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Shakespeare in the Little Apple
Library Research Guide
Research the Bard
This page explores resources available to researchers wanting to study Shakespeare the author and the works of Shakespeare. Whether you're conducting a literary analysis or studying the history of the Globe Theatre, we have you covered.
This page is organized to follow the researcher through searches of increasing complexity. Start with plot summaries of the plays so that you understand the story, move on to glossaries and annotated editions so you can understand Shakespeare's language and direction, then find literary criticism of his works, and end up by studying Shakespeare, the man and his time.
Summaries of Shakespeare's Plays
Use these resources to find summaries or synopses of Shakespeare's plays.
- Literary Reference CenterPaid for by K-State Libraries
Offers full-text reference resources geared primarily toward undergraduate students. In addition to critical reviews of literature and encyclopedias, the Literary Reference Center also provides biographies, book reviews, author interviews, synopses and work overviews, literary journals, classic novels, and classic and contemporary short stories and poems.
- Shakespeare's Plays | Royal Shakespeare CompanyThe Royal Shakespeare Company uses their past productions to illustrate Shakespeare's plays. Find a plot summary, past productions, and background information like when the play was first written and performed.
- Shakespeare's Works | Folger Shakespeare LibraryThe Folger Shakespeare Library provides brief summaries of the plays. It also links to digitized editions and images representing the plays.
Understanding Shakespeare with Glossaries
Does that word mean what you think it means? Look for glossaries of Shakespeare's plays.Glossaries compile definitions of terms found in Shakespeare that may be unfamiliar to today's reader.
- Shakespeare's Language | Royal Shakespeare CompanyThis site examines Shakespeare's language, from the First Folio, to his specialist language (medical, legal, and military), to hidden meanings in his characters names.
Shakespeare's Language by Call Number: PR2892 .S447 1996 | Hale Library Stack Level DISBN: 0816032769Publication Date: 1996-03-01"What is a Bum-Bailey? Who saved Arion from the pirates? How do you know if you're Hilding for a Livery? Who leads Apes in Hell?" "It is said that England and America are two nations separated by a common language, and nowhere is that more true than in our dealings with the Bard. Rife with arcane references, unfamiliar expressions, and even made-up words, Shakespeare's texts can intimidate even the most learned reader. Here in one comprehensive volume, Shakespeare's ornate and sometimes bewildering language is made easy to understand." "The 15,000 entries comprising Shakespeare's Language feature definitions of words as they are used in the texts - it is not necessary to know the infinitive or root of a word in order to find its meaning; a quote placing each defined word or phrase in context, so you can be sure of its correct usage; and geographical references, historical and mythological figures, and foreign-language expressions."--BOOK JACKET. Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Shakespeare's Words by Call Number: PR2892 .C79 2002 | Hale Library Reference--Non-Circulating, 1st FloorISBN: 0141007370Publication Date: 2002-01-01This book is for people who love Shakespeare, or love language, or both. David Crystal, one of the world's foremost authorities on the English language, with his actor son, Ben, have taken a fresh look at the vocabulary of Shakespeare's poems and plays and compiled a glossary of nearly 14,000 words and meanings. They have included every word which presents the reader with a difficulty arising out of the differences between Elizabethan and Modern English.
While not a glossary, the site Shakespeare's Language from the Royal Shakespeare Company, offers insight into what Shakespeare meant when he said that thing.
Literary Criticism of Shakespeare's Works
Use these resources to find studies of Shakespeare's works.
Pro tip: a bibliography is a collection of citations. When a database is called a bibliography it usually means the full-text of the articles or books are not included in the books.
Current K-State students, staff, faculty, and visitors to our campus can use the Get It! button or Search It to find the publication in another database or in our collection. Current K-Staters can request that we borrow a copy from another library.
