THE GREAT TRAGIC PLAYS OF SHAKESPEARE
What is tragedy? The Elizabethans defined it as a "lofty" play showing "personages of great state" caught up in a "lamentable" action that "beginners prosperously and endeth unfortunately." Whether judged by this or any other standard, the plays selected for this collection -- Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth -- are considered to be the four central works of Shakespearean tragedy and must be included in any list of the world's finest tragic literature. And to make these plays more accessible for the modern reader, this edition includes the following special features:
An introduction by Sylvan Barnet, general editor of the Signet Classic Shakespeare series
Reliable texts by noted Shakespeare scholars
Texts printed in the clearest, most readable type
Name of each speaker given in full
Detailed footnotes at the bottom of each page keyed to the numbered lines of the text
Textual notes
Extensive bibliographies