Antigone (Print copy) by
Oedipus, the former ruler of Thebes, has died. Now, when his young daughter Antigone defies her uncle, Kreon, the new ruler, because he has prohibited the burial of her dead brother, she and he enact a primal conflict between young and old, woman and man, individual and ruler, family andstate, courageous and self-sacrificing reverence for the gods of the earth and perhaps self-serving allegiance to the gods of the sky. Echoing through western culture for more than two millennia, Sophocles' Antigone has been a touchstone of thinking about human conflict and human tragedy, the role of the divine in human life, and the degree to which men and women are the creators of their own destiny. This excitingtranslation of the play is extremely faithful to the Greek, eminently playable, and poetically powerful. For readers, actors, students, teachers, and theatrical directors, this affordable paperback edition of one of the greatest plays in the history of the western world provides the best combination of contemporary, powerful language, along with superb background and notes on meaning,interpretation, and ancient beliefs, attitudes, and contexts. "Sophocles' text is inexhaustibly actual. It is also, at many points, challenging and remote from us. The Gibbons-Segal translation, with its rich annotations, conveys both the difficulties and the formidable immediacy. The choral odes, so vital to Sophocles' purpose, have never been rendered withfiner energy and insight. Across more than two thousand years, a great dark music sounds for us." --George Steiner, Churchill College, Cambridge "Produces a language that is easy to read and easy to speak.... Enthusiastically recommended."--Library Journal [Starred Review]
Macbeth (Print Copy) by
Macbeth is one of Shakespeare's most performed and studied tragedies. This major new Arden edition offers students detailed on-page commentary notes highlighting meaning and theatrical ideas and themes, as well as an illustrated, lengthy introduction setting the play in its historical, theatrical and critical context and outlining the recent debates about Middleton's possible co-authorship of some scenes. A comprehensive and informative edition ideal for students and teachers seeking to explore the play in depth, whether in the classroom or on the stage.
A Doll's House Rev. edn. (Print Copy) by
The slamming of the front door at the end of A Doll's House shatters the romantic masquerade of the Helmers' marriage. In their stultifying and infantilised relationship, Nora and Torvald have deceived themselves and each other both consciously and subconsciously, until Nora acknowledges the need for individual freedom. A revised student edition of classic set text: A Doll's House (1879), is a masterpiece of theatrical craft which, for the first time portrayed the tragic hypocrisy of Victorian middle class marriage on stage. The play ushered in a new social era and "exploded like a bomb into contemporary life". The Student Edition contains these exclusive features: #65533; A chronology of the playwright's life and work #65533; An introduction giving the background of the play #65533; Commentary on themes, characters. language and style #65533; Notes on individual words and phrases in the text #65533; Questions for further study #65533; Bibliography for further reading.
The glass menagerie (Print Copy) by 
Sophocles - Antigone by
Antigone is Sophocles' masterpiece, a seminal influence on a wide range of theatrical, literary, and intellectual traditions. This volume sets the play in the contexts of its mythical background, its performance, its relation to contemporary culture and thought, and its rich reception history. But its main aim is to encourage first-hand engagement with the complexities of interpretation that make the play so enduringly thought-provoking and rewarding. Though Creon's actions prove disastrous and Antigone's are vindicated, the Antigone is no simple study in the excesses of tyranny or the virtues of heroic resistance, but a more nuanced exploration of conflicting views of right and wrong and of the conditions that constrain human beings' efforts to control their destinies and secure their happiness. The book's chapters consider the extent of the original audience's acquaintance with earlier versions of the legends of Antigone's family, the structure of the plot as it unfolds in theatrical performance, the presentation of the characters and the motivations that drive them, the major political, social, and ethical themes that the play raises, and the resonance of those themes in the ways that the play has been interpreted, adapted, performed, and appropriated in later periods.
Oxford Literature Companions : Macbeth by 
Antigone by
Sophocles' Antigone is probably the most widely read and performed of all Greek tragedies, and its themes and conflicts resonate powerfully into the modern era. In this new edition, Mark Griffith combines sophisticated literary and cultural interpretation with close attention to language, metre, and issues of performance, and thus makes the play more fully available to readers of Greek than ever before. The introduction requires no knowledge of Greek and will interest all students of drama and literature.
