{"title":"First Folio Materials.  17 Complete Plays.  1623.","description":"\u003cp\u003e17 Complete Plays from the First Folio\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"1437500-1623-shakespeare","title":"1437500 1623 Shakespeare.  Hamlet.  Complete.","description":"9849. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHamlet. From the First Folio. 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eComplete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eSHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM. The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. Extracted from the Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies [The First Folio].  London: Isaac Jaggard \u0026amp; Ed. Blount, 1623.  Folio. Pp. 152-156, 257-280, complete. Half blue morocco. First leaf backed with paper on recto, with Hamlet beginning on the verso. Inserted at the front are facsimiles of Ben Jonson’s To the Reader: and the First Folio title- page, modified to refer to Hamlet. Some staining, occasional faults and tears, last leaf restored at gutter. A very good copy. Quarter morocco case.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eFirst Folio edition of Hamlet, the earliest obtainable printing of this pinnacle achievement of Western civilization.  \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe significance of the play in the development of Western thought cannot be exaggerated. Hamlet was one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays in his lifetime and it has long been recognized as his greatest achievement. Hamlet is the most-performed of Shakespeare’s plays, the most-filmed work of literature, and one of the most-quoted works in the English language. Hamlet’s soliloquy beginning “To be, or not to be” is perhaps the best-known and most quoted of Shakespeare’s writings.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e“Hamlet is the launch pad for a quite different, more profound and multi-layered Shakespeare. . . . Hamlet is the unilateral declaration of independence which marks the birth of the Jacobean Shakespeare… It has been voted masterwork of the last thousand years, surpassing Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel, Beethoven’s ninth symphony, the King James Bible, the Taj Mahal” (Anthony Holden).\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eHarold Bloom describes the impact of the character of Hamlet, “he seems not to be just a literary or dramatic character. His total effect upon the world’s culture is incalculable. After Jesus, Hamlet is the most cited figure in Western consciousness.”\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe First Folio “is the greatest contribution made in a single volume to the secular literature of any age or country. By the English-speaking peoples it must always be regarded as the proudest monument of their literary history” (Sidney Lee).\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003ePrinting and the Mind of Man 122, Grolier 100 English Books, STC 22273 (all citing the First Folio).\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eProvenance: Florence and Edward Kaye (bookplate).\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  Very Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782657197,"sku":"9849","price":110000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9849.jpg?v=1636224763"},{"product_id":"1437600-1623-shakespeare","title":"1437600 1623 Shakespeare.  Julius Caesar.  Complete.","description":"10247.\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eJulius Caesar.  1623.  First Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eExtracted from the First Folio of 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe Tragedie of Julius Caesar [Extracted from the First Folio]. [London: Isaac Jaggard..., 1623.]\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eFolio (308 x 196 mm). 22 pp, the complete play. Modern red crushed morocco, ruled in gilt, repair to lower corners of some leaves, upper border shaved above headlines on most leaves, but not affecting headline or pagination, borders at fore-edge shaved, occasionally touching text, minor staining, small wormhole running through all 11 leaves.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eFIRST PRINTING OF JULIUS CAESAR, one of Shakespeare's greatest and most popular plays. Quintessential Shakespeare, Julius Caesar is a bloody meditation on ethics and statecraft exploring many of his most important and recurrent themes: power and its abuse, fate vs free will, the vanity of human ambition, and the hard truth that evil cannot beget order but only chaos. Julius Caesar is Shakespeare's most overtly political work and it captures the relationship between politics and theater with a brilliance never before or since surpassed. Probably the first play ever produced at the Globe Theatre (in 1599), Julius Caesar has been adapted multiple times across the centuries to serve a diversity of political agendas. The play remains as vital and relevant today as when it was first performed.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\"Incomparably the most important work in the English language\" (Pforzheimer Catalogue), the First Folio is both the definitive source for Shakespeare's plays and for all practical purposes the earliest obtainable printing of any particular play. Remarkably, Julius Caesar, along with seventeen other plays, had never previously been printed, and its appearance in the First Folio represents its first publication in any form; the first separate printing would not occur until 1684. This First Folio printing of Julius Caesar is in fact the only known source of the text: no earlier printing, manuscript, or prompt-book exists today.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe number of extant plays individually bound from the First Folio is very small, and Julius Caesar has appeared in the marketplace only rarely. With the rise in price of the First Folio — now well into 7-figures — individually bound plays are becoming increasingly desirable and hard-to-find. Given both its literary excellence and its importance within our cultural history, Julius Caesar is certainly one of the most desirable of all the First Folio plays. See Pforzheimer 905 (for First Folio).\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eFootnotes\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eFriends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eI come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe evil that men do lives after them;\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe good is oft interred with their bones;\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eSo let it be with Caesar.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e-Antony, Act III, Scene II.\u003c\/div\u003e\nVery Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782689965,"sku":"10247","price":90000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10247.jpg?v=1636224764"},{"product_id":"1437700-1623-shakespeare","title":"1437700 1623 Shakespeare.  Measure for Measure.  Complete.","description":"10190. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e \u003cstrong\u003eMeasure for Measure.  From the First Folio. 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eMeasure, for Measure [Extracted from the First Folio]. [London: Isaac Jaggard..., 1623.]  