What do you think?
Rate this book
The Great White Bard: How to Love Shakespeare While Talking About Race
CHOSEN AS ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE TIME, NPR, The New Yorker, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly
As we witness monuments of white Western history fall, many are asking how is Shakespeare still relevant?
Professor Farah Karim-Cooper has dedicated her career to the Bard, which is why she wants to take the playwright down from his pedestal to unveil a Shakespeare for the twenty-first century. If we persist in reading Shakespeare as representative of only one group, as the very pinnacle of the white Western canon, then he will truly be in peril.
Combining piercing analysis of race, gender and otherness in famous plays from Antony and Cleopatra to The Tempest with a radical reappraisal of Elizabethan London, The Great White Bard asks us neither to idealize nor bury Shakespeare but instead to look him in the eye and reckon with the discomforts of his plays, playhouses and society. In inviting new perspectives and interpretations, we may yet prolong and enrich his extraordinary legacy.
As we witness monuments of white Western history fall, many are asking how is Shakespeare still relevant?
Professor Farah Karim-Cooper has dedicated her career to the Bard, which is why she wants to take the playwright down from his pedestal to unveil a Shakespeare for the twenty-first century. If we persist in reading Shakespeare as representative of only one group, as the very pinnacle of the white Western canon, then he will truly be in peril.
Combining piercing analysis of race, gender and otherness in famous plays from Antony and Cleopatra to The Tempest with a radical reappraisal of Elizabethan London, The Great White Bard asks us neither to idealize nor bury Shakespeare but instead to look him in the eye and reckon with the discomforts of his plays, playhouses and society. In inviting new perspectives and interpretations, we may yet prolong and enrich his extraordinary legacy.
336 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 15, 2023
88 people are currently reading
3369 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
January 16, 2024
the best part of this book, in my opinion, is the intro and the first chapter. karim-cooper's overarching point here is, i think, a really good one: that shakespeare doesn't need to be put away entirely, because his work still has the power to inspire and affect, but that if we're going to keep him in our curriculums and lives, we need to interrogate the way his plays deal with race. the first chapter examines the history of shakespeare's legacy and the way he became a key figure in english culture (spoiler: it was not just because his plays were good; it was also nationalism and colonialism!). this review notes that
and i would agree; maybe i'm just a history fan, but i think this book is at its strongest when it's applying historical context and analysis (stuff like the origin of the word "barbaric," or the various meanings of "fair," "foul," and "strange"). moreover, karim-cooper's writing style is lively and easy to read; people who don't spend their time reading classical literature might disagree, but i found it quick reading for nonfiction. the first chapter i would gladly give five stars.
the book overall i'm giving four, because i wish it had gone further. while karim-cooper's analysis is good, it's sometimes near outweighed by summary of the plots of each play (helpful for those not entirely familiar with shakespeare, yeah, but it made the book less focused, imo). more than that, though, i wish the book had challenged shakespeare more. while karim-cooper discusses the racism inherent in many of his finest lines and patterns of imagery, and while she spends time on each of his so-called "race plays," she still cuts shakespeare a lot of slack, often writing that she likes to think his plays were meant to challenge societal bigotry rather than reproduce it. which... i mean, i'd also like to think that, but come on, why are we still searching for a way to make the merchant of venice progressive, actually? one of my favorite articles about shakespeare is madeline sayet's "interrogating the shakespeare system," which also examines shakespeare as a tool of white supremacy, except it's much sharper. i wouldn't say karim-cooper is reverent toward shakespeare, exactly, but sometimes she seems to value his work to the point of apologetics.
then again... i can't entirely blame her. karim-cooper is a professor of shakespeare studies. she works at the globe. of course she likes his stuff, and of course she thinks he's still relevant! (also, like, who am i to judge; i've been riding a shakespeare hyperfixation since my freshman year english class.) and also, honestly? a lot of people are just too fucking racist to imagine questioning shakespeare at all. karim-cooper notes in the first chapter that she constantly gets emails mocking her for trying to make shakespeare "woke," by, uh... doing race-blind or race-conscious casting instead of only casting white people? maybe i think she should have been meaner to the bard, but, like, one glance at the reviews of this very book prove that some people can't handle even that.
the dear friend i buddy-read this with summed it up perfectly, i think: on some level, the book is directed "to an audience of people who are committed to stanning shakespeare and need to be convinced not to be racist (vs someone who is committed to not being racist and needs to be convinced to stan shakespeare)." so not exactly to me. that said, i still think it's a valuable contribution to the shakespearean conversation! i'm glad i read it, i think karim-cooper's writing is very engaging, and i hope this book influences teachers, students, and fans of shakespeare's to do some hard but worthwhile examination of the difficult parts of the bard.
