The Two Noble Kinsmen (Arden Shakespeare: Third Series)

The content of this edition include a list of the illustrations featured within the text and a preface by the editor on her work with the play. The thorough introduction discusses the tragicomedy as a genre, the writers thought to have collaborated on this play and the question of its authorship, and the significance of collaboration and censorship in the era when the play was written, as well as other notes on historical context. The editor goes on to address the public, literary, and theatrical contexts within and surrounding the play; the plays afterlife in theatrical adaptation and academia; and technical notes on editing the drama. Six appendices follow the text of The Two Noble Kinsmen. They are: John Fletcher, 'Upon An Honest Mans Fortune' ; The PortraitFrontispiece of John Fletcher, 1647 ; Francis Beaumont, The Masque of the Inner Temple and Grays Inn ; Beaumonts 1613 Masque and The Two Noble Kinsmen ; The Morris ; and The Music. Finally, a reference section provides a list of abbreviations and references, a catalog of Shakespeares works and works partly by Shakespeare, and citations for the modern productions mentioned in the text, other collated editions of The Two Noble Kinsmen, and other related reading.

The Arden Shakespeare has developed a reputation as the pre-eminent critical edition of Shakespeare for its exceptional scholarship, reflected in the thoroughness of each volume. An introduction comprehensively contextualizes the play, chronicling the history and culture that surrounded and influenced Shakespeare at the time of its writing and performance, and closely surveying critical approaches to the work. Detailed appendices address problems like dating and casting, and analyze the differing Quarto and Folio sources. A full commentary by one or more of the plays foremost contemporary scholars illuminates the text, glossing unfamiliar terms and drawing from an abundance of research and expertiseto explain allusions and significant background information. Highly informative and accessible, Arden offers the fullest experience of Shakespeare available to a reader.