about it later this week.
All's Well is nice, not my favorite comedy but nice nonetheless. Interesting use of rhyming couplets between Helena and the king. This play is awkward for me because Bertram and Helena seem ill-matched but maybe that makes it more realistic than some of the other plays about love. There also seems to be a stronger female presence than in other plays but the women are not very three dimensional for the most part. I think this play succeeds or fails based on the vision of the director and cast more so than one like Twelfth Night.
Measure for Measure is interesting. The "virtuous" characters have serious flaws and the villains are charming. Especially Lucio. There is a very similar subplot to All's Well whose moral runs along the lines of "If you have a wife or fiancee who you are avoiding while pursuing a virtuous maiden, don't make plans to deflower the maiden at midnight in the garden because the woman you meet will probably be your wife."
Tempest: Just revisited for the first time since a production in college (cast as Miranda turned it down to play a spirit in an ugly mustard leotard...) It is surprising to me what language stuck and what didn't. I have part of a song that often runs through my head that evidently comes from this play but I had forgotten where I learned it. It is much shorter than I remembered. Prospero is by far the most dimensional character but the other characters are nice archetypes. Love the comedy between Stephano, Trinculo, and Caliban. I think it is interesting that Caliban speaks in verse I would have expected prose from him. Anyway. lovely play. I hope I have the chance to play Miranda before I get too old.
Twelfth Night: Just revisited this for an audition. It is a wonderful comedy that holds up with few alterations in the modern world. Also three great characters for women. I was surprised by how much of the play is in prose but I suppose it makes sense because it is a comedy and so much of the action takes place between the servants. I remember seeing a wonderful production of this show at UCSB when I was in high school. I feel badly about how the audition went and I just realized it is making me reluctant to spend much time thinking about the play so maybe I will return and review it more objectively at a later date.
Coriolanus was a wonderful surprise. I wanted to read it because we were going to the opening night of OSF's production of it. In general I am not much of a history person and despite the fact that this is considered a tragedy I was pretty sure it was Roman history cleverly disguised. Anyway, I found the play to be very accessible, if rather long. The language, perhaps because so much is spoken by and with commoners, is very visceral. Lots of land and animal imagery (is a dragon an animal?) that I found to be particularly appealing. I also found the play to be philosophical particularly about the role of government and tension between classes, certainly a relevant discussion in any society and time period. I didn't find Caius Marcius, later Coriolanus, to be particularly likable, but he does say some wonderfully inflammatory things and his journey was interesting. The real revelation for me was Volumina, his mother. She is incredibly powerful and interesting, right down to her intriguing child-rearing philosophies. What a role. Can't wait until I am old enough to use her monologues as audition pieces. Also lots of humor in the play. Class tensions makes for some funny disagreements. I look forward to being surprised by other works in the canon.
Henry V: I chose the love scene in Act V as my final in Shakespeare class this year. I ADORE this scene. It is so sweet and romantic since the Henry doesn't speak much French nor Katherine much English but they both want it to work. It would be a thankless role in actuality since it is one of exactly two scenes that Katherine has in the play but it was perfect for in-class work. I enjoyed the play as a whole too. I know this is very dense of me, but this was the first play where I really began to understand how the histories are inked. It is really fun to watch characters (like Henry V) grow and develop throughout the plays. If I were actually in this one, I would probably want to be Pistol for all of the comic scenes. Speaking of the comedy, I think the French insult of sending Henry tennis balls when he wants to fight them is silly and delightful. I also like the pervasive use of dialects throughout.
Henry VI, Part 2: I'm working on a monologue from this play - Queen Margaret (who shares my exact birthday and exact wedding anniversary). It's actually quite interesting so far, perhaps one of the most delightful aspects is the number of insults. Virtually all of I.3 is a volley of viciousness. Fantastic. And then the play takes a turn for the bloody. I am really looking forward to seeing this staged.
Cymbeline: I had been planning on reading all of the plays set in Italy before my trip, but I don't think it's going to happen somehow. I am starting work on a monologue from this play so expediency trumps lofty aims.
Richard III: I just got cast as Lady Anne so I've read this play twice recently and will be reading it lots more in the New Year. I'm drawn to the number of roles there are for older women in this play. I think it will be fun to work with a group of accomplished actresses. I also love the two murderers and the constant wordplay. Richard seems to be having the most delightful time being rotten person. I hope our performance conveys the deliciousness of his actions. Lots about fate and prophecy in this, a feeling for the truth of the curse"may you receive everything your wish for".
Two Gentlemen of Verona: This is the summer show for SF Shakes. I think I want to audition for it but I need to read it first. Just finished and it's fine, lots and lots of plot similarities to other plays, some "All's Well", a touch of "Romeo & Juliet", a little hint of Arden forrest. My favorite character was Launce, a servant who has lots of clever dialogue and a priceless monologue about the trials and tribulations of being a dog owner.
Macbeth: Had an audition for an incredible production of this yesterday. Just re-read it. There's a reason this is a classic. Love all of the opposites ("fair is foul and foul is fair"). I was surprised by the relationship between the Mackers, there's a lot of love there. My impression going in was that Lady Mac was pure evil and Mac was weak, but they're so much more and I can totally see how things got out of hand. Reading this was like a treasure hunt because there are so many famous lines and I have seen so many pieces of this show in class. I'd read this again in a minute.