Folio (307 x 194 mm). Modern paneled calf, blind ruled, gilt titles on spine. Margins trimmed, some repairs, tear at bottom of F5 along old repair.  \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eFIRST PRINTING of this play, from the famous First Folio edition of Shakespeare, consisting of 24 pages on leaves F1 to G6. This dark comedy is set in Vienna and deals with morality and justice. Young Claudio is sentenced to death for fornication when his betrothed becomes pregnant, but others intercede to prevent this injustice. It was first performed in December, 1604, and first published in this form in the First Folio. See Pforzheimer 905 (for First Folio).\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe play, along with All's Well and Troilus and Cressida has long been considered a \"problem play\" in that it does not conveniently fit into either a comedy or tragedy classification, not can it be called a romance.  It is a dark, brooding work that primarily deals with Christian morality and hypocrisy.  The received text of The Winter's Tale is also somewhat problematic.  It is set from text supplied by scribe Ralph Crane and scholarly debate has raged for centuries over the possibility that Thomas Middleton revisited the play after first performance, removed someswear words in order to conform to the Jacobean dictate against profanity on stage.  It is also suggested that Middleton interpolated changes as well.\u003c\/div\u003e  Extremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782722733,"sku":"10190","price":52750.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10190.jpg?v=1636224765"},{"product_id":"1437800-1623-shakespeare","title":"1437800 1623 Shakespeare.  Coriolanus.  Complete.","description":"10157. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCoriolanus. From the First Folio. 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eSHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM. 1564-1616.  The Tragedie of Coriolanus [Extracted from the First Folio].. [London: Isaac Jaggard..., 1623.].  Folio (317 x 201 mm). 30 pp, the complete play. Modern blue crushed morocco, ruled in gilt, upper border shaved above headlines on most leaves, sometimes affecting the headline and pagination, leaves extended @at upper margins, minor dampstain to upper margin and inner margin of early leaves, minor staining, some small wormholes, a single early ink marginal notation to p 13, corners and lower fore-edge repaired to most leaves.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFIRST PRINTING OF CORIOLANUS, SHAKESPEARE'S MOST INCISIVE EXPLORATION OF THE BODY POLITIC.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eConceived on a grand scale, Coriolanus is set in a quasi-mythical early Rome (c. 500 BC) where Coriolanus, a military hero, has been chosen to rule as consul. The play brings into sharp focus the political ideal of selfless service to the state and contrasts the meaning such selflessness assumes in the differing contexts of war and peace. Though Coriolanus is an excellent general, virtuously grounded with archetypal purity in the military idea of literally sacrificing his life for the state's greater good -- he is yet paradoxically a man incapable of learning the civic virtue and the other-oriented selflessness requisite to it. Coriolanus's tragic downfall pointedly brings to the fore the fundamental challenge of political leadership: tempering adherence to noble principle with responsiveness to the ever-changing needs and desires of the populace. Coriolanus's trenchant questioning of authoritarian leadership speaks to every generation and is of the greatest relevance today. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eT.S. Eliot famously called the play Shakespeare's \"most assured artistic success\" (Eliot, The Sacred Wood, p 124).  Shakespeare is considered the greatest political dramatist in the English tradition and Coriolanus his crowning achievement within the genre. Shakespeare here explicitly conceives the state to be a living body , a conception articulated in the very first scene through the famous \"fable of the belly\"  and the play demonstrates the necessity of harmonizing both the patrician and the plebian parts of the Body Politic for the healthy functioning of the state. Written toward the close of Shakespeare's career, Coriolanus is distinguished both for its political vision and for its masterful control of plot, according to Frank Kermode, \"Probably the most fiercely and ingeniously planned and expressed of all the tragedies\" (Kermode, Shakespeare's Language, p 254). \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\"Incomparably the most important work in the English language\" (Pforzheimer Catalogue), the First Folio is both the definitive source for Shakespeare's plays and for all practical purposes the earliest obtainable printing of any particular play. Remarkably, Coriolanus, along with seventeen other plays, had never previously been printed, and its appearance in the First Folio represents its first publication in any form. This First Folio printing of Coriolanus is in fact the only known source of the text: no earlier printing, manuscript, or prompt-book exists today.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe number of extant plays individually bound from the First Folio is very small, and complete copies of Coriolanus are rare.  Individually bound plays are becoming increasingly desirable and hard-to-find. Rich in both wisdom and art, Coriolanus is both a Shakespeare high spot and a masterwork of world literature.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Very Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782755501,"sku":"10157","price":50000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10157.jpg?v=1636224766"},{"product_id":"1437900-1623-shakespeare","title":"1437900 1623 Shakespeare.  Much Ado.  Complete.","description":"9658. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMuch Ado About Nothing.  1623\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the First Folio.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eSHAKESPEARE. Much adoe about Nothing.  Complete. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio (8 by 12-1\/2 inches), modern half orange morocco gilt; 22 leaves. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTwenty-two leaves extracted from the landmark First Folio (1623) \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19) Containing the complete text of one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, Much Ado About Nothing.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eMuch Ado about Nothing followed Love's Labors Lost  (mid-1598 and early 1599), and is another verbally dazzling and perennially popular Shakespearean comedy; especially in the banter between Beatrice and Benedick, the play boasts \"some of the most successful, expertly realized humor in all of Shakespeare\" (Bloom, 20).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eShakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell prepared the First Folio; in 1623, William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount published it. Of Shakespeare’s 39 undisputed plays, 18 survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Ornamental woodcut headpiece and small decorative intial to leaf I3r. Leaves I3-[M6], paginated 101-144. With press variants: I5r.b5 and K5v.b54 with inked space quads; K2v.b46 with first letter of \"Beatrice\" correctly set; L5r.a39 with corrected \"remuneration\" for \"remuration.