For me the strength of her book is not in her general assertions but in the wealth of minute specific details she has gleaned from her reading and research: early modern references to Moors and Jews, various 16th century depictions of Cleopatra, techniques for preserving heads piked on London Bridge or for lightening or darkening faces on stage, threatened miscegenation in most of the race plays...
and i would agree; maybe i'm just a history fan, but i think this book is at its strongest when it's applying historical context and analysis (stuff like the origin of the word "barbaric," or the various meanings of "fair," "foul," and "strange"). moreover, karim-cooper's writing style is lively and easy to read; people who don't spend their time reading classical literature might disagree, but i found it quick reading for nonfiction. the first chapter i would gladly give five stars.
the book overall i'm giving four, because i wish it had gone further. while karim-cooper's analysis is good, it's sometimes near outweighed by summary of the plots of each play (helpful for those not entirely familiar with shakespeare, yeah, but it made the book less focused, imo). more than that, though, i wish the book had challenged shakespeare more. while karim-cooper discusses the racism inherent in many of his finest lines and patterns of imagery, and while she spends time on each of his so-called "race plays," she still cuts shakespeare a lot of slack, often writing that she likes to think his plays were meant to challenge societal bigotry rather than reproduce it. which... i mean, i'd also like to think that, but come on, why are we still searching for a way to make the merchant of venice progressive, actually? one of my favorite articles about shakespeare is madeline sayet's "interrogating the shakespeare system," which also examines shakespeare as a tool of white supremacy, except it's much sharper. i wouldn't say karim-cooper is reverent toward shakespeare, exactly, but sometimes she seems to value his work to the point of apologetics.
then again... i can't entirely blame her. karim-cooper is a professor of shakespeare studies. she works at the globe. of course she likes his stuff, and of course she thinks he's still relevant! (also, like, who am i to judge; i've been riding a shakespeare hyperfixation since my freshman year english class.) and also, honestly? a lot of people are just too fucking racist to imagine questioning shakespeare at all. karim-cooper notes in the first chapter that she constantly gets emails mocking her for trying to make shakespeare "woke," by, uh... doing race-blind or race-conscious casting instead of only casting white people? maybe i think she should have been meaner to the bard, but, like, one glance at the reviews of this very book prove that some people can't handle even that.
the dear friend i buddy-read this with summed it up perfectly, i think: on some level, the book is directed "to an audience of people who are committed to stanning shakespeare and need to be convinced not to be racist (vs someone who is committed to not being racist and needs to be convinced to stan shakespeare)." so not exactly to me. that said, i still think it's a valuable contribution to the shakespearean conversation! i'm glad i read it, i think karim-cooper's writing is very engaging, and i hope this book influences teachers, students, and fans of shakespeare's to do some hard but worthwhile examination of the difficult parts of the bard.
September 10, 2023
White Is Not So Fair
So this turned out less of a study of race in the Elizabethan era and how these attitudes are reflected in Shakespeare’s work and just…agitprop over the weaponization of Shakespeare by conservatives/white nationalists/imperialists while actually agreeing (!!) with them that Shakespeare’s plays do uphold a white supremacist worldview. Oy.
The problem chiefly lies in the fact that Karim-Cooper has such little to work with. Shakespeare wrote precious few canonically dark-skinned characters, and those who are (Aaron, Othello, Love Labor’s Lost’s Rosalind, Cleopatra) are blatantly, even crudely described as such. But these are slim pickings even for an academe, and so the buying into lazy but popular interpretations of other characters is inevitable.
For instance, Karim-Cooper includes Much Ado’s Hero as a dark-skinned lady based solely on Benedick’s critical “Too brown for a fair praise,” but the Friar specifically says that while Claudio was accusing Hero of infidelity, he noted “a thousand blushing apparitions / To start into her face, a thousand innocent shames / In angel whiteness…” The light skin is blatantly text here, and Claudio himself also notes disgustedly how much Hero blushes like a maid (as quoted by Karim-Cooper herself!). When preparing to marry her “cousin,” Claudio is determined to marry her even if she were “an Ethiope”—as if his own Hero had not been one at all. Benedick’s “too brown” critique may have just been referring to hair color than skin color (Elizabethans barely made a distinction), but Karim-Cooper does not even raise this possibility.
