Twelfth Night: or, What You Will
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
One of Shakespeare's finest comedies, Twelfth Night, was written at the same time as Hamlet and Troilus and Cressida, and while it shares their fascination with sex, death and confused identities, its exuberant comedy and linguistic inventiveness rises above the introspection of these plays. Viola and her twin brother Sebastian are separated in a storm that washes them both up at different points on the shores of Illyria. Believing each other to be dead, both attempt to survive by using their wits. Viola cross-dresses and enters the service of the lovesick Orsino, in love with Olivia, an heiress in mourning for the loss of her brother. Orsino's saucy young page Cesario (Viola) soon falls in love with "his" master, who tells "him", "all is semblative a woman's part". Unfortunately, while Viola falls in love with Orsino, Olivia falls in love with her alter ego, Cesario, while also being pursued at the same time by her pompous servant Malvolio. Olivia's house is also turned upside down by the antics of her drunker uncle, Sir Toby Belch, and the whole crazy situation reaches boiling point when Sebastian reappears.
Despite the madcap plot, Twelfth Night remains one of Shakespeare's most complex and inventive comedies, fascinated with questions of cross-dressing, gender confusion, language and inversion, as well as retaining a darker edge to some of its laughter. --Jerry Brotton
Review
'The combination of careful scholarship emphasising the inspiration and excitement of the theatrical experience, with the freshly edited text, should make this one of the most useful new texts of Twelfth Night.' Theatre Journal
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Twelfth Night is one of the most popular of Shakespeare's comedies: it is frequently revived in the theatre, while the cinema and television have brought it to millions of viewers. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
Twelfth Night is one of the most popular of Shakespeare's comedies: it is frequently revived in the theatre, while the cinema and television have brought it to millions of viewers. Read the first page
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Browse Sample PagesConcordance
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is the edition if you are new to Shakespeare. It presents the play in an easy to understand way with useful notes and commentary. However it is overtly simplistic and lacks the in depth analysis that this great play deserves.
This is one of Shakespeare's most interesting and entertaining comedies. Enjoy.
This is one of Shakespeare's most interesting and entertaining comedies. Enjoy.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
As an A-level student I wasn't particularly looking forward to studying yet another Shakespeare... but this one really is great. Full of so many twists and the love triangle between Viola, Olivia and Orsino, an excellent and not too difficult read, with a happy ending as well
8 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I have always found Shakespeare very difficult. The scenarios are unusual, the humour often completely escapes me and things have changed a great deal since the days of Mr. Shakespeare, both in terms of language and society. 'Twelfth Night' was unlikely to win my affection. Where this book scores is in its dedication to putting this play into a context that we can understand today. It offers definitions of words no longer in the English vocabulary (and believe me, there are plenty!) and the book also gives us background information about Shakespeare; his era, his methods and the fictional world in which he set his plays, Illyria. In spite of all this, though, I am still pretty baffled by this play. Maybe you will feel differently.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Very Reliable
No writing on the inside, the cover was in near perfect shape - only very few scratch marks on the edges. Read more
Published on 11 Sep 2009 by TheWorm
Good, But Not My Favourite
Although Shakespeare is undoubtedly the greatest playwright and a master of the English language, this isn't a play that I particularly enjoyed. Read more
Published on 30 April 2009 by I. M. Knight
wicked!
this is my favourite shakespeare play, i remember reading it in year 9 for sats...i absolutely loved it..i think its amazing! Read more
Published on 25 July 2006 by Miss.S.R.A
Book provides excellent concise and organise notes
Book gives ideal notes for A-level standard as well as GCSE. There is also plenty of space for notes.
Published on 26 Mar 2001
this play is coooooollllll!!!!!
This is our sats play and it is so good, my fav charactor is viola as she is strong willed and determend to help orsino to be able to love again
Published on 18 Jan 2001
It has not stood the test of time.
I am not a great enthusiast for the works of William Shakespeare, regarding his style of writing and sense of humour to be archaic, irrelevant to our lives today and very often... Read more
Published on 18 Nov 2000
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