\" Much Ado About Nothing was first printed in a 1600 quarto edition. The earliest extant printed text of Loues Labour’s Lost is the 1598 quarto edition. See Jaggard, 378, 418. A fine copy.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe only quarto of Much Ado About Nothing to precede the First Folio was printed in London by V. Simmes for Andrew Wise and William Aspley in 1600.  There are only sixteen known copies, so for all intents and purposes the Folio represents the earliest obtainable copy of the play.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn a wonderful piece of theatrical history, the actual name of  Will Kemp is used in place of the character (Dogberry) he portrays.  Kemp was considered the finest comic actor of his time and it is very likely that the part of the malaprop-ridden constable was written specifically for him.  Incredibly, within a single scene (Act IV, Scene 2), Dogberry is referred to by five different prefixes: two versions of the character name, Kemp‘s own real name, a description of the type of role it is (“Andrew“ referring to Merry Andrew, a term for the Clown) and “Kee” which is probably short for Keeper.  In the same scene, the name Cowley is substituted for the Verges character, the Cowley in question being Richard Cowley another of the King’s Men troupe.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe above mentioned usage of actor’s names in place of the characters they are portraying indicates that the compositors were very likely working from Shakespeare‘s own ‘foul‘ copy.  It also shows that Shakespeare wrote at least in part with specific actors in mind for the roles he was creating.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAnother fascinating characteristic of the First Folio stage directions versus those of later editions is that the Governor's (Leonato) wife Innogen is shown entering in the very beginning of the play and is then never heard from or seen again. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782788269,"sku":"9658","price":24000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9658.jpg?v=1636224768"},{"product_id":"1438000-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438000 1623 Shakespeare.  Richard III.  Complete.","description":"10235. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRichard III.  Extracted from the First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eComplete.  Histories 173-204.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eShakespeare, William. “The tragedy of Richard the third: with the Landing of Earle Richmond and the Battel at Bosworth Field” extracted from \u003cem\u003eMr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies.  \u003c\/em\u003eLondon. Printed by Isaac Jaggard, and Ed. Blount. 1623.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFolio, 16 leaves, q5-q6, r-s6, t1-2, paginated 173-204, headpiece ornament and caption title on q5r, satyr tailpiece on t2v. Apart from a long closed tear from the lower margin into the text of q5, repaired without loss, a very good copy with good margins, a few scattered stains; quarter russet morocco and buff cloth boards.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eA substantive text of Richard III extracted from the first folio. There were six earlier quartos, each doubtful rather than bad, the earliest 1597, but the folio offers an improved text. Like \u003cem\u003eLear\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eOthello\u003c\/em\u003e, it was sett from a quarto amended with readings from a playhouse manuscript, in this case probably Shakespeare’s foul papers. The quarto’s are “not without value”, writes Charlton Hinman commenting on the “extraordinarily complex and difficult problems…raised by these three plays”, but in each instance the Folio provides the more satisfactory text.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eRichard III is believed, according to contemporary accounts, to have been the role which established Richard Burbage as the foremost actor of his age.Incredibly, Burbage also originated the roles of Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, and virtually all the leading male roles in the Shakespeare canon.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe play was, along with Henry IV Part One, the most popular of Shakespeare’s works judging by the number of editions which preceded the 1623 Folio.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eHinman discovered a number of press variants among the Folger copies of Richard III. Of the substantive variants this copy has the corrected speech heading “Ric” for “Riv” on r2 (line b31), the stage direction “and that Clarence and keep” on the same page (sometimes missing: b52) and the correct reading “want” for “went” on S6 (lying b63). From a copy broken up by William H. Robinson Ltd. in the 1950s, with their printed certificate.  Charlton Printing and Proof-Reading, I, 276-8; Hinman, Norton Facsimile”, xii-xv; Greg, III, 1109-13; STC 22273.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  About Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782821037,"sku":"10235","price":40000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10235.jpg?v=1636224769"},{"product_id":"1438100-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438100 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry IV Pt. 2.  Complete.","description":"9386. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHenry IV.  Part Two.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the First Folio. 1623.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe Second Part of Henry the Fourth, Containing His Death: and the Coronation of King Henry the Fift. Complete. [Extracted from: Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories \u0026amp; Tragedies. London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio, period-style full calf gilt; pp. f6-2g8 (73-102).  The 1623 printing, extracted from the landmark First Folio, of Shakespeare’s tragicomic chronicle of King Henry’s decline and Prince Hal’s ascendancy.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eBelieved to have been composed in late 1597 or early 1598, Shakespeare’s pensive dramatization of Henry IV’s twilight endures thanks in large part to its being one of the three plays to feature Sir John Falstaff, so original and so overwhelming [a character] that with him Shakespeare changes the entire meaning of what it is to have created a man made out of words (Harold Bloom, The Western Canon, 47). (Falstaff also appears in the first part of Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor). \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe text was first published in the 'good quarto' of 1600, but would not see print again until this appearance in the First Folio of 1623. See Jaggard, 332.  The Folio text includes eight additional pasages not contained in the quarto.  It has also been scrubbed of all profanities which were forbidden in the 1606 Parliamentary \"Act to Restrain the Abuses of Players.\"  Interestingly, Epilogue, in the final speech of the play promised to \"continue the story with Sir John in it\" in his next play, but reneges as Henry V does not contain any appearances by Falstaff.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book 'intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature' (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Individual plays extracted from the First Folio are exceptionally scarce and desirable.  