"Not all the water in the rough rude sea/Can wash the balm off from an anointed king," declares the soon-to-be deposed ruler of this historical drama. Confident in his divine right, Richard II is an ineffective and unpopular king who abuses his power and sows the seeds of his own downfall. Toppled from the throne by Henry, his ambitious cousin, Richard only learns to value kingship after he loses it, achieving a tragic dignity only with his downfall....

The second play in William Shakespeare's tetralogy of plays which also includes "Richard II", "Henry IV, Part 2", and "Henry V", "Henry IV, Part 1" is believed to have been written no later than 1597. A history play, the drama concerns the unquiet reign of Henry Bolingbroke. Following the usurpation of the throne, Henry IV is plagued with guilt over his role in the imprisonment and death of King Richard II. In order to resolve himself of this internal...

Loyalty and Heredity-- King Henry VIII covers the period of Henry's reign from shortly after he becomes king to the birth of Elizabeth, who would one day become queen and for whom the play was written. The firing of a cannon during the very first performance of this play caused a fire that burnt the Globe theater to the ground. Heat not a furnace for your foe so hot That it do singe yourself. We may outrun By violent swiftness that which we run at,...

The writings of Shakespeare, with modern spelling and punctuation

"Since its composition in 1604, Measure for Measure has divided, and sometimes enraged, readers, actors, theater-goers, and literary critics alike because of its comic focus on the politics of sexuality, morality, and gender. For these reasons, the play has become central to studies of Shakespeare's canon and career. This Norton Critical Edition looks at the full range of opinion and interpretation of this controversial "problem" play from its origins...

Rosalind, daughter of the deposed Duke Senior, is exiled from the court by her wicked uncle. Disguising herself as a young man and accompanied by her cousin Celia and their loyal fool Touchstone, she takes refuge in the Forest of Arden. In the forest Rosalind meets young Orlando with whom she is in love, but her male disguise complicates matters, especially when Rosalind finds she has unwittingly attracted the shepherdess Phebe