Ditto for Hermia from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, also sometimes interpreted as dark-skinned. Most of her “darkness” comes from a love-potioned Lysander scorning her as an “Ethiope,” a “tawny Tartar” and an “acorn,” but before that she is constantly called fair, and Helena describes her eyes as “bright.” Is Hermia another one of those “darkened” ladies, as Karim-Cooper asserts—virtuous white female characters scorned as “black” by their male love interests? In any case Hermia’s short stature is the main and most significant difference between the two, the one insult Hermia is most offended by to the point of (comic) violence.
These shallow readings extend even to Othello. Karim-Cooper makes a big ado about Iago’s racist language and takes it for granted that Shakespeare meant his lines as mere comic fodder for groundlings. Never mind that Iago is the most chilling villain in all the canon, an out-and-out liar and manipulator. His racist language is a weapon to manipulate prejudiced men like Roderigo and Brabantio in undermining Othello; Iago’s own beliefs and motivations, like Shakespeare’s, are mysterious and open to interpretation. For my part, I feel Iago is written as a sociopath who believes in and loves nothing but himself. He cheats Roderigo, knives Cassio, plans Desdemona’s death, and kills his own wife—Iago’s reputed racial prejudice certainly has a high body count, but Othello is not one of them.
When Karim-Cooper runs out of easy examples, she again stretches the meanings of “foul” and “fair” to frame other instances as referring to race, such as in the witches of Macbeth (“Fair is foul and foul is fair”). But “foul” and “fair” have a range of meanings in many contexts, not all of them linked to “dark-skinned” and “light-skinned.” As Karim-Cooper herself points out, “white” was a color signifier to mean “cowardice,” though exclusively for men—it could also be another shorthand for women. It’s like insisting on the sexual meaning of “nothing” in all instances Shakespeare uses the word. As for “race” itself, in Shakespeare’s time it meant natural disposition as well as kin and ancestry.
The point is not that different interpretations aren’t possible. But Karim-Cooper’s assertion that Shakespeare was obsessed with interracial relationships is overstated and even delves into absurdity (Romeo and Juliet as a subtextually interracial couple because Romeo is linked loosely to night imagery broke the camel’s back for me). And she doesn’t even delve into the darkest lady of all—the Dark Lady of Shakespeare’s Sonnets, interpreted as African by some scholars.
Even more exasperatingly, Karim-Cooper takes the prejudiced language of the characters at face value, by and large assuming that Shakespeare agrees with or accepts his characters’ attitudes and worldviews, even for villains and characters clearly satirized by the play. That Shakespeare could have wished to reflect the real speech and attitudes of his culture and time and even critique it at times is not considered. In this Karim-Cooper does what she accuses those conservative fake Shakespeare fans of doing—viewing the plays through a narrow prism of identity politics, minimizing any other interpretation, and even putting forth strange claims like academics denying Shakespeare wrote Othello and Cleopatra as dark-skinned (literally who?!). A frustratingly shallow and confused read, all in all.
So this turned out less of a study of race in the Elizabethan era and how these attitudes are reflected in Shakespeare’s work and just…agitprop over the weaponization of Shakespeare by conservatives/white nationalists/imperialists while actually agreeing (!!) with them that Shakespeare’s plays do uphold a white supremacist worldview. Oy.
The problem chiefly lies in the fact that Karim-Cooper has such little to work with. Shakespeare wrote precious few canonically dark-skinned characters, and those who are (Aaron, Othello, Love Labor’s Lost’s Rosalind, Cleopatra) are blatantly, even crudely described as such. But these are slim pickings even for an academe, and so the buying into lazy but popular interpretations of other characters is inevitable.
For instance, Karim-Cooper includes Much Ado’s Hero as a dark-skinned lady based solely on Benedick’s critical “Too brown for a fair praise,” but the Friar specifically says that while Claudio was accusing Hero of infidelity, he noted “a thousand blushing apparitions / To start into her face, a thousand innocent shames / In angel whiteness…” The light skin is blatantly text here, and Claudio himself also notes disgustedly how much Hero blushes like a maid (as quoted by Karim-Cooper herself!). When preparing to marry her “cousin,” Claudio is determined to marry her even if she were “an Ethiope”—as if his own Hero had not been one at all. Benedick’s “too brown” critique may have just been referring to hair color than skin color (Elizabethans barely made a distinction), but Karim-Cooper does not even raise this possibility.
Ditto for Hermia from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, also sometimes interpreted as dark-skinned. Most of her “darkness” comes from a love-potioned Lysander scorning her as an “Ethiope,” a “tawny Tartar” and an “acorn,” but before that she is constantly called fair, and Helena describes her eyes as “bright.” Is Hermia another one of those “darkened” ladies, as Karim-Cooper asserts—virtuous white female characters scorned as “black” by their male love interests? In any case Hermia’s short stature is the main and most significant difference between the two, the one insult Hermia is most offended by to the point of (comic) violence.
