Shakespeare
Times
Tuesday 1 pm - 2 pm, Thursday 1 pm - 3 pm
Instructor
M. Teramura
E-mail: m.teramura@utoronto.ca
Brief Description of Course
This course surveys a wide range of Shakespeare’s dramatic works. We will begin by considering the narrative and stylistic sources of Shakespeare’s writing (classical antiquity, national history, medieval drama, vernacular poetry) and continue by tracking his experiments with dramatic form and genre throughout his career. We will approach the plays both as literary texts and as embodied theatrical events, giving special attention to Shakespeare’s poetic language, dramaturgy, and complex treatments of power, politics, community, family, nation, race, gender, and sexuality. Our reading of Shakespeare’s plays will be interspersed with performances, contemporary adaptations, and a selection of recent scholarship representing a range of critical approaches.
Required Reading(s)
Our course textbook will be The Norton Shakespeare: Third Edition (New York: Norton, 2016), which is available in both digital and hard-copy formats; however, free online substitutes for all of the Shakespearean texts will be made available. We will also read one or two contemporary adaptations and a selection of critical essays.
First Three Authors/Texts
TBA
Method of Evaluation
TBA