Richard II
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Richard II Details
Richard II is one of Shakespeare’s finest works: lucid, eloquent, and boldly structured. It can be seen as a tragedy, or a historical play, or a political drama, or as one part of a vast dramatic cycle which helped to generate England’s national identity. Today, to some of us, Richard II may appear conservative; but, in Shakespeare’s day, it could appear subversive: ‘I am Richard II’, declared an indignant Queen Elizabeth. Numerous recent revivals in the theatre and on screen have demonstrated the enduring power and poignancy of this drama of the downfall of an egoistic but pitiable monarch.
Reviews
Modern Library does a great job with extensive but not-too obtrusive annotations.From the point of view of chronology, the action in Richard II is the beginning of the history of the monarchy in England at Shakespeare's time; if you want to read the plays that deal with Shakespeare's depiction of the events leading up to the political situation in England in Shakespeare's time, you start with Richard II.