Marxist Shakespeares

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.Marxist Shakespeares uses the rich analytic resources of the Marxist tradition to look at Shakespeare's plays afresh. The essays collected here reveal the continuing power of Marxist thought to address many issues including: the relationship of texts to social class; the historical construction of the aesthetic; and the utopian dimensions of literary production. This book offers new insights into the historical conditions within which Shakespeare's representations of class and gender emerged, and into Shakespeare's role in the global culture industry stretching from Hollywood to the Globe Theatre. Marxist Shakespeares will be a vital resource for students of Shakespeare as it examines Marx's own readings of Shakespeare, Derrida's engagement with Marx, and the importance of Bourdieu, Bataille, Negri, and Alice Clark with a continuing tradition of Marxist thought.