Amazon.com: Emma Smith: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle

This Is Shakespeare Mar 31, 2020

$7.99

An electrifying new study that investigates the challenges of the Bard’s inconsistencies and flaws, and focuses on revealing—not resolving—the ambiguities of the plays and their changing topicality

A genius and prophet whose timeless works encapsulate the human condition like no other. A writer who surpassed his contemporaries in vision, originality, and literary mastery. A man who wrote like an angel, putting it all so much better than anyone else. Is this Shakespeare? Well, sort of. But it doesn’t tell us the whole truth. So much of what we say about Shakespeare is either not true, or just not relevant.

In This Is Shakespeare, Emma Smith—an intellectually, theatrically, and ethically exciting writer—takes us into a world of politicking and copycatting, as we watch Shakespeare emulating the blockbusters of Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Kyd (the Spielberg and Tarantino of their day), flirting with and skirting around the cutthroat issues of succession politics, religious upheaval, and technological change. Smith writes in strikingly modern ways about individual agency, privacy, politics, celebrity, and sex. Instead of offering the answers, the Shakespeare she reveals poses awkward questions, always inviting the reader to ponder ambiguities.

Portable Magic: A History of Books and Their Readers Nov 15, 2022

by Emma Smith

( 10 )

$14.99

A history of one of humankind’s most resilient and influential technologies over the past millennium—the book.

Stephen King once said that books are “a uniquely portable magic.” Here, Emma Smith takes readers on a literary adventure that spans centuries and circles the globe to uncover the reasons behind our obsession with this captivating object.

From disrupting the Western myth that the Gutenberg Press was the original printing project, to the decorative gift books that radicalized women to join the anti-slavery movement, to paperbacks being weaponized during World War II, to a book made entirely of plastic-wrapped slices of American cheese, Portable Magic explores how, when, and why books became so iconic. It’s not just the content within a book that compels; it’s the physical material itself, what Smith calls “bookhood”: the smell, the feel of the pages, the margins to scribble in, the illustrations on the jacket, its solid heft. Every book is designed to influence our reading experience—to enchant, enrage, delight, and disturb us—and our longstanding love affair with books in turn has had direct, momentous consequences across time.

Revelatory and entertaining in equal measure, Portable Magic will charm and challenge literature lovers of all kinds as it illuminates the transformative power and eternal appeal of the written word.

The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare's First Folio (Cambridge Companions to Literature) Aug 4, 2016

by Emma Smith

( 8 )

$22.00

Shakespeare's First Folio, published in 1623, is one of the world's most studied books, prompting speculation about everything from proof-reading practices in the early modern publishing industry to the 'true' authorship of Shakespeare's plays. Arguments about the nature of the First Folio are crucial to every modern edition of Shakespeare and thus to every reader or student of the plays. This Companion surveys the critical methods brought to bear on the Folio and equips readers with the tools to understand it and to develop their skills in early modern book culture more generally. A team of international scholars surveys the range of bibliographic, historical and textual material relating to the Folio, its editors, collectors and critical reception. This revealing volume will be of wide interest to scholars of Shakespeare, the history of the book and early modern drama.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

Women on the Early Modern Stage: A Woman Killed with Kindness, The Tamer Tamed, The Duchess of Malfi, The Witch of Edmonton (Play Anthologies) Feb 13, 2014

by Emma Smith

( 6 )

$14.31

This New Mermaids anthology brings together four plays which centre around female characters on stage: A Woman Killed With Kindness (Thomas Heywood); The Tamer Tamed (John Fletcher); The Duchess of Malfi (John Webster) and The Witch of Edmonton (William Rowley, Thomas Dekker and John Ford) with a new introduction by leading scholar Emma Smith.

A Woman Killed with Kindness is a domestic tragedy of property and marriage, adultery and revenge, and strips bare two women's lives in one of the first tragedies ever to be written about ordinary people.

The Tamer Tamed is a free-wheeling and witty comedy in which the place and status of women, and the nature of marriage, are subjected to sustained attention, demonstrating one way in which early modern writers were able to challenge and invert social convention, and to at least imagine alternative modes of behaviour.

The Duchess of Malfi is a classic revenge tragedy and masterpiece of the Jacobean bizarre, featuring a severed hand, a wolf-man, and a poisoned Bible.

The Witch of Edmonton is a domestic tragedy in which Elizabeth Sawyer sells her soul to the Devil to revenge her neighbours.

These four early modern plays plays upset old certainties about gender ideology: less 'chaste, silent and obedient' and more diverse, eloquent, and complex.

Other Formats: Paperback

The Cambridge Introduction to Shakespeare (Cambridge Introductions to Literature) Mar 8, 2007

by Emma Smith

( 36 )

$15.99

This lively and innovative introduction to Shakespeare promotes active engagement with the plays, rather than recycling factual information. Covering a range of texts, it is divided into seven subject-based chapters: Character; Performance; Texts; Language; Structure; Sources and History, and it does not assume any prior knowledge. Instead, it develops ways of thinking and provides the reader with resources for independent research through the 'Where next?' sections at the end of each chapter. The book draws on scholarship without being overwhelmed by it, and unlike other introductory guides to Shakespeare it emphasizes that there is space for new and fresh thinking by students and readers, even on the most-studied and familiar plays.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

Macbeth: Language and Writing (Arden Student Skills: Language and Writing Book 2) May 9, 2013

by Emma Smith

( 18 )

$13.47

Arden Student Guides: Language and Writing offer a new type of study aid which combines lively critical insight with practical guidance on the critical writing skills you need to develop in order to engage fully with Shakespeare's texts. The books' core focus is on language: both understanding and enjoying Shakespeare's complex dramatic language, and expanding your own critical vocabulary, as you respond to his plays.

