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Title: Anthony and Cleopatra (Oxford World's Classics) by William Shakespeare, Michael Neill ISBN: 0-19-283425-8 Publisher: Oxford Press Pub. Date: August, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.8 (20 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A Discerningly-edited Edition
Comment: This is a review of a specific edition of Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra" - namely the New Cambridge edition of 1990, edited by David Bevington.
The book is a good size, and the print is easy to read. There are about 70 pages of front matter in this edition, and, on each page of the play, copious notes. Following the play's text, there is a discussion of general editorial choices and approaches, supplementing the specifics covered in notes.
The front matter dutifully took up the sources of the play, its dating, structure, stage history, and a number of other topics. I found it occasionally a bit heavy going, as, in many sections, any straightforward statement seemed to be buried under a pile of citations from various critics. This was by no means always the case, and in such things as stage history I found the discussion brisk but entertaining.
The text was thoroughly annotated - too thoroughly for my taste. It did not get tedious, as in the Arden editions, but still, too many notes were devoted to specific editorial decisions, and too many supersized with references to other plays. I guess there is some interest in this, and one does not have to read the notes one does not want to, but it does tend to slow one down. This is good though, if one wants to delve. Moreover, virtually every word or passage that might cause difficulty is discussed and interpreted, which is certainly what one wants.
In summary, I would say this edition is well worth having: it gives one most of the information one could conceivably need, does some interpretation, and explains the text helpfully. It does not include a transcription of Shakespeare's main sources (although this is done piecemeal in the notes), nor a plot and scene summary. These would have been nice, but are not necessary.
Rating: 3
Summary: Mediocre work from The Bard
Comment: Of Shakespeare's plays, this seems to be one that delves very little into the motivations of characters. The three main characters (Caesar, Antony, and Cleopatra) seemingly just "ask" around about the others rather than taking any action. Antony's anger against Caesar, when he finally does take action and go against him in war, does not seem that justified because we aren't given much in the way of grounds for his anger.
Maybe my opinion is a little biased because I didn't prefer the plot of this play over the likes of such plays as "A Midsummer Night's Dream", "Hamlet", or "King Lear", but I just felt as though Antony was more an unlikable individual than a tragic hero. He cheats on two wives, and, as a reader, it is hard to ever feel sorry for him. Cleopatra's character is one-dimensional also; she seems to just lay around and ponder what life is about and ask around about Antony to her many servants.
Of all the characters, I think that Enobarbus (also called Domitius) was the most compelling, because he narrates to the audience (via asides and discussions with minor characters) insight into the state of Antony's downfall. Through him much of the psychology of Antony is divulged. An instance of this is when he sucessfully predicts that Antony will not keep his faithfullness to his second wife.
Although I think this is lesser of the Shakespeare works, I certainly felt it is still a 3 simply because Shakespeare has a way of painting a picture elloquently of how society works. This play illustrates the underlying themes of politics, revenge and adultery, all issues that prevade our world today. So, in many respects, although this was written in the 1500s, it is still a piece of literature that contains modern problems.
Rating: 2
Summary: Not a problem with they play, but a problem with the edition
Comment: I believe this is a poorly rendered version of Antony and Cleopatra. The organization of the notes made it difficult to read. Instead of putting the archaic meanings of words at the bottom as footnotes, it would have been much more helpful to place them in the margins. The constant going back-and-forth between footnotes and the text made my reading of this play less enjoyable.
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Title: Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare ISBN: 0671722719 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 August, 1992 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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Title: The TEMPEST by William Shakespeare ISBN: 0671722905 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 May, 1994 List Price(USD): $3.99 |
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Title: Othello by William Shakespeare ISBN: 0671722816 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 July, 1993 List Price(USD): $3.99 |
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Title: King Lear by William Shakespeare ISBN: 0671722727 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 May, 1993 List Price(USD): $3.99 |
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Title: HENRY IV PART 1 by William Shakespeare ISBN: 0671722638 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 March, 1994 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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