Ebook Tyrant Shakespeare on Politics Stephen Greenblatt Books
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"Brilliant, beautifully organized, exceedingly readable."―Philip Roth
World-renowned Shakespeare scholar Stephen Greenblatt explores the playwright’s insight into bad (and often mad) rulers.
Examining the psyche―and psychoses―of the likes of Richard III, Macbeth, Lear, and Coriolanus, Greenblatt illuminates the ways in which William Shakespeare delved into the lust for absolute power and the disasters visited upon the societies over which these characters rule. Tyrant shows that Shakespeare’s work remains vitally relevant today, not least in its probing of the unquenchable, narcissistic appetites of demagogues and the self-destructive willingness of collaborators who indulge them.
Ebook Tyrant Shakespeare on Politics Stephen Greenblatt Books
"Tyrant is an examination of Shakespeare's exploration of government, society, and tyrannical figures throughout his plays. Chapters are sorted by topic (the influence of party politics on the rise of tyrants, the abuse for populism for political gain, the types and importance of enablers, the influence of personality and mental illness on tyrannical behavior, etcetera) and tend to examine one or two plays/characters at a time, complete with helpful quotations citing act, scene, and line. I only vaguely remember reading Hamlet and Macbeth in highschool, and was pleasantly surprised with how much I learned about the plays themselves over the course of Tyrant. I was also thankful that Greenblatt included so much information regarding the historical context of elizabethan England; it added a lot to my appreciation of the playwright's angled exploration of issues of power, something that weighed on everyone's mind, though it was something that could not be openly spoken of for fear of treason accusations. When a work is removed from its historical context, a vital part necessary for understanding the text is lost. The political landscape of near omnipotent kings and queens and the shifting tides of power between royal houses is an extremely important part of Shakespeare's plays that is only seen in its historical context, and that is something that most people do not stop to consider.
Some other reviews complain that Tyrant is a thinly veiled criticism of Trump and the Trump administration, but that is not because Greenblatt wrote a criticism of Trump and called an examination of Shakespeare. It is because Greenblatt wrote about Shakespeare's criticism of tyrants. If you don't think Trump is a budding tyrant but still see the parallels to tyrannical characters, perhaps you should think about that connection more.
All in all, Tyrant is a very well written work on Shakespeare's characters, plays, and the playwright's exploration of political power and I would recommend it."
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Tyrant Shakespeare on Politics Stephen Greenblatt Books Reviews :
Tyrant Shakespeare on Politics Stephen Greenblatt Books Reviews
- Just so you know, Tyrant Shakespeare on Power is the same book as Tyrant Shakespeare on Politics. The one with Power in the title is published in the UK (and ships from the UK) and the one with Politics in the title is published by W.W. Norton in the USA. They have different ISBN numbers. But the ONLY difference in the two is the one word in the title of the book. does not make it clear that the two are the same book, and you'd be forgiven if you ordered both thinking you'd be getting two different books. The content is excellent, which is the same in both, though.
- Excellent read. For your information, also sells the same book but with a different ISBN number and different title. The only difference is one word in the title Tyrant Shakespeare on POWER is published in the UK and ships from there. Tyrant Shakespeare on POLITICS is published by W.W. Norton in the States. Both are identical except for the one word in the title. If you order both books thinking they are different, you will receive, for all purposes, the same book.
- Tyrant is an examination of Shakespeare's exploration of government, society, and tyrannical figures throughout his plays. Chapters are sorted by topic (the influence of party politics on the rise of tyrants, the abuse for populism for political gain, the types and importance of enablers, the influence of personality and mental illness on tyrannical behavior, etcetera) and tend to examine one or two plays/characters at a time, complete with helpful quotations citing act, scene, and line. I only vaguely remember reading Hamlet and Macbeth in highschool, and was pleasantly surprised with how much I learned about the plays themselves over the course of Tyrant. I was also thankful that Greenblatt included so much information regarding the historical context of elizabethan England; it added a lot to my appreciation of the playwright's angled exploration of issues of power, something that weighed on everyone's mind, though it was something that could not be openly spoken of for fear of treason accusations. When a work is removed from its historical context, a vital part necessary for understanding the text is lost. The political landscape of near omnipotent kings and queens and the shifting tides of power between royal houses is an extremely important part of Shakespeare's plays that is only seen in its historical context, and that is something that most people do not stop to consider.
Some other reviews complain that Tyrant is a thinly veiled criticism of Trump and the Trump administration, but that is not because Greenblatt wrote a criticism of Trump and called an examination of Shakespeare. It is because Greenblatt wrote about Shakespeare's criticism of tyrants. If you don't think Trump is a budding tyrant but still see the parallels to tyrannical characters, perhaps you should think about that connection more.
All in all, Tyrant is a very well written work on Shakespeare's characters, plays, and the playwright's exploration of political power and I would recommend it. - Spot on in so many ways. An excellent Shakespeare read as well, and perhaps more importantly, a stunning look at the US today, its "leader" on the way to becoming its "tyrant" and, more subtly, an examination of the underpinnings of the society that not only tolerates it, but seems to delight in it. "It" being the unraveling of what was once the world's supreme democracy.
A good if chilling look at how deeply Shakespeare could look into the soul of ANY country and its people. - Excellent blending of Shakespeare by a scholar who has the skill to weave Shakespear's plays exploring
the theme of tyrants that is applicable to so many situations today in the world and is applicable to trends
in the United States. A quick and thoughtful read, - Rarely have I enjoyed a piece of political commentary as much as I did Stephen Greenblatt’s Tyrant Shakespeare on Politics.
In William Shakespeare’s day, it wasn’t safe to disagree with power. Unlike today’s America, with the protections of the First Amendment, his world was governed by the near-absolute power of the monarch, the aging Queen Elizabeth. And speaking ill of the queen led to swift and often deadly punishment. Instead, the Bard through his plays would examine the ways and means of tyranny, delving into the past and into foreign lands to create his voices that could say what could not be said frankly (“Greenblatt is the Harvard Shakespeare expert who co-founded new historicism, the lit-crit practice that seeks to place works in their historical context.â€)
In the vein of speaking obliquely, this is Greenblatt’s commentary on Donald Trump, though the president is not named in its pages. Instead, the Tyrant focuses on several of the same that appear in Shakespeare's plays, examining them in their foibles for the causes and results of their tyranny.  The book is rooted in an article that Greenblatt wrote for the New York Times in 2016. At a friend’s encouragement, he expanded it to a full book. He focuses his examination on Macbeth, Richard III, Lear, Coriolanus and Leontes from A Winter’s Tale (notably leaving out Claudius, perhaps because he is more well-known than most).
While it is ostensibly a commentary on politics, it does not read like just another piece of political punditry or tribal drivel. On the contrary, Greenblatt makes Shakespeare accessible and, well, interesting, as well as providing principles that can be read and interpreted to apply to almost any power selfish politicians or businessman. Reading it is as enjoyable as watching Shakespeare performed well. As Constance Grady puts it in her review of the book, “There is a certain pleasure to watching Shakespeare’s tyrants work, to watching Richard III brazenly woo Lady Anne over the body of a man he killed or listening to Macbeth’s mournful, poetic speeches.â€
Perhaps the biggest observation for me, and where the book most departs from other books that more directly take on Trump, is that Tyrant leaves the reader to make his own observations and conclusions. Here is what a tyrant does; is this what we are living through?
