Shakespeare's Moral Compass

Overturns orthodox thinking about morality in Shakespeare's plays by updating our understanding of the human mind
This ground-breaking study fearlessly combines latest research in evolutionary psychology, historical scholarship and philosophy to answer a question that has eluded critics for centuries: what is Shakespeare's moral vision? At a political and cultural moment in which many of us are taking stock and looking for meaning, and in which moral outrage and polarisation seem endemic, this book radically reimagines how we might approach great works of literature to find some answers.
Key Features
Provocatively outlines how we might read literature for ethical contentBrings latest research on morality from evolutionary psychology and sociology to bear on the study of Shakespeare's playsComprehensive coverage of moral philosophy in Shakespeare's time and place, including the impact of the Renaissance, the Reformation and the rise of capitalismPlots 'Shakespeare's moral compass' on six foundations (Authority, Loyalty, Fairness, Sanctity, Care, Liberty) with a chapter on each

Author: Neema Parvini
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Published: 09/11/2018
Pages: 352
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.40lbs
Size: 9.30h x 6.40w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9781474432870

About the Author

Neema Parvini is Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Surrey. His previous books include Shakespeare's History Plays (EUP, 2012), Shakespeare and Contemporary Theory (Bloomsbury, 2012), Shakespeare and Cognition (Palgrave, 2015) and Shakespeare and New Historicist Theory (Bloomsbury, 2017).