The final page of 1 Henry IV on f6r; the list of characters in 2 Henry IV on 2g8v, including 'Rumour the Presentor' and Falstaff, an 'irregular humorist.' Expertly washed, restoration to margins. An excellent copy.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782853805,"sku":"9386","price":30000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9386.jpg?v=1636224770"},{"product_id":"1438200-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438200 1623 Shakespeare.  King John.  Complete.","description":"9387. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing John.  From the First Folio. 1623.   \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e  \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eSHAKESPEARE. The Life and Death of King John. Complete. [Extracted from: Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories \u0026amp; Tragedies. London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio, period-style full calf gilt; pp. a1-b5 (1-22).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe 1623 first printing of Shakespeare’s King John 'one of his boldest experiments with making drama out of history' extracted from the landmark First Folio of the Bard’s works.  Most likely composed sometime between 1595-97 - roughly contemporaneous with Richard III and The Merchant of Venice - Shakespeare’s dramatization of John’s struggle for the English throne plumbs the often-corrupting realities of political power. Bastard Falconbridge (sometimes hailed as the Bard’s first true hero) emerges as an exemplar of 'a new kind of stage character walk[ing] out of their plays into the space of what A.D. Nuttall rightly calls ‘a new mimesis’' (Harold Bloom, The Western Canon, 47). 'Though located furthest from the present day, from a 21st-century perspective King John seems one of Shakespeare’s most modern works, as well as his boldest experiment with making drama out of history' (Dickson, 160). In 1598, Francis Meares made the first contemporary mention of the play. The First Folio includes the text’s first publication and remains the sole textual authority for it. See Jaggard, 350.  The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen  - including King John -  survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book 'Intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature' (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Individual plays extracted from the First Folio are exceptionally scarce and desirable. Expertly washed, restoration to margins. An excellent copy.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThere are no quartos of King John prior to 1623, thus the First Folio version is for all intents and purposes a first edition of a Shakespeare play.  The play is written entirely in verse, one of only two works in the canon to contain not a single line of prose (the other being Richard II.)   \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eKing John was immensely popular in the nineteenth century and appears to have been a particular favorite of Jane Austen.  In the RSC notes for the play, editor Jonathan Bate notes the following:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e“During April 1811, Jane Austen was staying in London with her brother Henry.  In a letter home to her sister Cassandra, she complained of ‘a very unlucky change of the Play for this very night - Hamlet instead of King John - and we are to go on Monday to Macbeth instead, but it is a disappointment to us both.’”  Bate goes on to note that Austen “was a seasoned admirer of Sarah Siddons, the greatest actress of the age, one of whose most celebrated roles was that of impassioned Queen Constance, as rewarding a female role as any in the whole corpus of Shakespeare’s English history plays.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eMore recently, Clair Bloom, in her video “Shakespeare’s Women”, cites the role of  Constance as among her favorites, and in the RSC video of the play delivers an outstanding performance as the besieged widow of Geoffrey who sees her son Arthur as being the rightful monarch.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003ePerhaps an even more fascinating character is that of the Bastard, Philip Falconbridge.  The Bastard can be seen as forerunner to Iago in Othello or that other bastard, Edmond, in Lear.  Philip, however, is the only genuinely sympathetic male character in the play.  It is he who confides in us, tells of his strategies before deploying them and thus wins our confidence.  In the end, Philip serves as a stand-in for the recently departed Richard the Lionhearted and very nearly ascends the throne himself.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782886573,"sku":"9387","price":30000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9387.jpg?v=1636224772"},{"product_id":"1438300-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438300 1623 Shakespeare.  Midsummer Night's Dream.  Complete.","description":"9657. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA Midsummer Nights Dream. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the First Folio. 1623.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eSHAKESPEARE. A Midsommer Nights Dreame. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio (8 by 12-1\/2 inches), modern half orange morocco gilt; 9 leaves.  Complete. Nine leaves extracted from the landmark First Folio (1623) \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19) containing the complete text of Shakespeare’s festive, fantasy-filled comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eLikely written in 1595-96, A Midsummer Night’s Dream \"is a labyrinth, in which we are delighted to be lost\" The Dream remains an unique literary work, with a highly individual place within the Shakespeare canon.\" Whose dream is it? Partly Bottom’s, partly ours Nothing in literature is so exquisitely sustained as this is. Had Shakespeare written only this superb marriage-song, his greatness would have been established forever after\" (Bloom, xi-xii). \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eShakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell prepared the First Folio; in 1623, William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount published it. Of Shakespeare’s 39 undisputed plays, 18 survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. With facsimile of the First Folio title page. Ornamental woodcut headpiece and small decorative initial to leaf N1. Leaves N1-O3, paginated 145-162 ([N5]r mispaginated 151; O3r mispaginated 163). With press variants: N2r.b50 with “for” evenly printed; O2r with pagination 159; O3r.a39 without the inked space quad. Preceded by two quarto printings: a 1600 printing for Thomas Fisher and a 1619 fascicle of the abortive Pavier-Jaggard collected edition. This First Folio text is set from a copy of the second quarto printing, collated against a prompt-book. See Jaggard, 408. A fine copy.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThere were only two quarto printings of A Midsummer Night’s Dream prior to the First Folio.  Of the first, which was printed in 1600 for Thomas Fisher to be sold at his shop in Fleet Street, there are only eight known copies.  The second, printed in 1619 by James Roberts, was among those plays falsely dated to 1600 in what is viewed as an initial attempt to publish a group of Shakespeare‘s plays following his death.  