Antony and Cleopatra (Dover Thrift Editions)
Category: Books,Literature & Fiction,Dramas & Plays
Antony and Cleopatra (Dover Thrift Editions) Details
From the Back Cover In one of Shakespeare's finest tragedies, a once-great general finds himself torn between his duty to the Roman Empire and his passionate attachment to Cleopatra, the alluring "Queen of the Nile." In depicting the collision of two contrasting cultures, the playwright portrays a timeless paradox of human nature, the quest for seemingly irreconcilable goals.The action of the play ranges from the rugged quarters of military camps to the luxurious atmosphere of the Egyptian court. In the latter milieu Antony lingers, shamed by his overwhelming passion for Cleopatra yet irresistibly drawn toward love as a source of vitality and renewal. After ignoring increasingly urgent demands by his co-ruler, Octavius Caesar, for his return to Rome, Antony reluctantly obeys at last, marrying Octavius's sister and forming a fragile political alliance. This bond shatters when he returns to Cleopatra's side. Octavius declares war on the lovers, forcing them into a battle for world domination with dramatic and lasting consequences. Read more About the Author "He was not of an age, but for all time," declared Ben Jonson of his contemporary William Shakespeare (1564–1616). Jonson's praise is especially prescient, since at the turn of the 17th century Shakespeare was but one of many popular London playwrights and none of his dramas were printed in his lifetime. The reason so many of his works survive is because two of his actor friends, with the assistance of Jonson, assembled and published the First Folio edition of 1623. Read more
Reviews
I got this for my nephew to read when he needed to read 'Antony and Cleopatra'. He hadn't read much Shakespeare, so it was nice to have a version that included the explanations/definitions of certain terms and phrases. The notes are in red, distinguishing it from Shakespeare's actual words. I find it better than the side-by-side style I read in middle and high school (One side of the page had the actual Shakespeare dialogue, the opposite page had a simple English version) It wasn't the worst, but it disrupted my flow to be reading the original, need to turn and scan the next page if I came to a word I didn't understand, and then go back to find my place and keep reading. The style used in this version is much more natural, and it is much easier for a reader to keep on reading.