Browse books in K-State Libraries
PR 3071
Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 Criticism, Textual
Request through Interlibrary Loan
Locate articles, chapters, and other materials through databases
Current K-State students, staff, faculty, and visitors to our campus can conduct research starting with these databases:
- World Shakespeare BibliographyPublication Dates Covered: 1960 - present Paid for by K-State Libraries
The World Shakespeare Bibliography is one of the most comprehensive resources pertaining to Shakespeare-related scholarship and theatrical publications. Covering materials published between 1960 to the present, it contains more than 135,902 annotated entries, with international scholarship extending to more than 120 languages.
The World Shakespeare Bibliography includes an annotation explaining why the article/chapter/book is important. Search using keywords.
Browse entries by:
- individual works
- play groups and poems (comedies, histories)
- general Shakespeareana (biographies, reference works, productions)
The Get It button does not appear in the World Shakespeare Bibliography. To find an article or book, copy the title from the Bibliography and paste it into the Libraries' Search It search box.
- Literature Resource CenterPaid for by K-State Libraries
Provides researchers with unbounding literary resources to support their literary responses, literary analysis, and thesis statements through a diversity of scholars and critics that ensure all views and interpretations are represented through up-to-date biographies, overviews, full-text criticisms, audio interviews, and reviews on writers from all eras. Use this resource to analyze authors and works throughout time. - MLA (Modern Language Association) International BibliographyPublication Dates Covered: 1926 - present Paid for by K-State Libraries
This is the largest and most comprehensive database for literary criticism in all languages. Also covers folklore, linguistics, and film studies. Includes journal and book articles, books, and dissertations. Does not index book reviews in literary journals.
- Understanding Shakespeare
This site from the Folger Shakespeare Library and JSTOR permits researchers to click on a line in any play to find articles in JSTOR that reference the line. In addition to access through K-State Libraries, “Many articles in Understanding Shakespeare are also available for online reading with a free Register and Read account.” See the site's About page for more information.
Who Was Shakespeare?
These sources provide biographical information about Shakespeare. Learn when he lived, where he lived, who he knew, and what he did (besides writing enduring plays and poetry.)
Browse books in K-State Libraries
Note: With the exception of course reserves and current periodicals, all the physical materials that were housed in Hale Library at the time of the fire (4 pm on May 22, 2018) are not available. Over 1.5 million items are being inventoried and removed from the building for cleaning, and will not be available for the 2018-2019 school year. You may request these materials via Interlibrary Loan.
PR 2893
Historical sources and documents of the biography of Shakespeare
Request through Interlibrary Loan
PR 2910
The age of Shakespeare. Elizabethan England
Request through Interlibrary Loan
Search for articles in databases through K-State Libraries:
Current K-State students, staff, faculty, and visitors to our campus can conduct research starting with these databases:
- Literary Reference CenterPaid for by K-State Libraries
Offers full-text reference resources geared primarily toward undergraduate students. In addition to critical reviews of literature and encyclopedias, the Literary Reference Center also provides biographies, book reviews, author interviews, synopses and work overviews, literary journals, classic novels, and classic and contemporary short stories and poems. - Literature Resource CenterPaid for by K-State Libraries
Provides researchers with unbounding literary resources to support their literary responses, literary analysis, and thesis statements through a diversity of scholars and critics that ensure all views and interpretations are represented through up-to-date biographies, overviews, full-text criticisms, audio interviews, and reviews on writers from all eras. Use this resource to analyze authors and works throughout time. - Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
Simultaneous users: 6. Paid for by K-State Libraries
Over 60,000 biographies of men and women who have impacted British history and culture worldwide from the Romans to the 21st Century. Includes over 11,000 portraits.
Research Shakespeare on websites from museums, libraries, and other experts.
- Map of Early Modern LodonExplore the streets of Shakespeare's London.
- Shakespeare's LifeA brief biography of William Shakespeare from the Folger Shakespeare Library.
- ShakespediaInformation about Shakespeare's life and works provided the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
- William Shakespeare's Small Latine & Lesse GreekeAuthor T.W. Baldwin's two volumes from 1944 that investigate Shakespeare's early education. Available for K-Staters through the HathiTrust database.
