Thinking Through Shakespeare

Oxford English literature professor Womersley (Divinity and State) delivers an impressive examination of the central human questions Shakespeare explored in his plays. Womersley argues that the playwright’s works remain relevant not because Shakespeare possessed some “timeless esoteric wisdom” but because he used drama to probe human nature; he wasn’t interested in reaching final conclusions but rather invited readers to think through questions of identity, politics, religion, and ethics. Struggles with identity, for example, play out in comedies like Much Ado About Nothing, which Womersley says presents the question of whether identity is “a seed (which already contains its potentialities) or a shell (which needs to be filled from the outside).” Questions about the meaning and vitality of political institutions arise in Macbeth, a play about a general who murders the king to seize the throne, as Shakespeare demonstrates how competing ideas about republicanism and divine monarchy took shape in social life. King Lear, Womersley says, shows that moral character is not fixed but changes over time as individuals contend between making decisions based on the means of actions and the ends of them. Womersley’s elegant prose and thoroughly detailed critical analyses lead to thought-provoking interpretations. It’s a smart testament to the staying power of Shakespeare. (Mar.)