William Shakespeare: Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies

By: Peter Saccio, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Peter Saccio

Shakespeare's plays - whether a comedy like A Midsummer Night's Dream, a history like Henry IV, or a tragedy like Hamlet - are treasure troves of insight into our very humanity. These 36 lectures introduce you to Shakespeare's major plays from each of these three genres and explain the achievement that makes him the leading playwright in Western civilization.

As you'll see, the key to Shakespeare's massive achievement is his "abundance," according to Professor Saccio; not only in the number and length of his plays but in the variety of experiences they depict, the multitude of actions and characters they contain, the combination of public and private life they deal with, and the richness of feelings they express.

All the major plays are here for you to dive into, explore, and enjoy: The Taming of the Shrew (with its realistic look at bourgeois marriage customs), Measure for Measure (which shows Shakespeare breaking out of comic conventions), Richard III (the source of one of the Bard's most entertaining and frightening historical villains), Henry V (which raises questions about the morality of warfare), Macbeth (with its piercing look into the consciousness of a man hungry for power), and more. As the richness of each of these and other plays is revealed, you'll also touch upon the far-ranging philosophical and theological implications behind them. By the last lecture, you'll have a true understanding of why these comedies, histories, and tragedies endure even to this very day.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©1999 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)1999 The Great Courses

Exquisite

This was profoundly brilliant. He coursed over the highlighting articles of several of the mainline plays of William Shakespeare brilliantly. This is like art.

Introduction to Everything Shakespeare.

This course requires additional work, reading and also the need to listen to it more than once.I got the professors book Shakespeare's English Kings and also 3 volumes of cliff notes along with a corpus of all of Shakespeare's work. In addition, I bought Saccio's 2nd course Words and Action to work into my rotation over the next year...and there's a particular reason I got these courses. It's not my love of Shakespeare. I have a practical reason to be taking this course

Even after this course, I still don't like Shakespeare, however, I am studying script writing and professional writers reverse engineer Shakespeare into their scripts all the time. Even in my step outline for my novel and screenplays, I do have conflicts reminiscent of the English playwright's work. Whatever it is that attracts people to his work, I will never know but as far as history and the evolution of the written word, I do see the historical significance in the development of the English Language...so I forced myself to listen to this course and absorb what I could the first time around before going back to study more closely.

This professor really knows what he's doing. He reminds me of my HS English teacher my senior year. Saccio introduced me to a Shakespeare play I never heard of and is not in the three major volumes of cliffnotes or in the book I bought that was supposed to contain ALL of Shakespeare's work...Troilus & Cressida...and it gave me an idea to put one of the scenes of that play into an episode/chapter in my 2 novels I'm writing while I write two season of scripts that go with the books. I got my work cut out for me but luckily I found this professor and his courses, putting me on the right track.

If you are going to college for English, I would suggest listening to this course to have a leg up on everyone else in class and that way your professor will know you did extra work and your grades will reflect it. This is your best opportunity to work on your own and the courses are on sale right now. Definitely worth ten bucks.

Bravo!

This lecture provides insightful information and analysis about Shakespeare's many brilliant works. I have thoroughly enjoyed this program and would recommend it to others!

Surprisingly accessible

This lecturer makes the subject matter surprisingly accessible. This is still Shakespeare though and you can't learn it passively, you must put in some work on your own. My advice:

First and foremost, don't rush it. Listen to 1 lecture or at most 1 play (2-3 lectures) then take a break

#2: don't go in blind. Before you start the section for a play, get familiar with it first. The more the better but the summary on wikipedia is a good-enough minimum

Captivating & Enlightening

I learned so much and enjoyed every minute. Peter Saccio is a masterful teacher and made learning about Shakespeare’s plays fascinating. 10/10!

Pretty Good

I enjoyed the subject matter even though I went in looking to hear a synopsis of the plays. The reader is very passionate about the subject which helps but he kind of sounds like a gayer and more enthusiastic version of Sheldon from Big Bang Theory.

My biggest hangup was that when listening in my headphones, I could very clearly hear the reader swallow loudly which was off putting and gross.

Good course overall.

Insightful and Enthusiastic

This lecture is perfect for those who have read multiple Shakespearean plays and who want a deeper insight into their symbols and themes. The lecturer is obviously passionate about the subject and delivers the information with enthusiasm.

Wonderful

Wonderful insights on THE beloved Bard. I listen to The Great Courses regularly and this one is the best.

learned Shakespeare analysis

The Prof knows his stuff.
A complete analysis of the comedies, histories and Tragedies. If you like Shakespeare you will love this book.

Bravo

Peter is magnificent. His passion for Shakespeare permeates the entire lecture series. Very well done!