William Shakespeare, Hamlet

The authors survey 'Hamlet' as a phenomenon - a myth - as well as Hamlet as a play, from its pre-Shakespearean origins to its presence in the latest novel or film. Through attention to different versions of the play (including the possibility that Shakespeare himself may have written more than one version), they analyse the extraordinary achievements of Hamlet and the ways in which these have been interpreted and appropriated by generations of actors, audiences, and readers.