Annotated Bibliography

Title: Wherefore art thou, bae Romeo?

Thesis:

Because [Shakespeare’s] text is considered as some of the finest English work, changes to the text are widely discouraged. Modernizing the text is recent trend that has been growing as the millennial generation has begun discovering Shakespeare. When changes to the text with the intent of modernizing it occur, they are often critiqued as simplifying timeless classics for the lazy readers of today. However, I argue that 21st century adaptations of Shakespeare that translate the text into modern terms include our changing, growing millennial vocabulary, similar to Shakespeare’s invention and inclusion of many then-new words and phrases.

Delabastita, Dirk. There's a Double Tongue: An Investigation into the Translation of Shakespeare's Wordplay, with Special Reference to Hamlet. Atlanta: Rodopi, 1993. Print.

This book has helped me ground my argument that modernizing Shakespeare’s text with millennial vocabulary isn't as foreign as it sounds. Translating Shakespeare into other languages presents the dilemma— must the text sacrifice its poetic rhythm or pun-based wordplay in order to convey enough of the plot in the new language? Showing that translations of Shakespeare retain their universal appeal and value without retaining the exact language allows me to then argue that the millennial adaptations of Shakespeare’s text are no worse than translations into languages other than the original English.

Halio, Jay L. Romeo and Juliet: A Guide to the Play. Westport, Conn. [u.a.: Greenwood, 1998. Print.

I haven’t read this in its entirety, but I skimmed it in the library and decided this is a useful resource for my discussion of Romeo and Juliet. It discusses the changes between folios and the context for the play.

Hope, Jonathan. Shakespeare And Language : Reason, Eloquence And Artifice In The Renaissance. London: Arden Shakespeare, 2010. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

This book begins with a chapter discussing the conventions of language in the Renaissance and then follows up with a chapter about Shakespeare using that Renaissance language— gold for my paper! This will help me give context for Shakespeare’s flights of wit.

Hunt, Maurice. "Poetry vs. Plot in The Winter's Tale: Modernity and Morality in M. M. Mahood's Shakespeare's Wordplay." Connotations: A Journal for Critical Debate 6.1 (1996): 8-18. Print.

This article draws from a chapter in the book I skimmed, mentioned a citation below. I appreciated being able to read a condensed version of the argument and an extension of the wordplay discussion in regards to “The Winter’s Tale.” Though that won’t be the play I focus on primarily in my discussion, I will draw on some of the witty bits of information from this article to establish how much Shakespeare played around with English when writing these plays.

Mahood, M. M. "Romeo and Juliet." Shakespeare's Wordplay. 2nd ed. London: Routlege, 1958. 56-73. Print.

This entire book discusses Shakespeare’s innovative wordplay— puns, the creation of new words. I skimmed the beginning, but jumped straight to the Romeo and Juliet chapter because that it the play I’m using as the center of my paper since it’s the one that most people have come in contact with. It’s helping me demonstrate Shakespeare’s unprecedented wordplay (something we’re used to and attribute to him) in the hopes of later making the link that it’s just as radical as adapting his texts to the modern generation. With his wordplay, Shakespeare makes old stories and themes accessible to his generation, of all classes.

Annotated Bibliography: Death and Reconciliation in Shakespearean Tragedy

"Good Night, Sweet Prince": Death and Reconciliation in Shakespearean Tragedy

Although each of the deaths of tragic heroes contribute to the natural bleakness and pessimism of tragedy, they also add an element of hope to the end of the play because they provide an opportunity for reconciliation and redemption for the tragic hero as well as other characters within the play.

Foreman, Walter C., Jr. The Music of the Close: The Final Scenes of Shakespeare's Tragedies. Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky, 1978. Print.

Foreman goes through the final scenes of Shakespearean tragedies to explore the different forms of character deaths and how for most of them, death is both desirable and an art form that they can use to effect society even after they die. He focuses specifically on Hamlet, Othello, Antony and Cleopatra, and King Lear. I'll use this in contrasting the differences between the three plays that I am using and also while talking about characters who use death to achieve their aims.