These shallow readings extend even to Othello. Karim-Cooper makes a big ado about Iago’s racist language and takes it for granted that Shakespeare meant his lines as mere comic fodder for groundlings. Never mind that Iago is the most chilling villain in all the canon, an out-and-out liar and manipulator. His racist language is a weapon to manipulate prejudiced men like Roderigo and Brabantio in undermining Othello; Iago’s own beliefs and motivations, like Shakespeare’s, are mysterious and open to interpretation. For my part, I feel Iago is written as a sociopath who believes in and loves nothing but himself. He cheats Roderigo, knives Cassio, plans Desdemona’s death, and kills his own wife—Iago’s reputed racial prejudice certainly has a high body count, but Othello is not one of them.
When Karim-Cooper runs out of easy examples, she again stretches the meanings of “foul” and “fair” to frame other instances as referring to race, such as in the witches of Macbeth (“Fair is foul and foul is fair”). But “foul” and “fair” have a range of meanings in many contexts, not all of them linked to “dark-skinned” and “light-skinned.” As Karim-Cooper herself points out, “white” was a color signifier to mean “cowardice,” though exclusively for men—it could also be another shorthand for women. It’s like insisting on the sexual meaning of “nothing” in all instances Shakespeare uses the word. As for “race” itself, in Shakespeare’s time it meant natural disposition as well as kin and ancestry.
The point is not that different interpretations aren’t possible. But Karim-Cooper’s assertion that Shakespeare was obsessed with interracial relationships is overstated and even delves into absurdity (Romeo and Juliet as a subtextually interracial couple because Romeo is linked loosely to night imagery broke the camel’s back for me). And she doesn’t even delve into the darkest lady of all—the Dark Lady of Shakespeare’s Sonnets, interpreted as African by some scholars.
Even more exasperatingly, Karim-Cooper takes the prejudiced language of the characters at face value, by and large assuming that Shakespeare agrees with or accepts his characters’ attitudes and worldviews, even for villains and characters clearly satirized by the play. That Shakespeare could have wished to reflect the real speech and attitudes of his culture and time and even critique it at times is not considered. In this Karim-Cooper does what she accuses those conservative fake Shakespeare fans of doing—viewing the plays through a narrow prism of identity politics, minimizing any other interpretation, and even putting forth strange claims like academics denying Shakespeare wrote Othello and Cleopatra as dark-skinned (literally who?!). A frustratingly shallow and confused read, all in all.
May 27, 2024
I’m not kidding when I say that every single person should read this book. I don’t care if you engage with Shakespeare or not, if you consume media, you should read this book!!!
Through exploring racial depictions and associations in and around Shakespeare’s work, Farah Karim-Cooper opens doorways to understanding marginalization in media and popular culture from early modern England to the modern day.
This is such an accessible read, and it does an incredible job of breaking down the dangers of putting Shakespeare (and other literary greats) on pedestals. It brilliantly explains the history of racialized imagery, language, and ideals throughout the Bard’s plays, how they’ve consequently affected our subliminal associations, and even discusses the act of reckoning with those ideals in our own classrooms, theaters, and minds.
I genuinely cannot sing this book’s praises enough.
Through exploring racial depictions and associations in and around Shakespeare’s work, Farah Karim-Cooper opens doorways to understanding marginalization in media and popular culture from early modern England to the modern day.
This is such an accessible read, and it does an incredible job of breaking down the dangers of putting Shakespeare (and other literary greats) on pedestals. It brilliantly explains the history of racialized imagery, language, and ideals throughout the Bard’s plays, how they’ve consequently affected our subliminal associations, and even discusses the act of reckoning with those ideals in our own classrooms, theaters, and minds.
I genuinely cannot sing this book’s praises enough.
October 27, 2023
I love Shakespeare and found this reading of his works interesting. It’s relatively accessible (though knowing the plays helps) and it helps make the bard more modern. A little clunky and repetitive in spots but mostly very good.
August 31, 2023
A desperate attempt to link Shakespeare to the subject of race and more worryingly white privilege.
The pronouncement is based on the most flimsy of evidence to attempt to support the idea that Shakespeare or the image of him is somehow racist. It is garbage, of course there are references and commentary in his work in which the subject of race is prevalent. It is a shame that someone that benefits enormously from the legacy of Shakespeare choses to write , title and sub title something that is likely to put off people from discriminated backgrounds from choosing to access this essential body of work.