The Winter's Tale: I just re-read an edited version of this play for an audition I am attending. Still some lovely monologues and charming scenes. I have a hard time with some of the character's choices, they seem illogical to me but I think that means they are well written because they are behaving in that messy way things happen in real life. with such a large time span between the beginning of the play and the end, it is a challenge to know what character to try for. Will the characters be cast as they are at the start and aged for the second half or the other way around? i would really, really love the chance to work with this play in greater depth.
Now I'm working on a new scene from Twelfth Night and one from All's Well That Ends Well. The latter one I have never read so more on what I think about it later this week.
All's Well is nice, not my favorite comedy but nice nonetheless. Interesting use of rhyming couplets between Helena and the king. This play is awkward for me because Bertram and Helena seem ill-matched but maybe that makes it more realistic than some of the other plays about love. There also seems to be a stronger female presence than in other plays but the women are not very three dimensional for the most part. I think this play succeeds or fails based on the vision of the director and cast more so than one like Twelfth Night.
Measure for Measure is interesting. The "virtuous" characters have serious flaws and the villains are charming. Especially Lucio. There is a very similar subplot to All's Well whose moral runs along the lines of "If you have a wife or fiancee who you are avoiding while pursuing a virtuous maiden, don't make plans to deflower the maiden at midnight in the garden because the woman you meet will probably be your wife."
Tempest: Just revisited for the first time since a production in college (cast as Miranda turned it down to play a spirit in an ugly mustard leotard...) It is surprising to me what language stuck and what didn't. I have part of a song that often runs through my head that evidently comes from this play but I had forgotten where I learned it. It is much shorter than I remembered. Prospero is by far the most dimensional character but the other characters are nice archetypes. Love the comedy between Stephano, Trinculo, and Caliban. I think it is interesting that Caliban speaks in verse I would have expected prose from him. Anyway. lovely play. I hope I have the chance to play Miranda before I get too old.
Twelfth Night: Just revisited this for an audition. It is a wonderful comedy that holds up with few alterations in the modern world. Also three great characters for women. I was surprised by how much of the play is in prose but I suppose it makes sense because it is a comedy and so much of the action takes place between the servants. I remember seeing a wonderful production of this show at UCSB when I was in high school. I feel badly about how the audition went and I just realized it is making me reluctant to spend much time thinking about the play so maybe I will return and review it more objectively at a later date.
Coriolanus was a wonderful surprise. I wanted to read it because we were going to the opening night of OSF's production of it. In general I am not much of a history person and despite the fact that this is considered a tragedy I was pretty sure it was Roman history cleverly disguised. Anyway, I found the play to be very accessible, if rather long. The language, perhaps because so much is spoken by and with commoners, is very visceral. Lots of land and animal imagery (is a dragon an animal?) that I found to be particularly appealing. I also found the play to be philosophical particularly about the role of government and tension between classes, certainly a relevant discussion in any society and time period. I didn't find Caius Marcius, later Coriolanus, to be particularly likable, but he does say some wonderfully inflammatory things and his journey was interesting. The real revelation for me was Volumina, his mother. She is incredibly powerful and interesting, right down to her intriguing child-rearing philosophies. What a role. Can't wait until I am old enough to use her monologues as audition pieces. Also lots of humor in the play. Class tensions makes for some funny disagreements. I look forward to being surprised by other works in the canon.
Henry V: I chose the love scene in Act V as my final in Shakespeare class this year. I ADORE this scene. It is so sweet and romantic since the Henry doesn't speak much French nor Katherine much English but they both want it to work. It would be a thankless role in actuality since it is one of exactly two scenes that Katherine has in the play but it was perfect for in-class work. I enjoyed the play as a whole too. I know this is very dense of me, but this was the first play where I really began to understand how the histories are inked. It is really fun to watch characters (like Henry V) grow and develop throughout the plays. If I were actually in this one, I would probably want to be Pistol for all of the comic scenes. Speaking of the comedy, I think the French insult of sending Henry tennis balls when he wants to fight them is silly and delightful. I also like the pervasive use of dialects throughout.
Henry VI, Part 2: I'm working on a monologue from this play - Queen Margaret (who shares my exact birthday and exact wedding anniversary). It's actually quite interesting so far, perhaps one of the most delightful aspects is the number of insults. Virtually all of I.3 is a volley of viciousness. Fantastic. And then the play takes a turn for the bloody. I am really looking forward to seeing this staged.
Cymbeline: I had been planning on reading all of the plays set in Italy before my trip, but I don't think it's going to happen somehow. I am starting work on a monologue from this play so expediency trumps lofty aims.
Richard III: I just got cast as Lady Anne so I've read this play twice recently and will be reading it lots more in the New Year. I'm drawn to the number of roles there are for older women in this play. I think it will be fun to work with a group of accomplished actresses. I also love the two murderers and the constant wordplay. Richard seems to be having the most delightful time being rotten person. I hope our performance conveys the deliciousness of his actions. Lots about fate and prophecy in this, a feeling for the truth of the curse"may you receive everything your wish for".
Two Gentlemen of Verona: This is the summer show for SF Shakes. I think I want to audition for it but I need to read it first. Just finished and it's fine, lots and lots of plot similarities to other plays, some "All's Well", a touch of "Romeo & Juliet", a little hint of Arden forrest. My favorite character was Launce, a servant who has lots of clever dialogue and a priceless monologue about the trials and tribulations of being a dog owner.