Tennessee Williams : a casebook by
Tennessee Williams' plays are performed around the world, and are staples of the standard American repertory. His famous portrayals of women engage feminist critics, and as America's leading gay playwright from the repressive postwar period, through Stonewall, to the growth of gay liberation, he represents an important and controversial figure for queer theorists. Gross and his contributors have included all of his plays, a chronology, introduction and bibliography.
Sophocles' Antigone : a study guide. (Print copy) by
Sophocles' Antigone: A Study Guide Antigone is a play that primarily concerns itself with the polis; the city. How should those in power act? Is it right to question their authority? What steps should be taken against those that challenge the established authority of the city?Sophocles produced the Antigone around the year 443/2BC. The years immediately before and after were a period of tremendous activity and importance for the development of Athens and her empire and also significant for the author of the play himself, as he was closely involved with several of these events.This study guide has been written to complement the learning experience for those who are studying, or are interested in, Ancient Greek Civilisation. In particular, this study guide will assist you in understanding and examining the themes and content of Antigone, a play of enduring fame written by Sophocles. This study guide is intended to complement the learning experience for those who undertake an AS or full A Level qualification in Classical Civilisation. This qualification is offered by both AQA and OCR examination boards and this resource is primarily designed to assist those who are studying for this qualification. However this study guide will also help to laying a sound foundation for those who go on to study the Ancient World at a higher (degree) level as well as appeal to those who are interested in learning more about the ancient world generally and in particular Greek Tragedy.This study guide is designed to be used as a complementary study aide for learners to attain a qualification in AQA or OCR A level qualifications of Classical Civilization.
An Introduction to Greek Tragedy (Print copy) by
This book provides an accessible introduction for students and anyone interested in increasing their enjoyment of Greek tragic plays. Whether readers are studying Greek culture, performing a Greek tragedy, or simply interested in reading a Greek play, this book will help them to understand and enjoy this challenging and rewarding genre. An Introduction to Greek Tragedy provides background information, helps readers appreciate, enjoy and engage with the plays themselves, and gives them an idea of the important questions in current scholarship on tragedy. Ruth Scodel seeks to dispel misleading assumptions about tragedy, stressing how open the plays are to different interpretations and reactions. In addition to general background, the book also includes chapters on specific plays, both the most familiar titles and some lesser-known plays - Persians, Helen and Orestes - in order to convey the variety that the tragedies offer readers.
Tennessee Williams and the Theatre of Excess : the strange, the crazed, the queer. (Print copy) by
The plays of Tennessee Williams' post-1961 period have often been misunderstood and dismissed. In light of Williams' centennial in 2011, which was marked internationally by productions and world premieres of his late plays, Annette J. Saddik's new reading of these works illuminates them in the context of what she terms a 'theatre of excess', which seeks liberation through exaggeration, chaos, ambiguity, and laughter. Saddik explains why they are now gaining increasing acclaim, and analyzes recent productions that successfully captured elements central to Williams' late aesthetic, particularly a delicate balance of laughter and horror with a self-consciously ironic acting style. Grounding the plays through the work of Bakhtin, Artaud, and Kristeva, as well as through the carnivalesque, the grotesque, and psychoanalytic, feminist, and queer theory, Saddik demonstrates how Williams engaged the freedom of exaggeration and excess in celebration of what he called 'the strange, the crazed, the queer'.
Studying Plays. 4th edn. (Print copy) by
Now in its 4th edition, this is an accessible and comprehensive introduction to the critical study of drama. Using familiar examples of classic and contemporary works such as Shakespeare's King Lear, Ibsen's A Doll's House and Timberlake Wertenbaker's Our Country's Good, the book explores the essential elements of play texts, from character, dialogue and plot to theatrical space. With more in depth guidance on how to study plays in and as performance, both live and in recordings available online, the 4th edition of Studying Plays now includes- new examples throughout the book drawn from a range of 21st-century plays by established and emergent writers for diverse theatres and companies new explorations of how plays structure and engage audience response a complete new section on the analysis of theatre of witness and testimony; monodrama; and postdramatic texts.