There are twenty-seven known copies.   This second quarto is rife with errors, the text of the First Folio being much closer to the original quarto.   \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eAs in most cases, the Folio version has significantly more stage directions than the quartos and is being used with increasing frequency as the basic text for considerations of performance.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eLike Mach Ado, also in this collection, the Folio version offers up another of those delightful moments of theatrical history: a stage direction (bottom left, page 160) in which a certain “Tawyer with a trumpet” is said to precede the characters Pyramus, Thisby and Wall.  It turns out that Tawyer was a servant of John Heminge, one of the two men whose heroic efforts made the First Folio possible. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe prefix for the Puck character shifts nine times between Puck and Robin Goodfellow.  Modern texts usually eliminate the shifts and refer to the character throughout simply as “Puck”.  However, in Shakespeare’s time a distinction was drawn between the two possibilities.  In the book “An Encyclopedia of Fairies” Robin Goodfellow is described as harmless and possessing powers “to be used against the ill-disposed…in aid of honest folks.”  Puck, on the other hand is described as being somewhat more malevolent, akin to “hobgoblins” who are “rather nasty people to annoy.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782919341,"sku":"9657","price":30000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9657.jpg?v=1636224773"},{"product_id":"1438400-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438400 1623 Shakespeare.  Comedy of Errors.  Complete.","description":"10192. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Comedy of Errors.  First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eSHAKESPEARE, William (1564-1616). The Comedie of Errors [extracted from: Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, \u0026amp; Tragedies. London: Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount, 1623].\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFirst appearance in print of The Comedy of Errors, the source for all subsequent editions. No earlier version, manuscript or printed, is known, and it is thanks entirely to its inclusion in the First Folio, of which the present copy is an extract, that this masterful farce survives today. Among Shakespeare’s early plays, The Comedy of Errors may have been written for Christmas revels at Gray’s Inn in 1594, where it was first performed by Shakespeare’s acting company, The Lord Chamberlain’s Men. Its next recorded performance was before King James I on 29 December 1604. No earlier version – manuscript or printed – predates its appearance in the First Folio. Bartlett 119; Greg III, p. 1109-1113; STC 22273.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFolio (303 x 190mm). 8 leaves only [H6 L1-2], paginated 85-100, p.86 mispaginated 88, double column, type- ornament head- and tailpiece, ornamental initials, modern calligraphic title-page (several discreet marginal repairs, small discreet at fore-margins of H3-). Green morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, spine lettered longitudinally in gilt, gilt edges, cloth slipcase. Provenance: Winton Jones (1924-2003, chairman of Anchor Bancorp, Minneapolis, Minnesota; 1967 gift inscription to him on front pastedown).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Extremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782952109,"sku":"10192","price":27000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10192.jpg?v=1636224774"},{"product_id":"1438500-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438500 1623 Shakespeare.  The Winter's Tale.  Complete.","description":"9953. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Winter's Tale. From the First Folio. 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eSHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM. The Winters Tale. Pages 277-303, complete, extracted from the first folio. Folio, 301x192 mm, red morocco by Sangorski \u0026amp; Sutcliffe; attractive copy with only marginal toning, a few minor stains, and small rust hole in 2B1 not affecting text, margins trimmed entering rule border on a few leaves. Booklabel of Philip C. Duschnes. [London, 1623].  First edition. Greg 397a; Jaggard, page 490.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eFIRST PRINTING of this play, from the famous First Folio edition of Shakespeare, consisting of 24 pages on leaves F1 to G6. This dark comedy is set in Vienna and deals with morality and justice. Young Claudio is sentenced to death for fornication when his betrothed becomes pregnant, but others intercede to prevent this injustice. It was first performed in December, 1604, and first published in this form in the First Folio. See Pforzheimer 905 (for First Folio).\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe text was set from a transcript submitted by Ralph Crane, a highly regarded scribe who set much of the First Folio text.  Though no quartos preceded the Folio version, there are subtle hints in the Folio text that hint at revisions having been made between the 1604 initial performance and setting of the Folio itself.  In the cast of characters, the Duke is referred to as Vincentio though the name appears nowhere in the text.  The song at the beginning of Act Four also appears in John Fletcher’s “Rollo Duke of Norway” with an additional stanza.  These and other minor inconsistencies suggest that the text as printed was revised post performance and scholars suggest that Thomas Middleton no doubt had a hand in it as well.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  About Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033782984877,"sku":"9953","price":25000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9953.jpg?v=1636224776"},{"product_id":"1438600-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438600 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry VIII.  Complete.","description":"9659. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Henry VIII.  From the First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e  First Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eSHAKESPEARE. The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight. Complete. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio (8 by 12-1\/2 inches), modern half orange morocco gilt; 14 leaves. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFirst edition, the entire text extracted from the landmark First Folio (1623) \"the most valuable volume in the whole range of English literature\" (Grolier 100 19) of Shakespeare’s spectacular dramatization of the reign of Henry VIII.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eSamuel Taylor Coleridge called Henry VIII (1613) a \"show play,\" and it did indeed engross its first audiences: at an early performance, spectators watched the action on stage while the Globe theatre burned around them, a blaze ignited by the celebratory cannon fire called for in Act One. Beneath its pomp, however, the play is the Bard’s vision for the future of England that concentrated deliberately on the use and abuse of power.  \"[It] is less a chronicle play than one that reflects a deliberate, dialectical movement from romance to history in order to showcase political reality, personal ambition, power and religion\" (Lee, Shakesperean Criticism, Vol. 61, Introduction).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eShakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell prepared the First Folio; in 1623, William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount published it. Of Shakespeare’s 39 undisputed plays, 18 survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio. Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Ornamental woodcut headpiece and small decorative intial to leaf t3. Leaves t3-[x4], paginated 205-232 (leaf v2r mispaginated 218). With press variants: t4v with all five corrected readings; t6r.b23 with defective \"m\" in \"Chamber\" replaced; v3 signed. Shakespeare wrote this play with John Fletcher, making it the only collaborative play included in the First Folio; John Heminge and Henry Condell perhaps regarded it as a proper conclusion to the Histories. The text of the first edition was plausibly set from the authors’ foul papers. Jaggard, 346. Bookseller’s ticket to front pastedown.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eHenry VIII is one of eighteen plays for which there are no known printings prior to the First Folio; for all intents and purposes the present copy is a first edition of a Shakespeare play.  It is one of the last (if not the very last) plays written by Shakespeare and was written in collaboration with John Fletcher who succeeded Shakespeare as the leading dramatist with The King’s Men in 1612.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783017645,"sku":"9659","price":23000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9659.jpg?v=1636224778"},{"product_id":"1438700-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438700 1623 Shakespeare.  King Lear.  Six Leaves.","description":"10248. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Lear.  Six leaves extracted from the First Folio of 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(287-288, 291-296, 303-306)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNote:\u003c\/strong\u003e  The bibliography of King Lear is very complex and many editors have maintained that there are two versions, with the Folio text representing the play as actually being performed at the time of its writing (1622-23).  In the Folio, the final speech is given to Edgar who by Elizabethan and Jacobean conventions is the most senior remaining character, much as Fortinbras rules at the end of Hamlet and Malcolm takes the helm in Macbeth.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eIn the Quarto of 1608, Albany delivers the final speech and as husband to the eldest daughter, does indeed have some claim to the crown.  However, nearly all modern productions adhere to the Folio version.  The Quarto was poorly printed and is thought to have come directly from Shakespeare’s “foul papers” (not transcribed into a “fair copy” by a Walter Crane or another professional scribe).   The Quarto contains some 300 lines not in the Folio, whereas Folio has 100 not in Quarto and nearly 1000 lines containing variations of word or phrase.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(287-288).\u003c\/strong\u003e  Edmund the bastard has previously delivered a letter to his father, Gloucester, saying that his brother Edgar has designs on Gloucester’s life.  In this scene we see Edmund sending Edgar away because his life is in danger from Gloucester.  Edmund tells his brother that he will set everything straight and fetch him when the time is right. In a soliloquy, he says that maybe he is a bastard but he will by one means or another get the land that is due his brother.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eLear’s daughter,Goneril, tells her steward Oswald to give short shrift to Lear and his followers. She tells him that if Lear doesn’t like the treatment he can go to his other daughter Regan whom she knows is of a like mind.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eKent, who has been banished by Lear, puts on a disguise and sets out to meet with Lear. He tells Lear that he wants very much to be his servant, Lear gladly accepting.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eLear and his retinue arrive at Goneril’s and are indeed treated harshly by the steward Oswald. Lear rages against him and demands that he see his daughter.  Goneril, knowing that Regan will back her on this, tells Lear that he is old and foolish and has way too many followers. If he does not like it, he can always go and see Regan.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(291-296)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eIn this fragment we see Edmund at his worst telling Gloucester that he tried to dissuade his brother Edgar from killing Gloucester.  He says that in the heat of the exchange Edgar stabbed Edmund and Gloucester sees firsthand the self-inflicted wound of Edmund.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eRegan is pleased with Edmund and we see a glimmer of a spark between Regan and Edmund.  This will grow into something quite dangerous a bit later.  Kent insults one of Regan’s stewards and after a bitter exchange is put by Regan and Cornwall in the stocks. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eEdgar puts on his disguise of poor Tom the beggar, the costume consisting primarily of his nakedness save for some ragtag garments he has placed about himself.  Lear arrives and Kent tells him that Regan and Cornwall have put him in the stocks.  Lear refuses to believe it but then finally summons Regan to answer for herself.  Gloucester informs the king that he has told Regan and Cornwall about the King’s wanting to see him. They have said they would come out presently and this sets Lear into a rage. He tells Regan that incredibly Goneril has sent the king away saying he had too many followers with him.  Regan answers that if indeed Lear’s retinue had been a boisterous lot then she could understand why Goneril acted as she did. This of course enrages Lear further.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eGoneril arrives And says that perhaps the king is being so difficult because of his dotage. The two sisters continue to harangue the king saying “what need have you for fifty or twenty-five or even five.  Lear, infuriated, launches into the famous speech “oh reason not the cause”. After the king leaves, a gentleman asks Kent where the king has gone. Kent says I don’t know but he is out contending with the elements.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eNow perhaps the most famous speech in the play - really a rant more than a speech - beginning with “Blow winds and crack your cheeks”. We see Lear, stripped of his property, his family and everything in life stands naked raging against the elements and then lamenting the poor wretches who go through life as unsheltered as he.  Kent discovers him in the storm and while Lear is still raging gently leads him to shelter in a cave.  The fool closes out the scene by declaiming against the situation that has brought the king to this and then joins Lear and Kent in the cave.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(303-306)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eGloucester’s good son, Edgar, who Gloucester does not know is by his side, guides him to what he describes as the very top of a great promontory. Gloucester, who has been blinded by Regan and Cornwall, begs to end his life and Edgar persuades him to jump from this great height and end it thusly.  