Macbeth: Had an audition for an incredible production of this yesterday. Just re-read it. There's a reason this is a classic. Love all of the opposites ("fair is foul and foul is fair"). I was surprised by the relationship between the Mackers, there's a lot of love there. My impression going in was that Lady Mac was pure evil and Mac was weak, but they're so much more and I can totally see how things got out of hand. Reading this was like a treasure hunt because there are so many famous lines and I have seen so many pieces of this show in class. I'd read this again in a minute.
The Winter's Tale: I just re-read an edited version of this play for an audition I am attending. Still some lovely monologues and charming scenes. I have a hard time with some of the character's choices, they seem illogical to me but I think that means they are well written because they are behaving in that messy way things happen in real life. with such a large time span between the beginning of the play and the end, it is a challenge to know what character to try for. Will the characters be cast as they are at the start and aged for the second half or the other way around? i would really, really love the chance to work with this play in greater depth.
September 12, 2017
Usé esta maravilla de libro (son las obras completas+historia+bio y demás joyitas sobre la época y el autor/es) cuando estudiaba un curso extensivo sobre este bardo (jaja traté de hacer un chiste ahí).
Es lo mejor que me pasó en mi vida estudiantil/profesional y ahora duerme en mi mesa de luz, en un lugar privilegiado, lejos de los libros normales.
Es lo mejor que me pasó en mi vida estudiantil/profesional y ahora duerme en mi mesa de luz, en un lugar privilegiado, lejos de los libros normales.
January 12, 2018
I love this collection and I used this at University. It was damn heavy to log around but was a wonderful resource because of the detailed explanations and translations for some of the out dated terms used by Shakespeare in his plays. It is still proudly displayed on my "public" library book shelf at home ( my romance novels are in a special hidden storage room ). I loved the layout of the collection and the fact that each play and each section were prefaced by concise, analytical essays of introduction. There were lovely little illustrations for the plays as well. I think I studied only about 4 history plays, all the tragedies, all the comedies, The Tempest, The Winter's Tale, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatry and a couple of the "problem plays". I never actually got around to studying the poems although I did read through a few of his lovely sonnets. My favourite play from Shakespeare will always be Much Ado About Nothing because I love Benedict so much and Beatrice was such a strong female character. I love Hamlet the most from among the tragedies because he was such a sexy tragic bastard and Shakespeare was a boss with his use of the Garden of Eden metaphor in that play. Lol. I wished Hamlet could have made his mind up already, though ! And I hated how poor Ophelia lost the will to live after he told her to go to a nunnery. Othello was probably the precursor for many a jealous obsessive asshole Harlequin Presents hero. Macbeth was too much of a p***y whipped asshole and King Lear's senile vanity was a bit too much to take at times. I preferred Julius Caesar to Antony and Cleopatra because there was more intrigue to analyze. And I will always have a special love for The Tempest because it's so epic ! I've always said that when I have a daughter I shall probably name her Miranda or Ariel.
July 14, 2021
***I normally use my Riverside Shakespeare solely as a reference text, preferring the Everyman series for its ease of portability and short but helpful introductions. But I think it's only recently that the Two Noble Kinsmen has become an accepted part of the canon of Shakespeare, and hence does not appear in the Everyman series.***
A play at the end of Shakespeare's career, and one that was not even entirely his own, but shared with John Fletcher. And yet, it's a wonderful retelling of Chaucer's Knight's Tale. The questions of platonic and romantic relationships, chivalry and selfishness, the state and the individual, are just a few of the ones probed by both playwrights in this play.
"Our hearts / Are in his army, in his tent." (I.iii.16-17)
"I am not / Against your faith, yet I continue mine." (I.iii.97-98)
"That no man but thy cousin's fit to kill thee." (III.vi.43)
***This is also the case for Edward III, which apparently only entered the canon in the 1990s.***
"And where he sets his foot he ought to kneel." (I.i.81)
"To hear war beautified by her discourse.
Wisdom is foolishness but in her tongue,
Beauty a slander but in her fair face:
There is no summer but in her cheerful looks,
Nor frosty winter but in her disdain."
II.i.39-43
"Devise for fair a fairer word than fair."
II.i.85
"What, thinkest thou I did bid thee praise a horse?"
II.i.98
"In violating marriage' sacred law
You break a greater honor than yourself"
II.i.260-261
"We have more sons
Than one to comfort our declining age."
III.iv.23-24
"If we fear not, then no resolved proffer
Can overthrow the limit of our fate:
For whether ripe or rotten, drop we shall,
As we do draw the lottery of our doom."
IV.v.146-149
"Ah, what an idiot hast thou made of life,
To seek the thing it fears; and how disgrac'd
The imperial victory of murd'ring Death!"
IV.v. 151-154
"Since for to live is but to seek to die,
And dying but beginning of new life."
IV.v.159-160
"For I do hold a tree in France too good
To be the gallows of an English thief."
IV.v. 63-64
"Thy fortune, not thy force, hath conquer'd us.
An argument that heaven aids the right."
IV.ix.9-10
A play at the end of Shakespeare's career, and one that was not even entirely his own, but shared with John Fletcher. And yet, it's a wonderful retelling of Chaucer's Knight's Tale. The questions of platonic and romantic relationships, chivalry and selfishness, the state and the individual, are just a few of the ones probed by both playwrights in this play.