A Student Handbook to the Plays of Tennessee Williams (Print copy) by
A Student Handbook to the Plays of Tennessee Williams provides the essential guide to Williams' most studied and revived dramas. Authored by a team of leading scholars, it offers students a clear analysis and detailed commentary on four of Williams' plays- The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Sweet Bird of Youth. A consistent framework of analysis ensures that whether readers are wanting a summary of the play, a commentary on the themes or characters, or a discussion of the work in performance, they can readily find what they need to develop their understanding and aid their appreciation of Williams' artistry. A chronology of the writer's life and work helps to situate all of his works in context and the introduction reinforces this by providing a clear overview of Williams' writing, its recurrent themes and concerns and how these are intertwined with his life and times. For each play the author provides a summary of the plot, followed by commentary on- - The context - Themes - Characters - Structure and language - The play in production (both on stage and screen adaptations) Questions for study, and notes on words and phrases in the text are also supplied to aid the reader. The wealth of authoritative and clear commentary on each play, together with further questions that encourage comparison across Williams' work and related plays by other leading writers, ensures that this is the clearest and fullest guide to Williams' greatest plays.
This link takes you to the Catalogue for books in the West Suffolk College Library
Greek Tragedy (Print Copy) by
In this introduction aimed at the late school and undergraduate reader, Marion Baldock traces the development of Greek tragedy with detailed chapters on each of the three tragic poets - Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. Specific plays and topics are considered, and one chapter comperes the differing treatment of the Electra theme by each dramatist. Illustrations, quotations and an annotated bibliography are included.
Modern American Drama, 1945-2000 (Print Copy) by
In this new edition of the widely-acclaimed Modern American Drama, Christopher Bigsby completes his survey of postwar and contemporary theatre and brings the reader up to 2000. While retaining the key elements of the first edition, including surveys of those major figures who have shaped postwar American drama, such as Eugene O'Neill, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Edward Albee, David Mamet, and Sam Shepard, Bigsby also explores the most recent works and performances: these include plays by established dramatists such as Miller's The Ride down Mount Morgan and Albee's Three Tall Women, as well as works by relatively new playwrights Paula Vogel, Tony Kushner, and Terrence McNally among others. Bigsby also provides a new chapter, 'Beyond Broadway' and offers an analysis of how theatre has formed and influenced the millenial culture of America.
The Cambridge Introduction to Shakespeare's Tragedies (Print Copy) by
Macbeth clutches an imaginary dagger; Hamlet holds up Yorick's skull; Lear enters with Cordelia in his arms. Do these memorable and iconic moments have anything to tell us about the definition of Shakespearean tragedy? Is it in fact helpful to talk about 'Shakespearean tragedy' as a concept, or are there only Shakespearean tragedies? What kind of figure is the tragic hero? Is there always such a figure? What makes some plays more tragic than others? Beginning with a discussion of tragedy before Shakespeare and considering Shakespeare's tragedies chronologically one by one, this 2007 book seeks to investigate such questions in a way that highlights both the distinctiveness and shared concerns of each play within the broad trajectory of Shakespeare's developing exploration of tragic form.
The Cambridge Companion to Ibsen (Print Copy) by
In the history of modern theatre, Ibsen is one of the dominating figures. The sixteen chapters of this 1994 Companion explore his life and work, providing an invaluable reference work for students. In chronological terms they range from an account of Ibsen's earliest pieces, through the years of rich experimentation, to the mature 'Ibsenist' plays that made him famous towards the end of the nineteenth century. Among the thematic topics are discussions of Ibsen's comedy, realism, lyric poetry and feminism. Substantial chapters account for Ibsen's influence on the international stage and his challenge to theatre and film directors and playwrights today. Essential reference materials include a full chronology, list of works and essays on twentieth-century criticism and further reading.
The Tragedies of Sophocles (Print Copy) by
This book provides separate discussions of each of Sophocles' seven plays: Ajax, Women of Trachis, Antigone, Oedipus the King, Electra, Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus. It sets these between an essay that outlines modern approaches to Greek tragedy and a final chapter that spotlights a keymoment in the reception of each work.Focusing on the tragedies' dramatic power and the challenges with which they confront an audience, Morwood refuses to confine them within a supposedly Sophoclean template. They are seven unique works, only alike in the fact that they are all major masterpieces. Focusing on the tragedies' dramaticpower and the challenges with which they confront an audience, Morwood refuses to confine them within a supposedly Sophoclean template.
The Cambridge Companion to Tennessee Williams by
This is a collection of thirteen original essays from a team of leading scholars in the field. In this wide-ranging volume, the contributors cover a healthy sampling of Williams's works, from the early apprenticeship years in the 1930s through to his last play before his death in 1983, Something Cloudy, Something Clear. In addition to essays on such major plays as The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, among others, the contributors also consider selected minor plays, short stories, poems, and biographical concerns. The Companion also features a chapter on selected key productions as well as a bibliographic essay surveying the major critical statements on Williams.
