Shakespeare, Elizabeth and Ivan: The Role of English-Russian Relations in Loves Labours Lost ISBN-13: 9781476684826

ISBN-13: 9781476684826

Binding: Paperback

Author: Greenhill, Rima

Details: Shakespeares comedy Loves Labours Lost has perplexed scholars and theatergoers for over 400 years due to its linguistic complexity, obscure topical allusions and decidedly non-comedic ending. According to traditional interpretations, it is Shakespeares “French” play, based on events and characters from the French Wars of Religion.
This work argues that the plays French surface conceals a Russian core. It outlines an interpretation of Loves Labours Lost rooted in diplomatic and trade relations between Russia and Elizabethan England during the dramatic decades following Englands discovery of a northern trade route to Muscovy in 1553. Drawing on original research of 16th-century sources in English, Latin and French, the text also surveys Russian sources previously unavailable in translation. This analysis provides new explanations for some of the plays previously most enigmatic elements, such as its unconventional ending, the significance of its secondary characters, linguistic anomalies and the Masque of the Muscovites itself.

Release Date: 05-04-2023

Package Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches

Languages: English

Number Of Pages: 264