A Dictionary of Shakespeare's Sexual Puns and Their Significance

by Frankie Rubinstein

This dictionary examines previously unnoted puns on the erotic attitudes and practices of the heterosexual and homosexual, the sexual deviant, and the impotent. It includes scatological puns in their usually bawdy contexts and ethnic puns, as sexually snide then as now. It stresses the need to read and hear Shakespeare word by word, giving full weight to each one and asking why the line is so and not otherwise. It heightens our awareness of Shakespeare's words, their Elizabethan connotations and their contemporary validity. For today's non-specialist audiences, the sexual puns are invitations to the fun of Shakespeare.

357 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Ietrio]

Mildly amusing. Some people seem to have too much time on their hands, like Frankie Rubinstein.