The pronouncement is based on the most flimsy of evidence to attempt to support the idea that Shakespeare or the image of him is somehow racist. It is garbage, of course there are references and commentary in his work in which the subject of race is prevalent. It is a shame that someone that benefits enormously from the legacy of Shakespeare choses to write , title and sub title something that is likely to put off people from discriminated backgrounds from choosing to access this essential body of work.
December 31, 2023
I appreciated this book’s sustained look at Shakespeare and race. Sometimes it felt it could be many books, a memoir, a recent production analysis, a historical examination of Elizabethan London, and an incisive argument about the racialization or racecraft that Shakespeare’s work reflects and contributes to. I especially appreciated the last two chapters, maybe even more than the readings of the plays we teach as race plays.
November 9, 2023
*91% DNF
I wanted to like this more than I did. Coming off of Janega’s monograph on Medieval Women and Winkler’s book on the Authorship Question, I was primed for something harder hitting than what was presented here.
While the analyses of race and othering in Shakespeare were interesting, they didn’t feel novel or new. I think more than anything, this volume was hampered by the author’s deep entrenchment within the field and within the established Shakespeare community (which was fortunately acknowledged at some points). Rather than a curious interrogation of the plays, it felt like a desperate bid to justify continuing to study a dead white man when people are beginning to question (rightly or not) his place in the canon and in compulsory education.
I wanted to like this more than I did. Coming off of Janega’s monograph on Medieval Women and Winkler’s book on the Authorship Question, I was primed for something harder hitting than what was presented here.
While the analyses of race and othering in Shakespeare were interesting, they didn’t feel novel or new. I think more than anything, this volume was hampered by the author’s deep entrenchment within the field and within the established Shakespeare community (which was fortunately acknowledged at some points). Rather than a curious interrogation of the plays, it felt like a desperate bid to justify continuing to study a dead white man when people are beginning to question (rightly or not) his place in the canon and in compulsory education.
October 3, 2023
A super interesting and nuanced study of race in Shakespeare--both with close readings of the plays themselves AND, even more interesting to me, how they have been staged, studied, and handled in different time periods. Very well-researched but also accessibly written, this made me think about some plays I'm very familiar with in a different way and also taught me a lot I didn't know about the history of race relations in his time period. Also love all the reviews of people Big Mad at the very suggestion that a white dude in the 1500s could possibly have some racist ideas lol
Read
February 16, 2024fun fact, this is the 65th and final shakespeare criticism book on my and sara's ultimate shakespeare ranking powerpoint. at this point it's 50% shitpost 50% annotated bibliography. this started as a fun procrastination project and instead we've finally made ourselves stop an entire year and 395 slides and 65 entire books of academic literature later. we simply underestimated the combined power of "aspiring shakespeare phd" & "guy with a decade-long shakespeare obsession". (i will admit that the vast majority of the criticism books were sara, but we also talk about 30-odd retellings and at least 10 productions and those were all me. we balance out 😌). anyway if you're writing, like, a masters thesis on philosophy and shakespeare, we've got you covered on sources 💀 (joke. probably.)
anyway, i don't have a ton to say about this one - it didn't offer much new to me in terms of analysis, even though it touched on on a few plays that aren't normally thought about in terms of race (eg romeo and juliet). the author did give a lot of interesting historical context and details that i did not know! and it had an audiobook, which i am always so happy to encounter because so little shakespeare criticism does but it makes it so much easier for me. (author read her own book. i appreciate you dr karim-cooper)
anyway, i don't have a ton to say about this one - it didn't offer much new to me in terms of analysis, even though it touched on on a few plays that aren't normally thought about in terms of race (eg romeo and juliet). the author did give a lot of interesting historical context and details that i did not know! and it had an audiobook, which i am always so happy to encounter because so little shakespeare criticism does but it makes it so much easier for me. (author read her own book. i appreciate you dr karim-cooper)
January 29, 2025
Enjoyed this, really interesting! On some bits I sort of wished Karim-Cooper would have gone into a bit more depth on certain plays, or close-read some things for a bit longer, and on a few plays I had studied already I felt as if I wasn't really learning much new— but that's more a me problem than this book's problem lol. I really liked the reads of some of the less 'obvious' plays, I thought that was a big strength— the Romeo and Juliet reading of them as an interracial couple was super interesting for example, and I would happily have read a full chapter or full essay about that!
December 13, 2024
This is an important, if uncomfortable for a white woman, book. It explores the mysogeny and racism in the language of Shakespeare's plays. We can confront those issues and still love Shakespeare and continue to read and perform is plays and read his poetry, but with new eyes.