Gloucester takes what he thinks is a fatal leap and is met by the same man who helped him to jump only he says that the voice has changed somewhat thus recognizing Edgar. Lear appears garlanded and bedecked with flowers and rags rambling on nonsensically about his daughters.  Gloucester believes he recognizes Lear’s voice but Lear does not recognize him.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eEdgar is leading Gloucester away but Oswald intercepts them and tries to kill Gloucester. Edgar fatally wounds Oswald but is told to take a letter from Goneril to Edmund, but Edgar keeps the letter as proof of Edmund’s treachery.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eIn one of the most powerful scenes of the entire play Cordelia approaches the sleeping Lear who only very gradually realizes who it is that is talking to him.  He begs her to forgive him saying he has shown great cause for her to be angry but she replies “No cause.  No cause.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eWe see that there is friction between Goneril and Regan, and in a wonderful soliloquy Edmund boasts that both sisters love him and that he will by and by decide which he will take, Goneril or Regan or both. Edmund then says that Goneril’s husband, Albany, intends to be merciful to the captives Lear and Cordelia. It is clear to Edmund that Albany must be removed and no mercy shown to Lear and Cordelia.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eEdmund brings out Lear and Cordelia as captives.  Happy to be reunited, Lear tells her “let’s away to prison\/ We two alone will sing like birds I’th’cage:\/ When thou dost ask me blessing I’ll kneel down\/ And ask of thee forgiveness: so we’ll live.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783050413,"sku":"10248","price":20000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10248.jpg?v=1636224780"},{"product_id":"1438800-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438800 1623 Shakespeare.  All's Well.  Complete.","description":"9670. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAll's Well That Ends Well.  From the First Folio.  1623. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAs there are no earlier quartos, this is the sole substantive authority for the text.  Complete. All's Well is one of eighteen plays in the First Folio that were printed from a manuscript source and 'it shows every sign of having been printed from Shakespeare's foul papers' (Stanley Wells).  London, Printed by Isaac Jaggarg and Ed. Blount.  1623.  Folio, 13 leaves, V1 verso - Y1 verso, paginated 239-254, headpiece ornament and caption title; light brown stain to fore-edge throughout, some soiling, lower corners repaired with partial loss to ten words on V1-V2, fore-edge cut close and occasionally strengthened affexting line border and two letters on v5 verso and x6 verso, inner margin of first few leaves strenghened.  Full recent calf, old style, by Bernard Middleton.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAll's Well is one of the most textually challenging of all the Folio-only plays, that is plays with no quarto precedents.  Jonathan Bate in his wonderfully thorough \"The Case For the Folio\" argues persuasively for retention of several of the \"errors\" that have suffered emendation over the centuries.  It is stylistically similar to that other \"problem\" play Measure for Measure and was probably written around the same time.  Though Isabel of that play has in modern times been held up as the a champion of feminism, the same cannot be said about Helen.  Both use the \"bed trick\" to achieve their pbjective, but Isabel's resolution is delightfully ambiguous (does she or does she not marry the Duke\" whereas no such license is given to Helen.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783083181,"sku":"9670","price":15750.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9670.jpg?v=1636224781"},{"product_id":"1438900-1623-shakespeare","title":"1438900 1623 Shakespeare.  Timon of Athens.  Complete.","description":"10211.\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTimon of Athens.  From the First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan size=\"3\" style=\"font-size: medium;\"\u003eProvenance:  From John Wolfson's copy of the First Folio, which Wolfson had replaced with better preserved leaves from Bernard Quaritch.  The Wolfson Folio is West 173, Lee 128.  Owned in 1789 by Robert Tomkin and subsequently Thomas JamesSerle, Macready's manager who married the sister of the illustrious Mary Cowden Clark.  Serle presented it to Charles and Mary Cowden Clarke on June 7, 1863.  Cowden-Clarke was a meticulous researcher of the entire Shakespeare canon and in xxxx published the monumental Complete Concordance of Shakespeare's works, a text still in great use by scholars, researchers and bardophiles today.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan size=\"3\" style=\"font-size: medium;\"\u003eThe volume was subsequently given to Frederick Haines, Esq. After which it passed to his daughter Gladys M. Haines from whom it eventually wound up with London bookseller Bernard Quaritch.  The present owner, John Wolfson, purchased it from Quaritch for 2400 pounds sterling on October 6, 1976; Wolfson has in turn stated that upon his death his entire vast collection including the First Folio will pass on to the Globe Theater.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan size=\"3\" style=\"font-size: medium;\"\u003eAs there were no previous quartos of Timon, the Folio stands as the \u003cem\u003eeditio princeps\u003c\/em\u003e.  it had long been considered a somewhat finished work, but is now understood to be a collaboration with Thomas Middleton who at this time was also writing works for the King's men.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\nAbout Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783115949,"sku":"10211","price":13000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10211.jpg?v=1636224783"},{"product_id":"1439000-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439000 1623 Shakespeare.  Taming of the Shrew.  Two leaves.","description":"10221.\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTaming of the Shrew.  From the First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Two leaves.  Comedies 211-212, 229.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eTaming of the Shrew.  From the First Folio.  1623.  First Printing.  Two Leaves.  (A third page is the recto of the title page of All's Well elsewhere in the collection.)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"There's small choice in rotten apples\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eThe fragment begins shortly after the induction scene of the play. Most modern productions including films do not include the induction scene in which a beggar, Christopher Sly, arrives at an inn and the host and guests at the inn sit him down and basically put on a play before him.  Following the induction, the fragment introduces us to both Petruchio and Kate, and sets out the basic premise of the play upon which the entire dramatic arc is based.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eIn Padua, a gentleman, Baptista, is being petitioned by two suitors for the hand of his daughter, the beautiful Bianca.  