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Loading... Cymbeline (1609)by William Shakespeare
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. If I were rating the American Players Theatre performance of this play that I saw a couple of weeks ago, it would be a million stars, but I can’t say reading it gave me too much of a thrill. It was fine, it was weird, and in this case, it was more enjoyable to read it after I’d seen it (rather than before, which I usually do). I like all the extras you get with these Folger’s editions—the introductory info about Shakespeare’s life, theatre during that period, the First Folio, and essays about the play—so it was a nice supplement to seeing it performed. This play is not greatly to my taste. But it does work on stage, and is a surviving work of the great writer. Imogen, the King's daughter is falsely accused of adultery, by the machinations of Iachimo, who creates an appearance of the deed. Imogen flees her father's court, but does recover her position by an unlikely series of events. the play did not give birth to the usual number of later clichés in language. A Comedy in the sense that most of the characters come out alive, but not much humor to it. A love tragedy which ends Happily Ever After. I enjoyed the reading of this, and watching the BBC production of it. I would like to have a talk with Imogen about her everlasting love for a man who put out a hit on her because of circumstantial evidence, no matter how damning, but other than that it was one of the more satisfying plays I've read recently. I love the part of Pisanio, the servant. In my eyes, he is the man who deserves all praise. If I were ever to direct this play, he would be the focus. A level-headed man amongst all the flighty nobility. This is definitely my favorite Shakespeare plays. It serves as a mashup of all of them, in terms of plot content, and I think that it has some of Shakespeare's most vivid characterizations. It also seems to have fewer vulgar jokes, so that makes it much more enjoyable. Altogether, a tough read, but an excellent one.
I confess to a difficulty in feeling civilized just at present. Flying from the country, where the gentlemen of England are in an ecstasy of chicken-butchering, I return to town to find the higher wits assembled at a play three hundred years old, in which the sensation scene exhibits a woman waking up to find her husband reposing gorily in her arms with his head cut off. Pray understand, therefore, that I do not defend Cymbeline. It is for the most part stagey trash of the lowest melodramatic order, in parts abominably written, throughout intellectually vulgar, and, judged in point of thought by modern intellectual standards, vulgar, foolish, offensive, indecent, and exasperating beyond all tolerance. Belongs to Publisher Series — 5 more Is contained inThe complete works of William Shakespeare : reprinted from the First Folio (volume 12 of 13) by William Shakespeare The Annotated Shakespeare: The Comedies, Histories, Sonnets and Other Poems, Tragedies and Romances Complete by William Shakespeare (indirect) Shakespeares Dramatische Werke zehnter Band: Cymbeline, Das Wintermärchen, Der Sturm, Shakespeares Leben by William Shakespeare The Norton Shakespeare: Four-Volume Set by Stephen Greenblatt (indirect) The Norton Shakespeare: Two Volume Set by William Shakespeare (indirect) Has the adaptationInspiredHas as a studyHas as a student's study guide
Imogen, the daughter of King Cymbeline, is persecuted by her wicked stepmother, the Queen, and by Cloten, the Queen's doltish son. Disguised as a boy, she sets out to find her husband, the banished Posthumus. No library descriptions found.
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)822.33Literature English & Old English literatures English drama Elizabethan 1558-1625 Shakespeare, William 1564–1616LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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*Going to add an extra star after thinking it over. ( )