A team of six eminent scholars who have, along with the general editors themselves, prepared new introductions and notes to all of Shakespeare's plays and poems. Redesigned in an easy-to-read format that preserves the favorite features of the original--and including an essay on the theatrical world of Shakespeare, and introduction to the individual play, and a note on the text used--the new Pelican Shakespeare will be an excellent resource for students,...

King Lear descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his estate between two of his three daughters based on their flattery, bringing tragic consequences for all.

In King Lear, one of Shakespeare's greatest and most enduring plays, an aging father's demand that his daughters publicly declare their love for him triggers a reaction that involves nations and brings suffering and death to his entire family. The play takes ordinary jealousies, demands for love, sibling rivalries, desires for money and power, and petty cruelties to the extreme. Designed to make Shakespeare's great plays available to all readers,...