Shakespeare's Political and Economic Language: A Dictionary

(Hardback)

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Shakespeare's plays are pervaded by political and economic words and concepts, not only in the histories and tragedies but also in the comedies and romances. The lexicon of political and economic language in Shakespeare does not consist merely of arcane terms whose shifting meanings require exposition, but includes an enormous number of relatively simple words which possess a structural significance in the configuration of meanings. Often operating by such means as puns, they open up a surprising number of possibilities. The purpose of this Dictionary is to reveal the conceptual nucleus of each term and explore the contexts in which it is embedded. The dictionary covers the whole spectrum from jokes to political invective. The overlap between the political and economic dimensions of a word in Shakespeare's drama is particularly exciting as he is highly attuned to the interactions of these two spheres of human activity and their centrality in human affairs.

Reviews

Authoritative guides to major subject-areas covered by Shakespeare's poetry and plays. * Bookseller Buyers Guide *
This is no ordinary dictionary giving basic meanings and alternatives to words. It does explain the meanings of words, but also gives examples, showing the nuances of meaning, illustrating each one with an excerpt from the text. It is a huge undertaking - attempting to hone all of Shakespeare's variety of language and tame it into order, whilst exploring the various branches of it; to contain it, yet letting it blossom in all its glory - and Viv [the author] succeeds in doing this... This dictionary is the richest of tapestries, tightly knit; the relevant concepts and motifs connected with colourful threads producing wonderful images of the plays. It is woven with craftsmanship, creativeness and imagination. -- Angela Pulford * Shakespeare Society's journal: A Groat'sworth of Wit *
Unlike many general and subject dictionaries... this volume by Thomas focuses on the multifunctional rather than the literal meaning of the words. Recommended. * Choice *

Author Bio

Vivian Thomas was formerly Lecturer in English at the universities of Birmingham and Warwick. A graduate of Oxford and Cambridge universities he also studied at Columbia University, New York and the University of Moscow. Previously Lecturer in Economics at the University of St Andrews, he has been Visiting Lecturer at the New University of Lisbon, the universities of Cologne, Gdansk and Valenciennes. His publications include: The Moral Universe of Shakespeares Problem Plays; Shakespeares Roman Worlds; Julius Caesar and Shakespeares Plants and Gardens: A Dictionary (Bloomsbury, 2014).