Hutton, Virgil. "Hamlet's Fear of Death." The University Review 37.1 (1970): 11-19. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Jennifer Gariepy. Vol. 74. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literature Criticism Online. Web. 30 Nov. 2015. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CFIVCVB428478382&v=2.1&u=byuprovo&it=r&p=LCO&sw=w>

Hutton discusses Hamlet's soliloquies and shows how his fear of death changes throughout the play from a very Christian acceptance of death at the beginning of the play, to a more logical fear of death and what follows, and finally to a more mature acceptance of death and its consequences by the end of the play. I will use this to show how Hamlet is able to reconcile and prepare himself for death.

Reid, B. L. "The Last Act and the Action of Hamlet." The Yale Review 54.1 (1964): 59-80. Rpt. in Shakespearean Criticism. Ed. Laurie Lanzen Harris. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 1984. Literature 
Criticism Online. Web. 30 Nov. 2015. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CGQNKRS610713360&v=2.1&u=byuprovo&it=r&p=LCO&sw=w>

Reid goes through Act V of Hamlet and shows how Hamlet comes to be a hero to his society who sacrifices himself in order to rescue his nation from its diseased state. I'll use this in talking about how Hamlet's death benefits other characters within the play and allows them to have hope.

Ribner, Irving. "Othello and the Pattern of Shakespearean Tragedy." TSE: Tulane Studies in English 5 (1955): 69-82. Rpt. in Shakespearean Criticism. Ed. Mark W. Scott. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1987. Literature Criticism Online. Web. 30 Nov. 2015. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CEQXLGB483071877&v=2.1&u=byuprovo&it=r&p=LCO&sw=w>

Ribner discusses how Othello is related to medieval plays by explaining how Othello is essentially a good man who sins, but then repents and is redeemed through his suicide. I'll use this in explaining Othello's reasons for killing himself and how his suicide can be seen as hopeful and redemptive.

Stirling, Brents. "Reputation, Reputation, Reputation!" Unity in Shakespearian Tragedy: The Interplay of Theme and Character, 1956. Rpt. in Shakespearean Criticism. Ed. Mark W. Scott. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1987. Literature Criticism Online. Web. 30 Nov. 2015. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CKJKDVO171429994&v=2.1&u=byuprovo&it=r&p=LCO&sw=w>

Stirling discusses the theme of reputation in Othello and how Othello goes from having a normal view of honor and reputation to having an obsession with it and then at the end of the play, returns to having a normal view. I will use this in talking about how Othello commits suicide partially to maintain his honor and reputation.

West, Robert H. "The Christianness of Othello & King Lear." Shakespeare & the Outer Mystery. Robert H. West. University of Kentucky Press, 1968. 127-166. Rpt. in Shakespearean Criticism. Ed. Laurie Lanzen Harris and Mark W. Scott. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 1985. Literature Criticism Online. Web. 30 Nov. 2015. <http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CBDEKZV867833121&v=2.1&u=byuprovo&it=r&p=LCO&sw=w&authCount=1>

West argues against critics who point out the pessimism in King Lear by pointing out themes of procreation, morality, love, and hope throughout the play and specifically in the ending. I'll use it in talking about the death of King Lear and how it is hopeful despite the fact that it is unexpected and a reaction to the death of Cordelia.

Annotated Bibliography: the hypocrisy of Henry V's character

The Hypocrisy of Henry V

“His hypocrisy… must be more the result of calculation than simple charisma, more diligence than luck, and this is what makes Shakespeare’s King Henry such a capable king.”

Bibliography:

Bates, Jennifer Ann. Hegel and Shakespeare on Moral Imagination. Albany: State U of New York, 2010. Print.

         This is a really interesting discussion of morality and its mutability, especially (in Shakespeare) for kings. So this will be an interesting discussion of the effect of Henry’s station on his morality, which I am hoping to tie in.

Bloom, Harold, and Albert Rolls. Henry V. New York: Bloom's Literary Criticism, 2010. Print.

         This book is one I am really excited about, it is devoted to Shakespeare’s Henry V and has an in-depth discussion on the hypocritical nature of Henry’s kingship. I will definitely be using this source to demonstrate said hypocrisy and I also think it will support my own argument in many ways.

Boyce, Charles. Critical Companion to William Shakespeare: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work. New York: Facts on File, 2005. Print.

         This book had a fascinating and in depth discussion of Henry and compared two different views of his character – one of him as the ideal king, and on of him as the hypocritical military king. This is exactly what I’m focusing on, so this well be perfect for my paper, and has a lot of material I can work with. It also uses many of the same examples from the text as I plan on using, so it will help support my argument.