June 3, 2024
An excellent, no punches pulled, analysis of race in many of Shakespeare’s plays. I was particularly drawn to the analysis of Macbeth and the idea of the racial and othering implications of the weird sisters. This book is unapologetic in its critiques while offering ways to discuss issues of race w/ students. In this age of book bans and the white-washing of history, I see this as an invaluable resource for finding a path for addressing complicated discussions via teaching Shakespeare.
December 2, 2024
Exactly what I wanted to read after seeing the Tempest and Othello this year. A broad discussion of racialisation in Shakespeare’s canon, much of which I’m not too familiar with but found very engaging nonetheless!
September 15, 2023
This is a vital read, especially in conjunction with studying literature and the works of Shakespeare. I know during my studies, the discussion of race in relation to Shakespeare's works was scarcely taught or talked about, and this was a perfect audiobook on that very topic.
Spanning multiple plays such as Romeo and Juliet, Othello, The Tempest, Antony and Cleopatra, The Two Gentlemen of Verona and many more, Farah Karim-Cooper talks of race, otherness, gender and how these are used as vehicles of humour or contrast within these plays. This potent and well narrated audiobook reminds us not to constantly idolise the greats, glossing over the discomforting elements of their works, but to acknowledge and face head on these aspects in present and past contexts and address them in future productions, performances and learnings of Shakespeare.
I would definitely recommend this, even to people who aren't drawn to non fiction, this was a digestible and expansive audiobook.
Spanning multiple plays such as Romeo and Juliet, Othello, The Tempest, Antony and Cleopatra, The Two Gentlemen of Verona and many more, Farah Karim-Cooper talks of race, otherness, gender and how these are used as vehicles of humour or contrast within these plays. This potent and well narrated audiobook reminds us not to constantly idolise the greats, glossing over the discomforting elements of their works, but to acknowledge and face head on these aspects in present and past contexts and address them in future productions, performances and learnings of Shakespeare.
I would definitely recommend this, even to people who aren't drawn to non fiction, this was a digestible and expansive audiobook.
May 15, 2023
"The Great White Bard: Shakespeare, Race and Future" by Farah Karim-Cooper offers a compelling and insightful reflection on the enduring presence of Shakespeare in our society, particularly from the perspective of diversity and inclusivity.
As one of the UK's few ethnic minority Shakespeare professors, Karim-Cooper brings a unique voice to the discussion, shedding light on the challenges faced by non-white individuals in a field traditionally dominated by a homogeneous group. Karim-Cooper's analysis delves deep into the image of Shakespeare throughout history, examining the evolution of his portrayal of the characters and through meticulous comparison of portraits, Karim-Cooper reveals the societal pressures that have influenced the perception of this iconic playwright.
However, "The Great White Bard" is not just a scholarly analysis; it is also a love letter to Shakespeare. Karim-Cooper beautifully recounts her personal connection to the Bard, tracing it back to a transformative English lesson on Romeo and Juliet when she was just 15 years old. She emphasizes the importance of understanding Shakespeare in his entirety, not only celebrating his genius but also acknowledging the darker aspects of his legacy. This nuanced perspective adds a layer of depth and complexity to our understanding of the playwright.
One of the book's most significant messages is the call for inclusivity and the expansion of Shakespeare's legacy. Karim-Cooper argues that if we persist in viewing Shakespeare solely as the pinnacle of the white Western canon, we risk endangering his relevance in today's diverse world. By dismantling the pedestal on which he has been placed, we have the opportunity to uncover a Shakespeare for the twenty-first century, one who can resonate with a broader range of audiences. Through this reevaluation, we not only enrich his legacy but also reignite our love and appreciation for his work. Farah Karim-Cooper goes beyond the surface admiration of Shakespeare's poetry and encourages readers to question it rather than passively accepting its splendor. She invites us to engage critically with his work, urging us to explore not only its brilliance but also its flaws and complexities. Karim-Cooper emphasizes that true appreciation of Shakespeare requires an understanding of the broader societal and cultural contexts in which his plays were written. By encouraging us to question Shakespeare's poetry, Karim-Cooper challenges us to delve deeper, uncover hidden meanings, and engage in a more nuanced exploration of his work. Through this process, we gain a richer understanding of his genius and can better appreciate the profound impact he continues to have on literature and the world.
"The Great White Bard: Shakespeare, Race and Future" is a meticulously researched and thought-provoking exploration of Shakespeare's legacy. Karim-Cooper's unique perspective as an outsider in a discipline not known for its non-white faces offers a fresh and necessary contribution to the ongoing dialogue on diversity and inclusivity in literature. This book serves as a call to action, encouraging readers to engage critically with Shakespeare's work and reimagine his place in our rapidly changing world.
