The Cambridge Introduction to Shakespeare's Tragedies

Cambridge Introductions to Literature

by Janette Dillon

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.

Genres: Shakespeare, Literary Criticism

176 pages, Paperback

First published March 8, 2007

Reviews

[Alexandra ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5/5

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dillon's introduction to the ten Shakespearean tragedies (or at least the ten plays that were collated in the First Folio under this appellation) is an informative and ubiquitous text. It is for the most part exactly what the title states, i.e. an introduction to these works and the concept of Shakespearean tragedy, and this is its most important reason for reason. If one wants to get something of a handle on what, why, when and how the Bard wrote these plays then this is a most instructive book. It is not aimed at an audience with little to no knowledge of Shakespeare and his works, and one would expect it to be of more use for the undergraduate in theatre studies or literature based on what Dillon writes. There can be no question that this book achieves what it sets out to do.

Therefore a critique of this book should not focus on whether it succeeds or not, but the varying degrees of effectiveness of the author's methodology in her explorations and assessments of the oeuvre as a whole and the constituent plays. First off Dillon is to be commended for making a substantial effort to delineate what exactly tragedy may mean, both for the audience and for the dramatist. She unpacks a lot of relevant information and ideas from the likes of Aristotle, Seneca and Samuel Johnson, providing a theoretical and historical framework for Shakespeare's tragedies. She also gives the reader insights into early English tragedy, including Shakespeare's immediate predecessors or near contemporaries, such as Kyd, Sidney and Marlowe. This is a most helpful approach for the reader and Dillon offers some challenging theses, such as the absence of hamartia in Shakespeare's plays. There are even some comments on the textual reliability of the plays and Shakespeare's role in them (though she is neither a Baconian or Oxfordian).

The bulk of the book is then made up of studies of each tragedy and these in turn follow a similar pattern. After discussing the circumstances of each play Dillon explores some key ideas or dramaturgical issues. This is followed by an analysis of a core scene in the relevant play, followed by some closing arguments. The logical structure of each chapter gives the reader a degree of certainty when considering what might be in toto some rather complex and diverse ideas. It also means that students may wish to extract the arguments and concepts offered for, for example, 'Timon of Athens' and focus on those.

That Dillon interrogates each of the ten tragedies in such a way as to both clarify their uniqueness whilst blurring the boundaries in their genre context is again most helpful. She identifies the challenges as to whether, for example, Macbeth the character is a tragic hero, or how 'Titus Andronicus' might be seen more as a revenge play than as a tragedy. That somewhat less well known or less frequently performed plays such as 'Titus Andronicus' and 'Timon of Athens' get coverage deserves acknowledgement as well. Perhaps the broad focus on the ten plays, including four 'Roman' plays (of which three are historical as well) might be an issue for some. Maybe Dillon could've spoken more on the more famous tragedies;'Romeo and Juliet', 'Macbeth', 'Hamlet', 'Othello', 'King Lear' and (arguably) 'Coriolanus'. That is up to the reader and his or her requirements or context.

In this reviewer's opinion the most successful chapters are those on 'Romeo and Juliet', 'Macbeth', 'Othello', 'King Lear' and 'Coriolanus'. In each of these studies Dillon makes several important and highly valid observations re the texts, including performance notes, themes, character and reception. The remaining chapters are not bad per se, however there isn't the ingenuity or breadth of argument and analysis therein. The chapter on 'Hamlet' is arguably the least effective, though this is because this play may be considered the most significant in Shakespeare's corpus of tragedies.

There are some other recommendations that can be made of this book and Dillon's writing. The brevity of the book means that the reader can get through it reasonably quickly whilst the arguments and discussions provided by the author are by necessity concise. That Dillon writes from a theatrical perspective means that the reader is not left with a purely literary understanding of Shakespeare's tragedies; the needs and relevance of the author, the stage are given due space. Finally there is an abundance of footnoting for supporting or illustrative secondary texts. Dillon has not just developed her theses, her explorations without a solid grounding in the appropriate academic research and discourse.

This is not a great book, nor is it conclusive. There are times when Dillon's prose becomes a little obtuse, and as stated earlier maybe more could've been said about some plays and less about others. It is an introduction though, and if it either whets the appetite or provide some direction for a students' study of the Bard's plays then it can be recommended.

[sue rr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eu gostei muito da abordagem, pois faz com que a gente entenda o que acontece na peça (diferente de A invenção do humano, do Bloom, que ele faz muito link de um personagem com o outro e chafurdeia na questão de quem escreveu o que e isso pode ser bem complexo para o leitor ainda não especializado na obra, por isso recomendo essa introdução e depois o Bloom). Acho que também possui um propósito de mostrar um fio condutor nessas tragédias, como são arquitetadas, como se iniciam e se encerram, há sim comparação entre uma peça e outra, personagens e tal, mas acho que ocorre de um modo muito mais objetivo do que ocorre no Bloom.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a clear and useful book that does exactly what it sets out to do: highlight "both the distinctiveness and shared concerns of each play within the broad trajectory of Shakespeare's developing exploration of tragic form." Each of the ten tragedies that it describes is given a similar treatment - a brief contextual introduction, analysis of two or three key themes or formal features, and slightly more detailed discussion of one "core scene" - and accorded a roughly similar amount of space, of around 11-15 pages: as much for Titus and Timon as for Lear or Hamlet. Dillon does a good job of illuminating the common threads that run through the plays, and the book is better read as a whole than dipped into on a play-by-play basis. It's only a pity that there is no concluding chapter to summarise and draw the threads together; instead, it comes to an abrupt halt after its discussion of Coriolanus. At only 152 pages, another 20 or so would have been welcome.