Clark, Sandra. Hutchinson Shakespeare Dictionary: An A-Z Guide to Shakespeare's Plays, Characters, and Contemporaries. London: Hutchinson, 1986. Print.

         This source really focuses on the historical figure of Henry V, which is necessary to look at for my paper. Shakespeare did take some liberties with his play, so I need to check my facts against history. Though I am using Shakespeare as the lens with which to analyze Henry V, I want it to fit with the “real” Henry just as much.

Davis, J. Madison., and A. Daniel. Frankforter. The Shakespeare Name Dictionary. New York: Garland, 1995. Print.

         This source was a really interesting one, as it looks at both Shakespeare’s Henry and the historical Henry. It also discusses the young Prince Hal’s transition to kingship and power, which is something that is crucial to my paper. I definitely will have a use for this source.

"Henry's Hypocrisy: Terrorism and Tyranny." The Creatively Maladjusted. N.p., 16 Dec. 2012. Web. 02 Dec. 2015. <https://judgian12365.wordpress.com/2012/12/16/henrys-hypocrisy-terrorism-and-tyranny/>.

         This is a less academic source, but I took Professor Burton’s advice and was exploring a little bit for less conventional sources and found this blog. It has a slightly similar premise to my paper but takes it to an extreme. I am not sure if I am going to use it yet, but if I did it would be to refute it.

Annotative Bibliography: Shakespeare not in Love

Working Paper Title: Shakespeare not in Love

Working Thesis:   Contrary to what the populous believes, William Shakespeare is not the grand writer of an idealistic love that has been within our culture but instead uses humor and exaggerations to show the ridiculousness of societies view on what love is and gives his own definition of love. 

Coullie, Judith L. "Jack Shall Have Jill": The Ideology of Love in A Midsummer Night's Dream." Sabinet Reference. Shakespeare in South Africa, 1992. Web.

Here Coullie talks about how the ideology of love functions in a way that serves societal systems of gender, class, and familial and political hierarchy. I will use this article to show how Shakespeare has used love, something that culturally has been viewed as pure, as a tool to support societal roles and hierarchy.

Karandashev, Victor. "A Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love." Http://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/. International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology, 6 Jan. 2015. Web. 

Karadashev talks about what society thinks love is and gives a clear definition. I will use this article to define what the cultural perspective of love is and then compare that to how Shakespeare has written what love is in his plays. 

Schalkwyk, David. "Is Love an Emotion?: Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night and Antony and Cleopatra." Literature Criticism Online. N.p., 2010. Web.

Schalkwyk talks about how the definition of emotions in the academic circle has changed and how that plays into these two Shakespearean plays. I wish to use this to cross reference with the other article that defines what people believe love to be. 

Scheff, Thomas J.. “Gender Wars: Emotions in "much Ado About Nothing"”. Sociological Perspectives36.2 (1993): 149–166. Web...

Scheff explains how Shakespeare, even in his lightheartedness, has shown love to be something comparable to pre-war like behavior between nations; it is an emotion that carries anger, shame, tension, and conflict. Shakespeare has used love as some kind of social commentary instead of writing it to show what an ideal romantic relationship is and I wish to use that and other articles to form what Shakespeare thought love was.   

Wheelock, C. Webster. ""Not Life, but Love in Death": Oxymoron at the Thematic Heart of "Romeo and Juliet"" The English Journal 74.2 (1985): 70-73. JSTOR. Web. 02 Dec. 2015. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/816274?ref=search-gateway:0a2c6811ed2f6734cc3cf55d6a156ec5>.

Wheelock writes a creative essay that the form of a story and interview combination with Shakespeare. Here they talk about the oxymoronic pun that Shakespeare has made in Romeo and Juliet concerning marriage, sex, and death. I want to use this article to show how Shakespeare has used this pun as a dark humor element to point out the ridiculousness the love between Romeo and Juliet is.  

Annotated Bibliography: Gender Dynamics, Transvestitism, and Twelfth Night.

