Description: It's been more than twenty years since the New Accents series helped to establish "theory" as a fundamental and continuing feature of literary studies. Since then, the need for short, powerful, cutting-edge accounts of, and comments on, new developments has increased sharply. In the case of Shakespeare, books with this sort of focus have not been readily available. Accents on Shakespeare aims to meet this need.

Gathering some of the most exciting scholarship in the field, these edited volumes apply and adapt theory in order to reflect and engage with the major developments in Shakespearean studies of the last ten years. These deeply engaging books will be an essential addition to the bookshelf of any student or enthusiast of Shakespeare.

Shakespeare has variously been seen as the last great exponent of premodern Western culture, a crucial inaugurator of modernity, and a prophet of postmodernity. This exciting collection of essays traces the changing reception of Shakespeare over the past four hundred years. Along the way it provides fascinating insights into: the nature of individuality, identity, and the self; the inter-relations of the rise of capitalism, nation-states, and secular culture; the sexual division of labor and gender identity; and the beginnings of Western colonialism, racism, and anti-Semitism. This fresh look at Shakespeare's plays is an important contribution to the revival of the idea of 'modernity' and how we periodize ourselves, and Shakespeare, at the beginning of a new millennium.

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