The Winter's Tale (Signet Classics)

People have tended to react one of two ways about The Winter’s Tale. One is exemplified by the Oxford World Classics edition and has a near one hundred page introduction. Here the editor sees perennial Shakespearean themes, comments on its subtleties and generally provides a defense of the play as a great work of art.On the other hand The Winter’s Tale has also consistently been derided as written when Shakespeare’s imaginative powers were declining (it is one of his last works). This is the typical reaction of a first time reader. One notices the lack of pithy sayings, the seeming disorder of the plot and the deus ex machina sort of ending.I can’t say that I differed from any other first time reader in seeing the play as largely an exercise in banality. But I plan on returning to the play and seeing whether I can start to see the brilliance described by the editor. My only recommendation is for first time readers to buy an edition with an ample introduction so that one gets a hint of the ostensible depth of the play.I did enjoy reading the Winter’s Tale. Perhaps the editor is right and there is depth beyond the surface inanity. But I would recommend this work only to those, like me, who cannot get enough of Shakespeare.

Picking up tis play to read I knew absolutley nothing about it other than having heard it's name. I have to say I am glad I took a chance on the unknown because this play was truly a pleasure to read. Once I got used to the English used in it reading it became almost melodic in my head. There is no doubt Shakespeare knew how to make words dance. This play almost feels like it should be two separate plays since they are so very different in feel. The first half a tragedy and the sequel a romance. I feel like Shakespeare wrote this play as sort of an homage to the Greek classics. if that was his intent, then I have to say he succeeded very well indeed. I loved that even with all the flowery language (multiple times requiring me to look up words) he quickly managed to start the film projector in my head I was seeing the action happening in my head. Truly a classic and I am so thrilled that my first foray into Shakespeare unknown to me was such a resounding success!!

I feel like this Shakespearian play doesn't get enough face time. The first time I ever saw its title, I was in High School, looking at the names of all the plays Shakespeare ever wrote. We all know about his overly famous plays, like Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night's Dream, but what about The Winter's Tale? I was intrigued by the title at the time, and the fact that I'd never heard of it before (and with a brother heavily into Shakespeare and acting, that was unusual). I've never seen this title on a playbill, though I'm sure it must be preformed somewhere, and my curiosity about this play was peaked--though in High School I didn't do anything about it. Recently, I had to teach Hamlet, and as I was looking on Amazon for a copy for my Kindle, I once again came across The Winter's Tale. As it was a free copy, I scooped it up and read it right away, just to assuage my curiosity.It was interesting. In my opinion, it's not really like Shakespeare's other plays. It's a bit intense in the beginning, and though there are comedic scenes, I wouldn't necessarily classify this as a comedy, nor a tragedy either. A romance, I suppose, but for me, it's a bit strange. Through a little research I found that Shakespeare actually modeled his play off Pandosto, by Robert Greene (which I've never read), but I, personally, see much of Oedipus Rex in this play. I know Shakespeare dealt a lot with Greek mythology in his works, and The Winter's Tale seems to really follow that of Oedipus Rex. I'm not going to give the entire synopsis away, or any spoilers, but, like Oedipus, King Leontes is a haughty man, paranoid. He refuses to listen to oracles and attempts to do away with his newborn child by sending her away to die. While there are many differences between The Winter's Tale and Oedipus, there are also many similarities and I found this rather interesting, especially because I really enjoy Oedipus. That being said, I'd like to see this play preformed someday, I always tend to like plays more when they're preformed, so I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for this one.(Please note: I use the star rating system of Goodreads, which is different from that of Amazon. My overall rating is that I liked it.)

This is just a synopsis of the play, and I could not find any documentation to indicate this fact! The reader is obviously not a native English speaker and has a thick accent and their cadence and inflection is entirely incorrect for the text they are reading. This recording is a total waste of time and money.

The Modern Library/RSC Shakespeare series IS a very valuable addition. Inexpensive edition of the plays, helpful scene-by-scene summaries of the action, etc. But by far the most valuable part of the half dozen volumes I have studied is the "In Performance" sections. This is what sets this series apart from most others. Here, are performance histories detailing a variety of historic interpretations, interviews with contemporary directors and actors, revealing how they interpreted the text, and turned it into a stage drama.

I saw the play at the Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Oregon, and decided it was time to read the words to see what I didn't quite hear. It's a fun play and different from Shakespeare's other works.

Good read for children

Find Shakespeare quite a challenge but after reading it several times I really was engrossed and enjoyed it.Needed to read it because I was going to a production of The Winters Tale at the Lyceum in Edinburgh. Brilliant production and now I am awakened to Shakespeare after 50 years Read Romeo and Juliet for O level and Othello for A level

like all Arden copies of Shakespeare's plays I have bought I cannot fault its content and all the information collated for the reader.I have not found any other editions of the plays which are so consistently useful.

Very happy with purchase.Thank you.

I had some problems to understand some things, but I liked the story. I could actually imagine the play in my head while I was reading it.

Excellent