Working Title: She's The Man: The Dynamics of Gender Identity and Transvesticism in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night.
Working Thesis:  A close examination of the play Twelfth Night suggests the significance of the romantic pairings within the plot. They exist not to symbolize heterosexuality as the social norm, but rather to challenge gender identity and sexuality all together. Viola's character demonstrates that gender is a fluid identity and not a permanent role received at birth depending on genitalia. By doing so, Shakespeare challenges binary gender identities and the entire notion of it.

1. Orgel, Stephen. “The Performance of Gender in Shakespeare’s England.” Impersonations: 53-82. Rpt. in Cambridge UP, 1996.

This book focuses on why men played female roles in drama, how did cross-dressing impact on the plays of Shakespeare and his contemporaries, and how society made sense of women who significantly and successfully violated accepted gender boundaries in Shakespeare. I will use this in my paper to connect how gender identities in Shakespeare's plays made an impact on that era.

2. Donno, Elizabeth Story. Twelfth Night or What You Will: The New Cambridge Shakespeare. Cambridge University Press, 2004.

In this book she analyzes the play's balance between romance and realism and its exploration of gender, sexuality and identity. I will use this to draw some insight from how the play speaks on gender identity and how it is interpreted through the play.

3. Carlos-Manuel. "A Funny Joto And An Immigrant: Theater For Awareness And Social Change." Aztlan 39.1 (2014): 207-214. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

The article talks about how theater has educating audiences about the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender in our era. It explains how theatre has become a tool for pushing social norms and causing social change. I will use this article to examine how cross-gender theatre has impacted society today in contrast with how it impacted Shakespeare's era.

4. Gardner, Sarah. "Choice Theory: Gender Roles And Identity." International Journal Of Choice Theory & Reality Therapy 35.1 (2015): 31-36. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

This article focuses solely on how gender is determined socially. It explains socially constructed gender roles, gender identity, and how they came about. I will use this article to help me define gender-identity in my paper.

5. Thomas, Catherine. "Nunn's Sweet Transvestite: Desiring Viola In Twelfth Night." Journal Of Popular Culture 41.2 (2008): 306-320. Academic Search Premier. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.

This article analyzes how cross-dressing and gender identity has been portrayed in Shakespeare's play  Twelfth Night. It focuses on Viola's representation of gender identity and brings in a different light on how transvestitism was involved in Shakespeare's play. I will use this to draw insights into my thesis because this essay is similar to how I am going to structure mine.

Annotated Bibliography: How Music Orders the World of Twelfth Night

Working Paper Title: Achieving Musical Harmony in Twelfth Night

Working Thesis Statement: My goal in this paper is to show that the Renaissance idea of musical harmony being produced through a combination of sweet and jarring sounds explains the conflicting resolved and unresolved plots in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.

Duffin, Ross W. Shakespeare’s Songbook. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2004. Print.

Duffin combines the music and text of the ballads used and referenced in Shakespeare’s plays in addition to some criticism and how they are integrated into the text. One of my main points is to link certain characters and plots with the idea of “sweet” (consonant) and “jarring” (dissonant) musical intervals. These aspects of their characters come out more readily through the ballads that they sing and reference, so I’ll refer to this book throughout my paper.

Wilson, Christopher R. Shakespeare’s Musical Imagery. London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2011. EBSCO. Web. 22 Nov. 2015. <http://web.a.ebscohost.com.erl.lib.byu.edu/ehost/ebookviewer/ebook/bmxlYmtfXzU5NTUwM19fQU41?sid=f93d4e70-907a-4d2f-abf5-1b2a837fae15@sessionmgr4003&vid=0&format=EB&rid=1>

Wilson’s book is a comprehensive look at Shakespeare’s use of musical techniques and imagery throughout his plays, and particularly sets forth a connection between Shakespeare and the musical idea of Concordia discor, tensions produce harmony. I will use this idea in my first couple of paragraphs to explain how Shakespeare follows it to create a fulfilling ending to Twelfth Night.

Ko, Yu Jin. “The Comic Close of Twelfth Night and Viola’s Noli me tangere.” Shakespeare Quarterly 48.4 (1997): 391-405. JSTOR. Web. 22 Nov. 2015. <http://www.jstor.org.erl.lib.byu.edu/stable/2871251?origin=crossref&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents>

This paper does not deal with music but stresses how sustaining desire to achieve pleasure is the main point of Twelfth Night. I will use this paper to help prove Concordia Discors is being used in the play, because this is a result of that tension.