Thanks to One World Publication for sending me a copy of this fantastic book. Looking forward to reading more works from this author and authors who write about similar subjects.
As one of the UK's few ethnic minority Shakespeare professors, Karim-Cooper brings a unique voice to the discussion, shedding light on the challenges faced by non-white individuals in a field traditionally dominated by a homogeneous group. Karim-Cooper's analysis delves deep into the image of Shakespeare throughout history, examining the evolution of his portrayal of the characters and through meticulous comparison of portraits, Karim-Cooper reveals the societal pressures that have influenced the perception of this iconic playwright.
However, "The Great White Bard" is not just a scholarly analysis; it is also a love letter to Shakespeare. Karim-Cooper beautifully recounts her personal connection to the Bard, tracing it back to a transformative English lesson on Romeo and Juliet when she was just 15 years old. She emphasizes the importance of understanding Shakespeare in his entirety, not only celebrating his genius but also acknowledging the darker aspects of his legacy. This nuanced perspective adds a layer of depth and complexity to our understanding of the playwright.
One of the book's most significant messages is the call for inclusivity and the expansion of Shakespeare's legacy. Karim-Cooper argues that if we persist in viewing Shakespeare solely as the pinnacle of the white Western canon, we risk endangering his relevance in today's diverse world. By dismantling the pedestal on which he has been placed, we have the opportunity to uncover a Shakespeare for the twenty-first century, one who can resonate with a broader range of audiences. Through this reevaluation, we not only enrich his legacy but also reignite our love and appreciation for his work. Farah Karim-Cooper goes beyond the surface admiration of Shakespeare's poetry and encourages readers to question it rather than passively accepting its splendor. She invites us to engage critically with his work, urging us to explore not only its brilliance but also its flaws and complexities. Karim-Cooper emphasizes that true appreciation of Shakespeare requires an understanding of the broader societal and cultural contexts in which his plays were written. By encouraging us to question Shakespeare's poetry, Karim-Cooper challenges us to delve deeper, uncover hidden meanings, and engage in a more nuanced exploration of his work. Through this process, we gain a richer understanding of his genius and can better appreciate the profound impact he continues to have on literature and the world.
"The Great White Bard: Shakespeare, Race and Future" is a meticulously researched and thought-provoking exploration of Shakespeare's legacy. Karim-Cooper's unique perspective as an outsider in a discipline not known for its non-white faces offers a fresh and necessary contribution to the ongoing dialogue on diversity and inclusivity in literature. This book serves as a call to action, encouraging readers to engage critically with Shakespeare's work and reimagine his place in our rapidly changing world.
Thanks to One World Publication for sending me a copy of this fantastic book. Looking forward to reading more works from this author and authors who write about similar subjects.
October 28, 2023
DEVOURED this. “iago is a redditor” is not the take i expected but it’s one i’m glad i got. thank you prof karim-cooper for sharing your voice w the world. i learnt a TON(NE) from reading this.
September 25, 2023
Shakespeare rămâne Shakespeare. Și asa trebuie sa rămână, ca de aceea are farmec.
April 29, 2024
The strongest parts of this study for me were those based on historical evidence and sustained close readings of the plays, which unfortunately were not all that frequent.. the chapter on Titus Andronicus was brilliant however and grounded in a really unique approach.
Loved the historical details that went beyond any gloss you’d get in an edition of the plays. For example the fact that bitumen was used to preserve the severed heads that were displayed on spikes outside the globe (giving them a black appearance) and that Desdemona’s handkerchief was likely dyed with bitumen (admittedly and argument Karim-Cooper takes from Ian smith) complicating the handkerchief’s traditional connection with whiteness/purity
I personally struggled with a couple of presentist turns of phrase, like comparing Iago to a Redditor, but this kind of tone might work for some people.
A delightful surprise to have the quotes narrated by Adjoa Andoh, who also talks about her 2020 production of Richard II at the end. Would recommend the audiobook version!
Loved the historical details that went beyond any gloss you’d get in an edition of the plays. For example the fact that bitumen was used to preserve the severed heads that were displayed on spikes outside the globe (giving them a black appearance) and that Desdemona’s handkerchief was likely dyed with bitumen (admittedly and argument Karim-Cooper takes from Ian smith) complicating the handkerchief’s traditional connection with whiteness/purity
I personally struggled with a couple of presentist turns of phrase, like comparing Iago to a Redditor, but this kind of tone might work for some people.
A delightful surprise to have the quotes narrated by Adjoa Andoh, who also talks about her 2020 production of Richard II at the end. Would recommend the audiobook version!