"Our hearts / Are in his army, in his tent." (I.iii.16-17)
"I am not / Against your faith, yet I continue mine." (I.iii.97-98)
"That no man but thy cousin's fit to kill thee." (III.vi.43)
***This is also the case for Edward III, which apparently only entered the canon in the 1990s.***
"And where he sets his foot he ought to kneel." (I.i.81)
"To hear war beautified by her discourse.
Wisdom is foolishness but in her tongue,
Beauty a slander but in her fair face:
There is no summer but in her cheerful looks,
Nor frosty winter but in her disdain."
II.i.39-43
"Devise for fair a fairer word than fair."
II.i.85
"What, thinkest thou I did bid thee praise a horse?"
II.i.98
"In violating marriage' sacred law
You break a greater honor than yourself"
II.i.260-261
"We have more sons
Than one to comfort our declining age."
III.iv.23-24
"If we fear not, then no resolved proffer
Can overthrow the limit of our fate:
For whether ripe or rotten, drop we shall,
As we do draw the lottery of our doom."
IV.v.146-149
"Ah, what an idiot hast thou made of life,
To seek the thing it fears; and how disgrac'd
The imperial victory of murd'ring Death!"
IV.v. 151-154
"Since for to live is but to seek to die,
And dying but beginning of new life."
IV.v.159-160
"For I do hold a tree in France too good
To be the gallows of an English thief."
IV.v. 63-64
"Thy fortune, not thy force, hath conquer'd us.
An argument that heaven aids the right."
IV.ix.9-10
October 9, 2020
N.B.: This review and rating will not include any commentary on the plays and poetry itself, as the work of William Shakespeare run the gauntlet from superb to mediocre and I feel it would deter from the purpose of this book. However, I have rated the plays individually if one cares to check. What this review would focus on the functionality of this particular edition of the text.
The Riverside Shakespeare collects forty plays, five poems, 154 sonnets, and one elegy that are attributed in full or in part to William Shakespeare. The plays are divided into five sections: Comedies (13 plays), Histories (10 plays), Tragedies (10 plays), Romances (5 plays), and the Apocryphal (Edward III and sections of Sir Thomas Moore that are attributed to Shakespeare). A Funeral Elegy by W.S. is also present under the Poems section.
Each play and poem has a wonderfully written and well researched essays proceeding them (plays in multiple parts have one introductory essay). The plays and poems are divided into two-column texted on each page with a nifty glossary of words in the footnotes of each column. At the end of each play are textual notes, which is a tad cumbersome flipping back and forth.
Included are a plethora of essay about Shakespeare and his times, his works, his criticism, and his legacy. Furthermore, there are four appendices, four indexes (indices (?)), two helpful Genealogy Tables for certain historical plays, illustrations, and maps. Additionally, there are thirty-nine colored plates throughout the text, which could be better placed as they pop up during mid-text or plays at times.
All in all, The Riverside Shakespeare is a wonderful anthology and reference to the works of William Shakespeare – it may be too bold of this reviewer to say that this edition of the text may be the definitive collection for the works of William Shakespeare.
The Riverside Shakespeare collects forty plays, five poems, 154 sonnets, and one elegy that are attributed in full or in part to William Shakespeare. The plays are divided into five sections: Comedies (13 plays), Histories (10 plays), Tragedies (10 plays), Romances (5 plays), and the Apocryphal (Edward III and sections of Sir Thomas Moore that are attributed to Shakespeare). A Funeral Elegy by W.S. is also present under the Poems section.
Each play and poem has a wonderfully written and well researched essays proceeding them (plays in multiple parts have one introductory essay). The plays and poems are divided into two-column texted on each page with a nifty glossary of words in the footnotes of each column. At the end of each play are textual notes, which is a tad cumbersome flipping back and forth.
Included are a plethora of essay about Shakespeare and his times, his works, his criticism, and his legacy. Furthermore, there are four appendices, four indexes (indices (?)), two helpful Genealogy Tables for certain historical plays, illustrations, and maps. Additionally, there are thirty-nine colored plates throughout the text, which could be better placed as they pop up during mid-text or plays at times.
All in all, The Riverside Shakespeare is a wonderful anthology and reference to the works of William Shakespeare – it may be too bold of this reviewer to say that this edition of the text may be the definitive collection for the works of William Shakespeare.
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April 15, 2014Before Gary loses his mind altogether about how much reading I do, I’ve been at this one since April of 2014. I list it as ‘new’ this year (as I did earlier with the NIV Study Bible—in its case also a different translation, something not applicable to Shakespeare) because all the scholarly apparatus is new to me: introductory essays, notes on source texts and variants, general chronology of other events during Shakespeare’s lifetime, critical surveys of performance history, etc., are new. I had read most of the plays before — with the exception of the ‘doubtful’ Edward III — as well as all the poems. I started reading the second Riverside edition while I was still teaching Shakespeare—which I have not been doing since 2015. My previous ‘standard’ edition had been that of Hardin Craig (1951), which my mother, then myself, then Michelle used in undergraduate study: three separate sets of marginalia, often in different colours. So the Riverside reading began for me in the spirit of Sir Georg Solti, who once mentioned that he would occasionally begin conducting Beethoven by starting with a new, unmarked score, rather than just repeat what he had previously done. I did not know at the time that I would soon no longer have quite the same professional need for the text. I finished it anyway. I tend to be like that. I did find the scholarly apparatus informative; there was always something new to consider about each text. And while I was reading it, I was in productions of The Comedy of Errors, Richard III, and Timon of Athens, so I used the ‘new stuff’ to some degree, even if not in the virtual or actual classroom. I won’t presume to review Shakespeare himself. We each have our views, some of them held very deeply, about which texts represent his peak achievements. For some, there are no troughs in the work. I tend more towards the view that Shakespeare could, on occasion, produce inferior work, that he was, in his own time and practice, at least as much a businessman (or theatre impresario) as he was an artist. I have my favourite bits, as well as passages that, after this third read through the entire canon, I will probably never see again. It annoys me that, having read three different collected Shakespeares, my total texts read still stands at three. Must go in and add each individual text, I suppose.
October 31, 2013
Oceans of ink have been written about Shakespeare's works, so I see no reason to add my two pence. As to this edition, though, I have many good things to say. It is an academic edition, and I am please with the book for a number of reasons.
First off, the book is attractive and well made. The hardcover is sturdy, the interior artwork is elucidating and fun, and the complete works are included, even the ones whose canonicity are only probable.
Different scholars write the general and individual work introductions, which is nice as it adds variety and exposes the reader to different approaches and views of the works.
The book is heavily glossed on the page where the text in question appears, which is great as you can simply look down to find the information. Most readers are not going to know all the nuances of Elizabethan English, so this glossing is vital to understanding ye olde utterances of The Bard.
There are various appendices dealing with the stage history of the works, original source material, and timelines as well as a bibliography and selected glossary at the end.
This book is my favourite by far of Shakespearean books in regard to completeness and reading aids. It also helps me get my exercise carrying it around the house as it clocks in at just over 2,000 pages. I read every one of them. You should, too.
Regarding the plays, they are written to be performed and are best enjoyed, in my opinion, in performance combined with reading. I read first and after and have no preference myself as to which should be done first, but I definitely recommend both. I personally found the BBC versions of the plays to be great as they are Englishmen and talented. The videos are free on youtube. The BBC set out to do all the plays, which is great because you can watch some of the lesser performed works. I am not sure the canonical views of the BBC and this book match 100%, so a few of the plays that were previously not considered Shakespearean may not be available. Still, watch those you can. Then, read this wonderful text (or vice-versa) for a deeper enjoyment of these works; they really are timeless and worth the time necessary to invest in the experience.
First off, the book is attractive and well made. The hardcover is sturdy, the interior artwork is elucidating and fun, and the complete works are included, even the ones whose canonicity are only probable.
Different scholars write the general and individual work introductions, which is nice as it adds variety and exposes the reader to different approaches and views of the works.
The book is heavily glossed on the page where the text in question appears, which is great as you can simply look down to find the information. Most readers are not going to know all the nuances of Elizabethan English, so this glossing is vital to understanding ye olde utterances of The Bard.
There are various appendices dealing with the stage history of the works, original source material, and timelines as well as a bibliography and selected glossary at the end.
This book is my favourite by far of Shakespearean books in regard to completeness and reading aids. It also helps me get my exercise carrying it around the house as it clocks in at just over 2,000 pages. I read every one of them. You should, too.
Regarding the plays, they are written to be performed and are best enjoyed, in my opinion, in performance combined with reading. I read first and after and have no preference myself as to which should be done first, but I definitely recommend both. I personally found the BBC versions of the plays to be great as they are Englishmen and talented. The videos are free on youtube. The BBC set out to do all the plays, which is great because you can watch some of the lesser performed works. I am not sure the canonical views of the BBC and this book match 100%, so a few of the plays that were previously not considered Shakespearean may not be available. Still, watch those you can. Then, read this wonderful text (or vice-versa) for a deeper enjoyment of these works; they really are timeless and worth the time necessary to invest in the experience.
December 1, 2010
Finished off with The life of King Henry the Eighth. I read it side by side with the Yale edition published in 1925 and edited by John M. Berdan and Tucker Brooke because I like how the Yale edition plays are published in individual 4" x 6" blue cloth-covered volumes that you can hold easily in your hands. People get all caught up in studying Shakespeare, and I think that sometimes that gets in the way of remembering that the reason he's lasted this long is because he's a wonderful storyteller. What I like about him is how I'll be reading him and there's the action, and the story all moving along, and then Blammo, his characters do something that is so completely true and right to the heart of how people think and act, and those moments are magical.
June 26, 2013
I sincerely disliked the format of this book. It was incredibly cumbersome. Additionally, the page formatting and location of textual notes interrupted my reading experience -- it was obtrusive and made reading Shakespeare more laborious than it has to be. I did enjoy the completeness of the volume, but feel that there must be a better reading experience for Shakespeare fans elsewhere.
June 22, 2010
Shakespeare ROCKS!!
Now to figure out if he really is that bumbling illiterate of Avon, or Christopher Marlow, THAT is the question!
Now to figure out if he really is that bumbling illiterate of Avon, or Christopher Marlow, THAT is the question!
December 17, 2015
Every word in the Shakespeare canon has been read. Fuck yeah!
January 28, 2016
An excellent compilation of criticism, history, and literature - a complete yet compact anthology with ample research aids and helpful bibliographies.
January 30, 2021
Ege. Proceed, Solinus, to procure my fall, And by the doom of death end woes and all. Duke. Merchant of Syracusa, plead no more. I am not partial to infringe our laws; The enmity and discord which of late Sprung from the rancorous outrage of your Duke To merchants, our well-dealing countrymen, Who, wanting guilders to redeem their lives, Have seal’d his rigorous statutes with their bloods, Excludes all pity from our threat’ning looks: For since the mortal and intestine jars ’Twixt thy seditious countrymen and us, It hath in solemn synods been decreed, Both by the Syracusians and ourselves, To admit no traffic to our adverse towns: Nay more, if any born at Ephesus be seen At any Syracusian marts and fairs; Again, if any Syracusian born Come to the bay of Ephesus, he dies, His goods confiscate to the Duke’s dispose, Unless a thousand marks be levied To quit the penalty and to ransom him. Thy substance, valued at the highest rate, Cannot amount unto a hundred marks, Therefore by law thou art condemn’d to die. Ege. Yet this my comfort, when your words are done, My woes end likewise with the evening sun. Duke. Well, Syracusian; say in brief the cause Why thou departedst from thy native home, And for what cause thou cam’st to Ephesus. Ege. A heavier task could not have been impos’d Than I to speak my griefs unspeakable: Yet that the world may witness that my end Was wrought by nature, not by vile offense, I’ll utter what my sorrow gives me leave. In Syracusa was I born, and wed Unto a woman, happy but for me, And by me, had not our hap been bad: With her I liv’d in joy; our wealth increas’d By prosperous voyages I often made To Epidamium, till my factor’s death, And [the] great care of goods at randon left, Drew me from kind embracements of my spouse; From whom my absence was not six months old Before herself (almost at fainting under The pleasing punishment that women bear) Had made provision for her following me, And soon, and safe, arrived where I was. There had she not been long but she became A joyful mother of two goodly sons: And, which was strange, the one so like the other As could not be distinguish’d but by names. That very hour, and in the self-same inn, A mean woman was delivered Of such a burthen male, twins both alike. Those, for their parents were exceeding poor, I bought, and brought up to attend my sons. My wife, not meanly proud of two such boys, Made daily motions for our home return: Unwilling I agreed. Alas! too soon We came aboard. A league from Epidamium had we sail’d Before the always-wind-obeying deep Gave any tragic instance of our harm: But longer did we not retain much hope; For what obscured light the heavens did grant Did but convey unto our fearful minds A doubtful warrant of immediate death, Which though myself would gladly have embrac’d, Yet the incessant weepings of my wife, Weeping before for what she saw must come, And piteous plainings of the pretty babes, That mourn’d for fashion, ignorant what to fear, Forc’d me to seek delays for them and me. And this it was (for other means was none): The sailors sought for safety by our boat, And left the ship, then sinking-ripe, to us. My wife, more careful for the latter-born, Had fast’ned him unto a small spare mast, Such as sea-faring men provide for storms; To him one of the other twins was bound, Whilst I had been like heedful of the other. The children thus dispos’d, my wife and I, Fixing our eyes on whom our care was fix’d, Fast’ned ourselves at either end the mast, And floating straight, obedient to the stream, Was carried towards Corinth, as we thought. At length the sun, gazing upon the earth, Dispers’d those vapors that offended us, And by the benefit of his wished light The seas wax’d calm, and we discovered Two ships from far, making amain to us, Of Corinth that, of Epidaurus this. But ere they came—O, let me say no more! Gather the sequel by that went before. Duke. Nay, forward, old man, do not break off so, For we may pity, though not pardon thee. Ege. O, had the gods done so, I had not now Worthily term’d them merciless to us! For ere the ships could meet by twice five leagues, We were encount’red by a mighty rock, Which being violently borne [upon], Our helpful ship was splitted in the midst;
December 31, 2023
🎭📖 "The Riverside Shakespeare": Because nothing says "light reading" like a 2057-page textbook that could double as a medieval weapon.
Pros:
📚 A gift from your 9th-grade English teacher – move over, shiny apples, this is the real teacher's pet trophy.
🏋️ Excellent weight; who needs dumbbells when you can flex those literary muscles with a book fit for an intellectual bodybuilder?
🎭 Shakespeare, front to back – you've conquered the Bard's entire universe. Now, where's your crown?
Cons:
😵 The sheer weight is a potential hazard; you might accidentally end up in a Shakespeare-induced workout injury.
⏳ It has more footnotes than a politician's apology — deciphering Shakespearean English is a workout in itself.
🎓 Being someone's college textbook is both an honor and a subtle reminder that you willingly signed up for this literary marathon.
In conclusion, "The Riverside Shakespeare" is not just a book; it's a lifestyle. If you're into heavy lifting, linguistic acrobatics, and the timeless tales of Shakespeare, this textbook is your ultimate workout buddy. Literary prowess: Level Shakespearean. 💪📜
Pros:
📚 A gift from your 9th-grade English teacher – move over, shiny apples, this is the real teacher's pet trophy.
🏋️ Excellent weight; who needs dumbbells when you can flex those literary muscles with a book fit for an intellectual bodybuilder?
🎭 Shakespeare, front to back – you've conquered the Bard's entire universe. Now, where's your crown?
Cons:
😵 The sheer weight is a potential hazard; you might accidentally end up in a Shakespeare-induced workout injury.
⏳ It has more footnotes than a politician's apology — deciphering Shakespearean English is a workout in itself.
🎓 Being someone's college textbook is both an honor and a subtle reminder that you willingly signed up for this literary marathon.
In conclusion, "The Riverside Shakespeare" is not just a book; it's a lifestyle. If you're into heavy lifting, linguistic acrobatics, and the timeless tales of Shakespeare, this textbook is your ultimate workout buddy. Literary prowess: Level Shakespearean. 💪📜
August 24, 2017
I love Shakespeare. I loved this version of his work as well. I have always admired his ability to write his sonnets in iambic pentameter. I know that, these days, many writers of poetry like to write "train of thought" style, but I can't help but feel that there is a true art and mastery in giving oneself guidelines to work within and still ending up with something spectacular. Then there is also the beauty of the words on the page. I also love the hidden digs, puns, plays on words, etc., one can find within his plays. He was truly a master.
Read
September 4, 2024Love this comprehensive compilation and own it. This volume was required for my college Shakespeare class many years ago. My brother borrowed it and, due to the fact that we grew up attending many EXCELLENT Niagara University theatre productions of Shakespeare, fell in love with Shakespeare - and he held on to my Riverside! He still has it and I didn't have the heart to make him give it back. So I had to search the internet 25 years later to get my own copy of this great compilation! Almost didn't get one, as it is now out of print. I do not understand how a compilation this good, this comprehensive, from a major publisher, was let out of print.
September 22, 2017
Did this course with Mr. Blistein at Brown in the mid 1970's. We covered it all, although I think I slept through a few of the histories...
September 18, 2020
A must read in you have any interest in seriously studying Literature, drama or comedy.
Read
February 11, 2022Read "Twelfth Night" specifically. Not quite light bedtime reading but funny regardless.
December 26, 2022
Hellova tome, but worth having if you ever need to study or casually reference the works of William Shakespeare
September 3, 2025
Heaviest book I own
February 25, 2026
Love it. This book is so heavy if you have it in your passenger car seat, it will think it is someone's ass. Please be a good driver and buckle in Shakespeare.
June 3, 2009
The plays I have read thus far:
Histories:
Richard II 3 1/2 stars My first Shakespeare play. I liked it, but it was hard to read.
1 Henry IV 5 Stars One of my favorite Shakespeare plays. Right mix of poetry and prose, and I love the men in it!
Tragedies:
Antony and Cleopatra 4 stars. Another of my favorites. The relationships that the reader establishes with characters in this play are intense. I also liked that the "biggest affair in all of literature" was not overly pornographic.
King Lear 3 1/2 stars It was interesting, intriguing, etc. But gross and disturbing in too many parts.
Romeo and Juliet 4 stars. Everyone knows this is a great play. I must say that Romeo sickens me, though. Whenever I read his lover lines, I get a distinct curl in my lip.
Comedies:
Midsummer's Night Dream 3 1/2 stars. Cute, fun, light. I felt like I had wasted my time after reading it, though. Perhaps my feelings of disgust was because I had to read it in 4 hours before class.
Measure for Measure 3 stars. Dark, disturbing, and troublesome. I felt very dark after reading this play.
The Tempest 5 stars. Fun, intriguing, good morals, magical. I would love to see this one performed. Prospero is my hero!
Poems:
Venus and Adonis 4 stars for writing, 1 star for my preference. Umm...pornographic... Yeah, to paraphrase Kate from NCIS, I am going to hell just for reading this poem.
Some of the Sonnets 4 stars for writing, 3 stars my preference. Although I love many romance novels, I do not care for desperation.
Histories:
Richard II 3 1/2 stars My first Shakespeare play. I liked it, but it was hard to read.
1 Henry IV 5 Stars One of my favorite Shakespeare plays. Right mix of poetry and prose, and I love the men in it!
Tragedies:
Antony and Cleopatra 4 stars. Another of my favorites. The relationships that the reader establishes with characters in this play are intense. I also liked that the "biggest affair in all of literature" was not overly pornographic.
King Lear 3 1/2 stars It was interesting, intriguing, etc. But gross and disturbing in too many parts.
Romeo and Juliet 4 stars. Everyone knows this is a great play. I must say that Romeo sickens me, though. Whenever I read his lover lines, I get a distinct curl in my lip.
Comedies:
Midsummer's Night Dream 3 1/2 stars. Cute, fun, light. I felt like I had wasted my time after reading it, though. Perhaps my feelings of disgust was because I had to read it in 4 hours before class.
Measure for Measure 3 stars. Dark, disturbing, and troublesome. I felt very dark after reading this play.
The Tempest 5 stars. Fun, intriguing, good morals, magical. I would love to see this one performed. Prospero is my hero!
Poems:
Venus and Adonis 4 stars for writing, 1 star for my preference. Umm...pornographic... Yeah, to paraphrase Kate from NCIS, I am going to hell just for reading this poem.
Some of the Sonnets 4 stars for writing, 3 stars my preference. Although I love many romance novels, I do not care for desperation.
Currently Reading
July 24, 2008Half-price book store for my favorite edition of S's plays: 4 bucks. Yeah. Is it sad that this is what made my week?
