Approaching Shakespeare

by Oxford University

Each lecture in this series focuses on a single play by Shakespeare, and employs a range of different approaches to try to understand a central critical question about it. Rather than providing overarching readings or interpretations, the series aims to show the variety of different ways we might understand Shakespeare, the kinds of evidence that might be used to strengthen our critical analysis, and, above all, the enjoyable and unavoidable fact that Shakespeare's plays tend to generate our questions rather than answer them.

Episodes

The Merchant of Venice

43m · Published 20 Nov 16:55

This lecture on The Merchant of Venice discusses the ways the play's personal relationships are shaped by models of financial transaction, using the casket scenes as a central example.

Taming of the Shrew

43m · Published 09 Nov 16:16

Emma Smith uses evidence of early reception and from more recent productions to discuss the question of whether Katherine is tamed at the end of the play.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

40m · Published 05 Nov 10:39

This lecture on A Midsummer Night's Dream uses modern and early modern understandings of dreams to uncover a play less concerned with marriage and more with sexual desire.

Much Ado About Nothing

41m · Published 30 Oct 12:15

Emma Smith asks why the characters are so quick to believe the self-proclaimed villain Don John, drawing on gender and performance criticism to think about male bonding, the genre of comedy, and the impulses of modern performance.

Hamlet

46m · Published 23 Oct 17:08

The fact that father and son share the same name in Hamlet is used to investigate the play's nostalgia, drawing on biographical criticism and the religious and political history of early modern England.

As You Like It

49m · Published 23 Oct 17:02

Asking 'what happens in As You Like It', this lecture considers the play's dramatic structure and its ambiguous use of pastoral, drawing on performance history, genre theory, and eco-critical approaches.

King Lear

47m · Published 22 Feb 17:43

Showing how generations of critics - and Shakespeare himself - have rewritten the ending of King Lear, this sixteenth Approaching Shakespeare lecture engages with the question of tragedy and why it gives pleasure.

King John

45m · Published 10 Feb 17:12

At the heart of King John is the death of his rival Arthur: this fifteenth lecture in the Approaching Shakespeare series looks at the ways history and legitimacy are complicated in this plotline.

Pericles, Prince of Tyre

40m · Published 01 Feb 16:15

Pericles has been on the margins of the Shakespearean canon: this fourteenth lecture in the Approaching Shakespeare series shows some of its self-conscious artistry and contemporary popularity. This podcast has been re-recorded due to technical problems with the original recording. There is no accompanying eBook for this lecture as Pericles is not included in the First Folio.

Richard III

45m · Published 25 Jan 15:27

In this thirteenth lecture in the Approaching Shakespeare series the focus is on the inevitability of the ending of Richard III: does the play endorse Richmond's final victory?

Approaching Shakespeare has 32 episodes in total of non- explicit content. Total playtime is 24:51:23. The language of the podcast is English. This podcast has been added on July 28th 2022. It might contain more episodes than the ones shown here. It was last updated on June 1st, 2024 06:40.