Shakespeare: The Word and The Action Part 1 and 2 (Lecture Transcript and Course Guidebook, Part I & 2)

By Peter Saccio

Book Overview

Shakespeare: The Word and the Action (16 lectures, 45 minutes/lecture) Course No. 273 Taught by Peter Saccio Dartmouth College Ph.D., Princeton University 16 Audio Cds with Course Outline Booklet This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1565856201
• ISBN13: 9781565856202
• Release Date: January 1995
• Publisher: The Teaching Company
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The play is the thing.

Hamlet: I'll have grounds. More relative than this—the play's the thing Wherein I'll catch the conscience of the King. Hamlet Act 2, scene 2, 603–605 You would not be reading this review if you did not think you already have a pretty good handle on Shakespeare. You have probably already seen a few plays (at the movies or in the theater) and or read several of his plays. You might even be familiar with some of his sonnets. Yet, as most of us have to be told that our shoes are untied, there is much more to Shakespeare than what we can extrapolate on our own. Now it is time to have a second set of eyes or ears, as you would show us depths that we may not have attained in understanding Shakespeare, the word and the action. This is a great set of lectures by Prof. Peter Saccio. One thing you have to watch out for in Great Courses is religious fanatics disguising themselves as professors. In this case, you do not have to worry that you have the real thing. It is sort of ironic that his first statement is that most people don’t like Shakespeare because their first encounter was with the teacher who wanted to pull everything apart until the students understand how it works, instead of just enjoying themselves with observations. Then he turns around and uses this course to pull everything apart. But you will find that his polling is a lot more enjoyable. He suggests that this course can be taken by someone who has not heard any of his previous lectures, and that might be so; however, if you’re just coming into Shakespeare with no background, you may be lost in some of the quotes and points that he makes. You do not have to get everything out of these lectures; however, there is something in them for everybody, and re-watching them after having time to think and read will add more richness to their second viewing and third and fourth. Contents: Lecture 1: Shakespeare’s Wavelengths Lecture 2: The Multiple Actions of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” Lecture 3: The Form of Shakespeare’s Sonnets Lecture 4: Love in Shakespeare’s Sonnets Lecture 5: love and artifice in “Love’s Labour’s Lost” and “Much Ado About Nothing.” Lecture 6: “As You Like It” Lecture 7: The Battles of “Henry VI” Lecture 8: “Richard III” and the Renaissance