5.0 out of 5 stars Bill at his Best

A. · 17 April 2012

I'mnot exactly a Shakespeare buff, but after reading Titus I got way more into him. The play tells the story of a Roman general who retruns to his beloved city a war hero, having in his captivity the queen of the Goths, Tamora. What follows is a series of various conflicts, mainly based around avenging wrongs done to familmembers,which in turn provoke more extreme responses. Certainly one of Shakespeare's most violent and blooody plays, Titus involves rape, severe mutilation like something out of a Saw movie, and a particularly murderous final act. The language is in Shakespeare's usual eloqent style, but I didn't finish it with certain parts of dialogue sticking in my mind, like some of his other iconic plays have. Titus is much more about the visuals, with unparallel onstage violence. Yet the audience can still relate to characters who perform the horrific acts upon one another, making it one of Shakespeare's best psychological plays, as each character has a complex mentality and the audience may find themselves easily to empathise even with the villainous characters. It also contains one of the most purely evil antagonists in literature, whose only regret at the end was that he could have done much worse. As Shakespeare's plays are either comedies or tragedies, and this one sure as hell ain't a comedy, you know exactly where it's heading, but the road it takes you down to get there is a darkly compelling one. I read the Oxford version of this, which has excellent notes at the bottom of each page on how to read and perform the play, so I would recommend anyone interested to get the Oxford version. To sum up, it is a masterful play of visual intrigue which pushes the very boundaries of theatre, and sticks two fingers up to the stereotype of everyone dying offstage and being carried back on. If you like Shakespeare, or even just reading, try Titus.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for a university student that needs to annotate everywhere!

K. · 15 May 2016

This is a nice, small sized book with a matte finish cover that feels high quality. It will come in very handy for carrying to classes and revision sessions.I bought this for my open book exam, so I wish I had read a bit more into the details of this book as it has a large introduction section that might render it useless if I am now allowed to take it in! But other than that, the pages feel high quality and it's a good book for annotating in as the pen doesn't go through to the other side, which can be distracting.

5.0 out of 5 stars Balanced edition of the cruellest WS's Tragedy..

F.F.A. · 22 January 2017

This edition of one of the cruellest and earliest Roman Tragedies of Shakespeare is, in my opinion, worth the little price tag.Plenty of notes for studying but not too much to hinder the leisurely reader, if any Shakespeare's play can be read in that manner...Excellent though. 5 stars!

4.0 out of 5 stars O! What cruel, irreligious piety!

M.K. · 22 April 2015

The play itself, being Shakespeare's first, is probably one of my favorites along with Hamlet and The Tempest. The dialogue feels very masculine and meaty, but its also one of the more accessible of his plays and easiest to get into if you're new to the man's work. The content of the play isn't always the most pleasant (at times even silly and convoluted), but that's part of the intentions of this 'revenge tragedy'. It's more a critique of a spiral of cruelty rather than cruelty for it's own sake, as some of it's more vocal critics would have you believe. For such a dark horse it is something of an early masterpiece in its own right. Though to be fair, it also served as a precursor to the man's later and greater works so don't take this like I'm saying it's flawless. Nothing is after all!This Oxford edition is pretty substantial with a lot of background information given in the preface and appendixes, though I did feel that the footnotes were almost too minimal. While it does describe the more literal or modern meanings of phrases used by Shakespeare, I feel that it could have expanded upon the context of the scenes and even stage directions more elaborately. Still, it does the job fine.

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent

A.C. · 31 July 2006

Some critics have dismissed Titus Andronicus as immature; if this view has put you off picking the play up and reading it, I'd say: don't listen to the critics! I personally think Titus is an amazing play, absolutely macabre, most of the time you don't know whether you should laugh or cry. If you like dark, black humour this will surely appeal to you. Consider the reaction of Titus when he sees his daughter Lavinia with her hands chopped off - rather than flying into rage or tears or hysteria, he delivers an elaborate recital of rhetorical poetry brimming with metaphors of blood and grief. Yes, it is violent, and yes, the word blood appears very frequently, as do mutilations and cannibalism, but the contrast between what happens and the beauty of the poetry that emerges out of that savageness is really striking. And those accusing Shakespeare of heartlessness should remember that he did not create the plot, but based his play on a story well-known to all Elizabethans, as he did with all his plays.Very good edition, with useful and helpful notes, and an informative introduction to the play.

1.0 out of 5 stars The only Shakespeare play that I actually hate.

M. · 4 December 2014

Not one of my favourites by Shakespeare. Personally, I don't rate it too highly because I felt that the violence was gratuitous and the play could be executed in a much better way without the extreme violence and gore. Don't get me wrong, I am well are of the conventions of a tragedy and have read and studied most of Shakespeare's plays. I also enjoy horror and action movies so it is not as though I just have an issue with violence in art. I just feel like it could have been done a bit more tastefully. I know I'm criticising one of the world's finest writers (although some studies suggest that this was not all Mr Shakespeare's work) but this book contains rape, murder after murder after murder, mutilation, cannibalism and the cutting of an innocent girl's tongue and hands. However, I have friends who love this play for the reason that it is so explicitly gruesome. I suppose you will either love it or hate it.

4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars

m. · 20 September 2014

ahh. what a play!

4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars

A. · 17 October 2014

Interesting book.

great shipping time I was very pleased

A.L. · 31 August 2017

great shipping time I was very pleased. the book itself is in amazing condition almost lie new I was very happy with it. there was scribbling in some pages but honestly they were helpful so I'm actually glad and grateful for the notes on the margin. overall very happy with the book.

Useful edition

I. · 7 December 2019

I think these editions are very nice if you have to study Shakespeare's plays for university, with long introductions and good explanatory notes. Also, the book arrived in perfect condition.

Five Stars

A.C. · 21 March 2016

GREAT PRICE AND SHIPPING SPEED

Five Stars

K.P. · 2 May 2015

Excellent annotations, useful supplemental materials.

Buy

L. · 18 April 2017

Good book, it came in good condition, buy it!