The First Part of King Henry IV

This updated edition offers a strongly theatrical perspective on the origins of Shakespeare’s First Part of King Henry IV and the history of its interpretation. The introduction clarifies the play’s surprising, de-centred dramatic structure, questioning the dominant assumption that the drama focuses on the education of Prince Hal. It calls attention to the effects of civil war upon a broad range of relationships. Falstaff’s unpredictable vitality is explored, together with important contemporary values of honour, friendship, festivity and reformation. Extensive lexical glosses of obscure, ambiguous or archaic meanings make the rich wordplay accessible. The notes also provide a thorough commentary on Shakespeare’s transformation of his sources (particularly Holinshed’s Chronicles) and suggest alternative stagings. This updated edition contains a new introductory section by Katharine A. Craik, which describes recent stage, film and critical interpretations, and an updated reading list.

The New Cambridge Shakespeare appeals to students worldwide for its up-to-date scholarship and emphasis on performance. The series features line-by-line commentaries and textual notes on the plays and poems. Introductions are regularly refreshed with accounts of new critical, stage and screen interpretations. This second edition of The First Part of King Henry IV offers a theatrical perspective on the origins of Shakespeare's play and the history of its interpretation. In their introduction the editors, Herbert and Judith Weil, clarify the play's de-centred dramatic structure and call attention to the effects of civil war on a broad range of relationships. Falstaff's unpredictable vitality is also explored, together with such important contemporaneous values as honour, friendship, festivity and reformation. Lexical glosses make the rich wordplay accessible, while the notes provide a thorough commentary on Shakespeare's transformation of his sources. A supplementary section by Katharine Craik focuses on important modern interpretations.

Introduction: Reputation; Date; The design of the play; Transforming the sources; The appeal of Falstaff and the contexts of interpretation; Stage history; Recent stage, film and critical interpretations Katharine A. Craik; Note on the text; List of characters; The play; Textual analysis; Appendix: Shakespeare and Holinshed; Reading list.

This updated edition offers a strongly theatrical perspective on the origins of the play, and the history of its interpretation. The notes provide a thorough commentary on Shakespeare's transformation of his sources, and suggest alternative stagings. A new introductory section by Katharine Craik describes recent stage, film and critical interpretations.