Shakespeare's Philosophy - by Colin McGinn (Paperback)

About the Book

From "Hamlet" to "King Lear," the great plays of the Bard are examined from aphilosopher's unique perspective.

From the Back Cover

Shakespeare's plays are usually studied by literary scholars and historians and the books about him from those perspectives are legion. It is most unusual for a trained philosopher to give us his insight, as Colin McGinn does here, into six of Shakespeare's greatest plays--A Midsummer Night's Dream, Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, King Lear, and The Tempest.

In his brilliant commentary, McGinn explores Shakespeare's philosophy of life and illustrates how he was influenced, for example, by the essays of Montaigne that were translated into English while Shakespeare was writing. In addition to chapters on the great plays, there are also essays on Shakespeare and gender and his plays from the aspects of psychology, ethics, and tragedy.

As McGinn says about Shakespeare, "There is not a sentimental bone in his body. He has the curiosity of a scientist, the judgement of a philosopher, and the soul of a poet." McGinn relates the ideas in the plays to the later philosophers such as David Hume and the modern commentaries of critics such as Harold Bloom. The book is an exhilarating reading experience, especially at a time when a new audience has opened up for the greatest writer in English.

Review Quotes

"One must be able to get ideas across, so that the rest of us can understand them. This McGinn does in the book, with so much apparent ease and clarity that we can actually learn something. " - New York Times Book Review
"[McGinn] offers an absorbing memoir of his life....in the course of his narrative he takes up several philosophical questions with admirable lucidity....his book coveys as well what might be called the pleasures of thinking." - Wall Street Journal
"Colin McGinn has written a lucid and fascinating account of his philosophical Bildung. It will strike many a sympathetic chord in the bosoms of his fellow-professionals and should greatly stimulate and encourage young potential philosophers." - Sir Peter Strawson
"McGinn is an ingenious philosopher who thinks like a laser and writes like a dream." - Stephen Pinker
McGinn explores everything from Shakespeare's (often humorous) views on love to the real reasons behind Hamlet's madness. - Tampa Tribune
This provocative book, subtitled "Discovering the Meaning Behind the Plays," deals with Shakespeare's philosophy rather than his poetry, characters or themes. - Deseret Morning News
The bottom line is this: Colin McGinn's book is Shakespearean explication and analysis at its very best. Remarkable in its intellectual rigor, and provocative in its interpretive persuasiveness, Shakespeare's Philosophy will remain permanently on my bookshelf as one of those absolutely essential companions to Shakespeare's own words. Thank you, Professor McGinn, this book was just what I've been waiting for! - BookLoons.com