Arden Student Skills: Language and Writing volumes offer a new type of
study aid that combines lively critical insight with practical guidance
on the writing skills you need to develop in order to engage fully with
Shakespeare's texts. The books' core focus is on language: both
understanding and enjoying Shakespeare's complex dramatic language and
expanding your own critical vocabulary as you respond to his plays. Each
guide in the series will empower you to read and write about Shakespeare
with increased confidence and enthusiasm.
King Lear: Language and Writing reveals how the play's elemental
power springs from its language, which is at once simple, relentless and
resonant, as well as from its full-blown double plot that multiplies
unbearably both the follies and the pain of its protagonists. Chapters
explore the play's status as a tragedy, its stagecraft, primary source
material and both its textual and theatre history. The 'Writing Matters'
section at the end of each chapter provides suggestions for activities
that can further enhance your understanding of the play. This is an
indispensable guide to Shakespeare's rich and complex dramatic language
and will improve and develop your critical writing skills.