Key features include:

an introduction considering when and how the play was written, addressing the language with which Shakespeare created his work, as well as the generic, literary and theatrical conventions at his disposal

detailed examination and analysis of the individual text, focusing on its literary, technical and historical intricacies

discussion of performance history and the critical reception of the work

a 'Writing matters' section in every chapter, clearly linking the analysis of Shakespeare's language to your own writing strategies in coursework and examinations.

Written by world-class academics with both scholarly insight and outstanding teaching skills, each guide will empower you to read and write about Shakespeare with increased confidence and enthusiasm.

At a climactic point in the play, Macbeth realises that the witches have deceived him through their ambiguous language: 'they palter with us in a double sense'. This book explores Shakespeare's own paltering in the play – the densely rich language of ambition, of blood, and of guilt that structures Macbeth.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

The Cambridge Companion to English Renaissance Tragedy (Cambridge Companions to Literature) Aug 12, 2010

by Emma Smith, Garrett A. Sullivan, Jr

( 5 )

$27.00

Featuring essays by major international scholars, this Companion combines analysis of themes crucial to Renaissance tragedy with the interpretation of canonical and frequently taught texts. Part I introduces key topics, such as religion, revenge, and the family, and discusses modern performance traditions on stage and screen. Bridging this section with Part II is a chapter which engages with Shakespeare. It tackles Shakespeare's generic distinctiveness and how our familiarity with Shakespearean tragedy affects our appreciation of the tragedies of his contemporaries. Individual essays in Part II introduce and contribute to important critical conversations about specific tragedies. Topics include The Revenger's Tragedy and the theatrics of original sin, Arden of Faversham and the preternatural, and The Duchess of Malfi and the erotics of literary form. Providing fresh readings of key texts, the Companion is an essential guide for all students of Renaissance tragedy.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

The Cambridge Shakespeare Guide Mar 22, 2012

by Emma Smith

( 12 )

$14.00

Are you studying Shakespeare and looking for a handy summary of plots, characters and interpretations? Or are you a keen theatregoer wanting essential background on the Shakespeare plays you see on stage? Ideal for students and theatre enthusiasts alike, this lively and authoritative guide presents key information, clearly set out, on all Shakespeare's dramatic and poetic works, covering plots and people, sources, context, performance history and major themes. Ordered alphabetically for easy reference, each play entry features a 'key facts' box providing informative and revealing statistics, including a breakdown of each play's major roles. The guide is illustrated with striking performance photographs throughout, and also provides brief accounts of Shakespeare's life and language, Shakespeare in print and theatre in Shakespeare's time. This is an indispensable reference source for all students and theatregoers.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

Shakespeare's Comedies (Blackwell Guides to Criticism Book 4) Jun 9, 2008

by Emma Smith

( 3 )

$46.00

This Guide introduces students to critical writing on Shakespeare’s comedies over the last four centuries.

Guides students through four centuries of critical writing on Shakespeare’s history plays.
Covers both significant early views and recent critical interventions.
Substantial editorial material links the articles and places them in context.
Annotated suggestions for further reading allow students to investigate further.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

Shakespeare Survey 74: Shakespeare and Education Sep 16, 2021

by Emma Smith

$92.00

Shakespeare Survey is a yearbook of Shakespeare studies and production. Since 1948, Survey has published the best international scholarship in English and many of its essays have become classics of Shakespeare criticism. Each volume is devoted to a theme, or play, or group of plays; each also contains a section of reviews of that year's textual and critical studies and of the year's major British performances. The theme for Volume 74 is 'Shakespeare and Education. The complete set of Survey volumes is also available online at https://www.cambridge.org/core/what-we-publish/collections/shakespeare-survey This fully searchable resource enables users to browse by author, essay and volume, search by play, theme and topic and save and bookmark their results.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

Key Issues in Education and Social Justice (Education Studies: Key Issues) Jun 14, 2018

by Emma Smith

( 14 )

$31.00

‘This highly accessible book weaves together discussion of recent research findings, policy developments and theoretical perspectives. It provides a thought-provoking and at times contentious introduction that will challenge students and teachers to look beyond the easy and glib rhetoric, helping them understand the complexities of educating for a more equal world.′

Shereen Benjamin, Senior Lecturer in Primary Education, University of Edinburgh

This book is an introduction to issues of inequality and social justice, how they relate to education systems and how education can be a force for positive societal change. Drawing upon research, policy and contemporary thinking in the field, this second edition examines educational inequalities that exist today, what lies behind them and what effects they have across society.

New to this edition:

Wider coverage on social inequalities in relation to income and wealth

New chapters on: childhood inequalities, international issues in education and social justice, and education inequalities in the USA

A broader focus on how young people experience social justice that includes the experiences of young offenders.

This is essential reading for students on undergraduate education studies courses, and related degree programmes that explore the relationship between education and society.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback

Shakespeare Survey 73: Shakespeare and the City Sep 17, 2020

by Emma Smith

$92.00

Shakespeare Survey is a yearbook of Shakespeare studies and production. Since 1948, Survey has published the best international scholarship in English and many of its essays have become classics of Shakespeare criticism. Each volume is devoted to a theme, or play, or group of plays; each also contains a section of reviews of that year's textual and critical studies and of the year's major British performances. The theme for Volume 73 is 'Shakespeare and the City'. The complete set of Survey volumes is also available online at https://www.cambridge.org/core/what-we-publish/collections/shakespeare-survey This fully searchable resource enables users to browse by author, essay and volume, search by play, theme and topic and save and bookmark their results.

Other Formats: Hardcover

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