July 31, 2025
“We get the Shakespeare we need at different times. Shakespeare’s plays generate questions more than answers. It is, for us, as readers, critics, theatergoers and theater-makers, to take up their challenge, leverage their restless interrogation and reimagine them for our world.” (Emma Smith, This Is Shakespeare, 319)
"[In the nineteenth century] Shakespeare was constructed as an emblem of English exceptionalism, as a native genius.
"It is time to let that go." (Karim-Cooper, 277)
Reading Dr. Karim-Cooper's book, I kept reflecting on Emma Smith's line from her great book, This Is Shakespeare. It's the word "interrogation" that has stayed with me. If we see words such as "barbarous" laden throughout many of the plays, we should probably take time to consider and ponder why that word is there. Dr. Karim-Cooper's book is a brilliant interrogation of words, characters, and plays. In particular, her examination of racialized language in Macbeth is worth the read alone.
March 17, 2024
The scholarship is there, as is the evident love of Shakespeare. The first section on tragedies is much more convincing and compelling than the latter part of the book, which focuses on comedies (and marginally on the sonnets). I especially enjoyed reading about the historical performances of the works, although I'm not sure I would be up for attending an original practices production of Titus Andronicus. I can't pretend to know what it must feel like to have the validity of your work in academia challenged by the noted literati of 24hourcampfire.com. But there is certainly a similar trend in French culture, where Molière, Beaumarchais and the like are hostages to identity politics. Appropriation of those texts by people who are not 'Gaulish' French has ruffled feathers for some time. The huge success met by Abdellatif Kechiche's L'Esquive twenty years ago shows that just like with Shakespeare, there is a thirst for meeting over those texts.
September 11, 2023
This was an interesting read! I'd love to have had it in conjunction with a course or opportunity to watch the plays Karim-Cooper focuses on. I mean I guess I could do that myself with movies. But I'm not going to. I think the audience here is really like an educated layperson or college undergrad but the secret audience is the people who keep writing angry letters to Karim-Cooper in her role at the Globe theater to be like "woke liberals are ruining Shakespeare" but those people probably not going to read this.
April 25, 2024
I have been waiting for someone to write exactly this book and I’m so glad it exists I can’t even tell you. I’m going to have to read this again because there are a lot of very specific examples but this is an excellent and eye-opening book. I probably wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t have any familiarity with Shakespeare, but you don’t need to be a Shakespearean scholar to enjoy it either. 4.8 stars
February 28, 2024
These are the kinds of conversations we need to be having. I learned so much from this book. The author truly loves Shakespeare and wants it to be open to everyone. We don't know what was in Shakespeare's mind when he wrote his works. There are lines that trouble us today. Did he believe those things, or was he mocking people who think like that, merely to get laughs from the audience? We'll never know, but we do know these lines have been used to justify white imperialism, racism, antisemitism, sexism, etc. since then. So what do we do with them now? Study them, talk about alternative ways to perform them, learn from the people most effected by such lines. I applaud multicultural and gender defying productions of Shakespeare's plays and look forward to more in the near future.
September 2, 2024
As a major Shakespeare fan, I am grateful to have a more solid understanding of just how race-coded Shakespeare’s language is - once you learn how to spot it, you cannot unsee it - and have this book to thank for that. I felt the author’s very apparent love for the Bard sometimes obfuscated her argument, but nonetheless very much enjoyed this book and would especially recommend it to educators.
January 8, 2024
Well researched and well argued. I’m surprised this book hasn’t already been written. I struggled to love Shakespeare throughout most of the book, but I think the epilogue really lands the plane. The challenge is knowing what discomfort to sit with and knowing what to cut.
June 2, 2024
I was surprised she didn’t talk more about the Indian child in MND that Titania and Oberon fought over, but all in all this was a great detailed primer on race as it crops up in Shakespeare’s work - definitely a huge recommend to anyone who’s interested or invested in Shakespeare, as the “bardolatry” narrative can be hard to shake sometimes! Hard to try and tackle this subject without boiling the ocean, but this was easy to read and extremely well cited!
August 19, 2024
can only describe my range as incredible
October 2, 2024
It's a really interesting take on loving Shakespeare in modern times!
November 10, 2024
4.5 rounded up. I miss working on Shakespeare every day. Wish we had this text when I was in grad school
November 22, 2023
Incredibly eye-opening and thought-provoking, especially for someone like me who continues to produce, direct, and act in these shows in the 21st century. Was Shakespeare a product of his time? Yes. Is it now our job to stage these plays in new and updated ways, and make sure we don’t worship the writer so highly that we refuse to edit and correct his mistakes and call out his prejudice? Also yes.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews