The Cambridge Companion to Tennessee Williams

by Matthew C. Roudané (Editor)

This is a collection of thirteen original essays from a team of leading Williams scholars. This wide-ranging volume covers Williams' works, from the early apprenticeship years through to his last play before his death in 1983. In addition to essays on the major plays, the contributors also consider selected minor plays, short stories, poems, and biographical concerns. The Cambridge Companion to Tennessee Williams also features a bibliographic essay surveying the major critical statements on Williams.

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, Essays

304 pages, Hardcover

First published December 11, 1997

About the author

Matthew Charles Roudané (1953- ) is Regents’ Professor of English at the Georgia State University. An author of a number of works on American theatre and dramatists, he was the Editor of the South Atlantic Review (1994-2013) and is Advisory Series Editor for Methuen Drama (London). He is a founding member of the Edward Albee Society.

Reviews

[Samir Rawas Sarayji · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great and insightful collection of academic essays covering the major plays of Williams, and a few discussing some of the criticism regarding his work. There are also biographical elements and a bibliography. I mostly enjoyed the couple of essays that elaborate on how he transformed some of his short stories into dramas, since I'm reading his entire short story collection. But like any collection of essays, some academics are not as eloquent as others in their writing or explanations, and there were two essays here that suffered the lack of skill that their peers have.
This is a great companion if you are planning to read some of his major plays and are looking for deeper insight. It's especially useful if you want to read Camino Real, as I don't think I'd have stuck with reading it without the essay here.

[adri 🐇 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you bigsby