Includes bibliographical references (pages 230-250) and index.
Contents:
Literacy and the circulation of plays -- Life in the archives : shaping early modern selfhood -- Readers and editors : a concordia discors -- Early modern theatrical annotators and transcribers -- Commonplacing : the myth and the empirical impulse -- Passing judgement on Shakespeare -- Conclusion.
Summary:
"Shakespeare's Early Readers covers the period from the publication of the first Shakespearean playbooks to the gradual disappearance of the monopoly on the publication of Shakespeare's works, held by a handful of publishers, and the opening of the market to a wider readership in the course of the eighteenth century. In sum, the monograph addresses that crucial formative early modern 'moment' when Shakespeare's works began to permeate the public sphere both in London and elsewhere. His plays and poems were handed down, transformed, disseminated and appraised by his readers"-- Provided by publisher.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.