The New Cambridge Shakespeare appeals to readers worldwide for its up-to-date scholarship and emphasis on performance. The series, edited by an expert international team, includes all Shakespeare's plays, sonnets and poems, presented in attractively designed volumes. 

• Modern-spelling texts have been freshly established by each editor according to modern scholarly principles, distinguishing carefully between alternative quarto and Folio readings 
• Lively introductions provide information on the date of composition, the theatrical and political context, sources, themes, language, critical reception and performance history 
• Informative illustrations give life to each play and cast light on a wide spectrum of historical, social and theatrical issues. Recreations of Shakespeare's stage and photographs from recent productions are included 
• Valuable commentary at the foot of each page explains word-meaning and allusions. 
• Precise details of staging and performance help students visualise the plays in action. 
• Stylish and spacious page layout preserves an uncluttered text and allows room for the user's annotations. 

For further details of the individual books available in New Cambridge Shakespeare, and to view pages from each book, please go to www.cambridge.org/ncs. 

General Editors: Brian Gibbons, University of Münster

Associate Editor: A. R. Braunmuller, University of California, Los Angeles

List of illustrations

Acknowledgements

Preface

List of abbreviations and conventions

Introduction:

Date

Puritanism, political allusion and censorship

The sources and their shaping

The play

The play on the stage

Note of the text

List of characters

THE PLAY

Textual analysis

Reading list