The Riverside's certainly the clearest-printed I've run across, of the dozen or so well-known versions out there - and though I wish there were a few more annotations per page as far as the more obscure Elizabethan language goes, I still think this one "feels" best, with just the right amount of spacing between lines, so that it's discernible enough to be read without a magnifying glass but just bunched together enough (on the very nice extra-wide pages) so that one can burrow down into the solilioquys without too much of that annoying page-turning business.
And of course, this will remain on my "currently-reading" list for some time to come, as I don't think I've gone a week during the last year, without at least one random act. Of the plays, that is. Now about to embark on Coriolanus, as I hear from the experts that it's the most "timely" one... well, we shall see....
The Riverside's certainly the clearest-printed I've run across, of the dozen or so well-known versions out there - and though I wish there were a few more annotations per page as far as the more obscure Elizabethan language goes, I still think this one "feels" best, with just the right amount of spacing between lines, so that it's discernible enough to be read without a magnifying glass but just bunched together enough (on the very nice extra-wide pages) so that one can burrow down into the solilioquys without too much of that annoying page-turning business.
And of course, this will remain on my "currently-reading" list for some time to come, as I don't think I've gone a week during the last year, without at least one random act. Of the plays, that is. Now about to embark on Coriolanus, as I hear from the experts that it's the most "timely" one... well, we shall see....
February 18, 2012
Summer 2021. Reading introductory materials. The "Linguistic Medium" section is wonderful, but otherwise this volume shows less favorably than I remembered, especially compared to the old PELICAN anthology:
* The MEASURE FOR MEASURE introduction is sophisticated foolishness.
* The PERICLES introduction is better: factual when it can be, hesitant to make unwarranted inferences, honest about the play's weaknesses but critical in teasing out unexpectedly powerful lines.
* Glad I didn't abandon this volume: the CYMBELINE introduction is informative and measured, describing both sources and the formal/generic context, offering critical excerpts from major writers (Hazlitt, Shaw), and profitably shifting attention from dramatic structure to poetic matters.
* Gladder still: the WINTER'S TALE introduction is judicious enough to undo all the folly of its MEASURE FOR MEASURE.
Fall 2003. Undergraduate textbook. Stellar.
* The MEASURE FOR MEASURE introduction is sophisticated foolishness.
* The PERICLES introduction is better: factual when it can be, hesitant to make unwarranted inferences, honest about the play's weaknesses but critical in teasing out unexpectedly powerful lines.
* Glad I didn't abandon this volume: the CYMBELINE introduction is informative and measured, describing both sources and the formal/generic context, offering critical excerpts from major writers (Hazlitt, Shaw), and profitably shifting attention from dramatic structure to poetic matters.
* Gladder still: the WINTER'S TALE introduction is judicious enough to undo all the folly of its MEASURE FOR MEASURE.
Fall 2003. Undergraduate textbook. Stellar.
September 13, 2007
Not trying to show off here, but I have literally read everything that Shakespeare wrote because a) I'm an English teacher, b) I'm a theatre dork, and c)I was like a total stalker for the stuff in college and read it for fun because I'm just that lame. Of course I like some of it better than others, but there's a reason the man is so famous. Favorite comedies: Midsummer Night's Dream, Taming of the Shrew, The Tempest, Twelfth Night, Merchant of Venice (in that order). Favorite tragedies: Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello. Favorite histories: Richard III, Henry IV. Favorite sonnets: too hard to choose. 18 is a classic.
Want to Read
November 6, 2007Read thus far:
The Taming of the Shrew
As You Like It
Twelfth Night
Measure for Measure
Romeo and Juliet
Julius Ceasar
Hamlet
Othello
Macbeth
The Tempest
King Lear
Various sonnets
To read:
The Comedy of Errors
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Love's Labor's Lost
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Much Ado About Nothing (seen)
Troilus and Cressida
All's Well That Ends Well
Henry VI: 1, 2, 3
Richard III (seen)
King John
Richard II
Henry IV: 1, 2
Henry V
Henry VIII
Titus Andronicus
Antony and Cleopatra (seen)
Coriolanus
Timon of Athens
Pericles
Cymbeline
The Winter's Tale
Two Noble Kinsmen
Venus and Adonis
Rape of Lucrece
the other Sonnets
The Taming of the Shrew
As You Like It
Twelfth Night
Measure for Measure
Romeo and Juliet
Julius Ceasar
Hamlet
Othello
Macbeth
The Tempest
King Lear
Various sonnets
To read:
The Comedy of Errors
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Love's Labor's Lost
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Much Ado About Nothing (seen)
Troilus and Cressida
All's Well That Ends Well
Henry VI: 1, 2, 3
Richard III (seen)
King John
Richard II
Henry IV: 1, 2
Henry V
Henry VIII
Titus Andronicus
Antony and Cleopatra (seen)
Coriolanus
Timon of Athens
Pericles
Cymbeline
The Winter's Tale
Two Noble Kinsmen
Venus and Adonis
Rape of Lucrece
the other Sonnets
May 22, 2008
It's all here in one big beautiful book. I love Shakespeare and like to pick this up and read from it. It's also nice to have the complete works in one place--easy to look things up if you are a stickler for Shakespeare "trivia" or want to know if something is being done accurately. I got this for an undergrad class and am so happy to have it (although I know mine is an earlier edition as this was published in 1997 and the class would have been earlier than that). Finally got rid of all my little individual Shakespeare books over the years. One downside, this is not portable--big and clunky!
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