Overview

The works of William Shakespeare vividly represent for our admiration and study a pageant of souls with longing in whose wake we ceaselessly follow. Through some of his most memorable characters, Shakespeare illuminates the nature and character-as well as consequences-of our distinctively human passions and ambition, in particular our desire for and pursuit of both honor and love. The contributors to this collaborative volume (scholars in English Literature, Political Philosophy, and the Humanities) argue that Shakespeare has much to teach us about our longing for honor and love in particular, and thus about who we are, what we desire, and why. Through sustained reflection on the Shakespearean portraits of honor and love, which are the focus of the chapters in Souls With Longing, we become more keenly aware of our own humanity and come to know ourselves more profoundly. As the abiding popularity of his works aptly demonstrates, Shakespeare's unforgettable portraits of souls with longing-his representations of honor and love-continue to exert undeniable sway over our political, moral, and romantic imaginations.

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9780739165416

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Reviews

The essays in this collection artfully bring together careful readings of the Shakespearean texts and some of the enduring issues of the political philosophic tradition. Serious students from both sets of disciplines will find in these fruitful encounters much food for thought. --Jules Gleicher

How strange the idea, and yet how compelling, that our greatest poet could also be our greatest teacher. These excellent essays return us to the problem of combining honor and love, the demand for dignity with the longing for something better. -- Mansfield, Harvey C. The essays in this collection artfully bring together careful readings of the Shakespearean texts and some of the enduring issues of the political philosophic tradition. Serious students from both sets of disciplines will find in these fruitful encounters much food for thought. -- Jules Gleicher This engaging collection of essays looks intently at conflicts of honor and eros in Troilus and Cressida, friendship and love in Henry V, love and sex in Romeo and Juliet, nature and convention in As You Like It, moral absolutes and political relativities everywhere, and much more. This highly readable book helps clarify why Shakespeare remains top billing not just in high schools and universities but in the popular imagination. -- Bevington, David

How strange the idea, and yet how compelling, that our greatest poet could also be our greatest teacher. These excellent essays return us to the problem of combining honor and love, the demand for dignity with the longing for something better. --Mansfield, Harvey C.

Author Information

Bernard J. Dobski is associate professor and chair of political science at Assumption College. Dustin A. Gish is visiting assistant professor in the Political Science Department at the College of The Holy Cross.

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