Neill, Michael. “‘Noises, / Sounds, and Sweet Airs’: The Burden of Shakespeare’s ‘Tempest.’” Shakespeare Quarterly 59.1 (2008): 35-59. JSTOR. Web. 1 Dec. 2015. <http://www.jstor.org.erl.lib.byu.edu/stable/40210245?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents>

Neill gives an indepth analysis of the difference between noise and music in The Tempest and how it emphasises the themes of the play. I will use it to compare and contrast it to Twelfth Night, which is one of the most musical of Shakespeare’s plays after The Tempest.

Feste’s “‘Whirligig’ and the Comic Providence of Twelfth Night.’” ELH 40.4 (1973): 501-513. JSTOR. Web. 1 Dec. 2015. <http://www.jstor.org.erl.lib.byu.edu/stable/2872556?origin=crossref&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents>

This essay focuses on how Maria and Feste’s plot against Malvolio is human control and the main plot is resolved because of otherworldly control. I will use this in my body paragraphs to show how Maria and her cohorts connect with the musical idea of jarring and the main plot characters produce sweet harmony.

West, E. J. “Bradleyan Reprise: On the Fool in ‘Twelfth Night.’” The Shakespeare Association Bulletin 24.4 (1949): 264-274. JSTOR. Web. 1 Dec. 2015. <http://www.jstor.org.erl.lib.byu.edu/stable/23675133?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents>

This is an extended analysis of Feste but also mentions his songs as well. Mostly I will use it for one quote that talks about how Shakespeare gives his own opinion on the action through the songs. It is important because I will be using the songs a lot in my analysis to describe the characters sweet or jarring-ness in the play.

Annotated Bib 2.0: Shakespeare's Fool as Rhetorical Device

Title: “Almost at times, the Fool”: Shakespeare’s Fool as a Rhetorical Device in Modern Television

Thesis: Shakespeare's professional fools, while serving particular commentary on and perspective for characters in the original plays, have evolved to become prolific rhetorical devices within a fictional world by maintaining truthfulness, interpreting unfamiliar in-world norms, and remaining distinct from set cultural norms in order to bridge any disconnect between a TV series and its audience.

Cuthbertson, Thomas H. The Fool’s Replies: Toward a Poetics of Folly in Shakespeare’s Comedies. Diss. Indiana University, 2014. ProQuest: 3613685. Print.

While this might be the longest .pdf on the planet, it does directly speak to the unique role of Feste as immune to social hierarchies within Twelfth Night. Freedom from social constraints is one of the easy identifiers for entertainment Fools.

Gunn, Giles. “American Literature and the Imagination of Otherness.” Journal of Religious Ethics 3.2 (Fall, 1975): 193–215. JSTOR. Web. 25 November 2015. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/40014895>

Giles Gunn explores how developing ideas of otherness throughout American history shaped American fiction. Since one of my criteria for a Fool requires a sense of otherness, I’m using Gunn’s essay as a base point for how otherness is defined in American culture.

Jensen, Nettie. “Feste and Lear’s Fool: Different Genres, Same Function.” This Rough Magic 1.1 (January, 2010): 115–125. Print. 

Nettie Jensen discusses the shared role of Fools as truth tellers. I find this a consistent attribute in modern Fools, so being able to have scholarly support on which to base my conclusions is vital.

Meyer, Russell J. “Fools and Fool-Makers: Types of Comic Characters in Renaissance Literature.” Journal of Rocky Mountain Medieval and Renaissance Association 1 (1980): 39–46. Print.

Meyer breaks down the four categories of Fool in Shakespeare’s plays, distinguishing “natural” fools from “professional” fools. Instead of delving into disparate versions of Shakespeare’s fool, I get to piggyback off of Meyer’s work! This article provides really useful categorization.

Porter, Lynnette. Tarnished Heroes, Charming Villains and Modern Monsters: Science Fiction in Shades of Gray on 21st Century Television. Jefferson: McFarland Publishers, 2010.

Porter explores the shifting paradigm of morality in modern sci-fi television and how it reflects evolving cultural reactions to unprecedented shifts in ethics. I've found that Porter's reasoning behind shifting morals in contemporary entertainment provides an excellent frame for my discussion.