Baptista says he will not allow Bianca to marry before he has \"a husband for the elder\", Katherine. It is generally known that Katherine is a difficult woman headstrong and for lack of a better term rather shrewish. One of the suitors, observes in an aside that Kate is either \"stark mad\" or willful, but the other suitor Lucentio insists he is more interested in Bianca, attracted by her \"silence and mild behavior\". The difference between the two daughters is immediately apparent when Bianca agrees to \"humbly subscribe\" to her father’s wishes, while Catherine questions why she must be quote appointed hours unquote as though she had no free will of her own.  One of the suitors, Gremio, suggests that he and the other unite temporarily to find a husband for Catherine so that Bianca is once again quote free for a husband unquote. The two suitors for Bianca then disguise themselves. Lucentio disguising himself as a schoolmaster thus giving him virtually round-the-clock access to Bianca.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" color=\"black\" style=\"color: black; font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eThus in these four pages, Shakespeare has masterfully introduced all the major characters, set up enough mayhem for five or six ordinary plays and hinted at much larger (and darker) underlying themes.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\" style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003ePetruchio arrives from Verona. He is accompanied by his servant Grumio and there are a series of funny exchanges between them that provide  a foreshadowing of some of the violent comedic action that will follow. We learn that Petruchio is very short on funds and has come to Padua to marry a rich wife. Happily Kate falls into that category so he decides that he will woo Kate despite all that he has heard and knows about Kate and her behavior. He claims it would not matter if the woman were \"fowl\" or \"old\" as long as she had money. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\nExtremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783148717,"sku":"10221","price":12000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10221.jpg?v=1636224784"},{"product_id":"1439100-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439100 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry V.  Six leaves.","description":"9391. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Henry V.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThirteen Pages.  (69-80, 95)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eHENRY THE FIFTH - FRAGMENT FROM THE FIRST FOLIO OF SHAKESPEARE. The Life of Henry the Fift. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Six folio leaves, measuring 8 by 12-1\/2 inches, disbound.  The first dozen pages of the 1623 printing, extracted from the landmark First Folio, \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19). \"The most active dramatic experience Shakespeare ever offered his audience\" (Joel Altman).  Fragment contains Henry's immortal \"Once more unto the breach\" speech in its entirety.  First performed in 1599, Shakespeare’s dramatization of King Henry’s victory at Agincourt has long fascinated theatergoers and readers alike as either \"a rousingly patriotic pro-war play or a slyly subversive critique of an unnecessary war\" (New York Times). The text had already circulated in a \"bad\" quarto version of 1600, reprinted twice prior to the First Folio of 1623. These leaves present continuous text from the famous prologue through Gower’s speech in Act III, Scene 6 (modern designation; \"Actus Secundus\" in the text), \"and this they conne perfitly in the phrase of Warre; which they tricke.\"  The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio.  Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Ornamental woodcut headpiece and small decorative intial to leaf h1r. Leaves h1-[h6]. See Jaggard, 336. Scattered light foxing. Closed tear to leaf h1, repaired. Restoration to extreme edges.repaired. Restoration to extreme edges.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Henry the Fifth.  H 69-80, 95\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThese two fragments  comprise the first six leaves (twelve pages) of King Henry V and the final page, which is the recto page of the Henry VI fragment in this collection.  \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe first fragment opens with the chorus lamenting the fact that this stage, this great “O” of the Globe theater, will not be nearly large enough to encompass the vista of action that the play will present.  Immediately following this rousing and majestic oratory are some of the most legthy and drawn-out speeches in the entire canon as the Archbishop of Canterbury and Exeter lay out the case why Henry should indeed be the king of France.  Further inducement to the invasion of France arrives as the French ambassador arrives with an answer to Henry’s claim to “some certain dukedoms” the French are holding.  The dauphin has sent Henry a “tun of treasure” in the form of tennis balls.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eIn Act Two, the Chorus gives a stirring account of all the youth of England being “on fire” as they prepare to sail for France.  The traitors, Lord Scroop, Lord Grey and the Earl of Cumberland are unmasked by the king and sentenced to death.  The action then switches to the French court where the French king is preparing for the English invasion.  The Dauphin tends to regard the English threat lightly, but the constable reminds him that the ambassador’s report was that Henry is very constant in his resolution.  Exeter, the English ambassador, urges the French king to relinquish the “borrowed glories” of his kingship.  He argues that Henry is the rightful king of France and clearly establishes the concept of the divine right of kings.  He urges the French king to respond quickly as Henry has already landed in France\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe chorus in Act Three provides a vivid description of the English fleet crossing the channel. We learn that the French king has replied to Henry offering him marriage to his daughter Catherine with some “petty and unprofitable dukedom’s” thrown in. Henry refuses.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eAct three scene one opens with the famous and stirring “once more unto the breach dear friends once more” and concludes with the rallying cry “God for Harry, England and St. George”. \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe final part of the segment is the invasion of Harfleur with Henry’s harsh words to the people to make them stand down and not fight and lose with terrible consequences.  Harfleur does, and following the victory we see the beginning of seeds of discontent being sown in the English army.  Meanwhile, in France, the French King and his court express disdain for Henry and his “barbarous” followers.  He orders them to engage and bring in “Harry England” as a prisoner.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe second fragment is the single final page of the play.  In it, Henry and the French king sign a treaty, and Kate, the French king’s daughter are betrothed.  The Chorus then sums up the greatness of Henry V and laments that all his work will be largely undone during the tragic rein of his son, Henry VI “Which oft our stage has shown.”\u003c\/div\u003e  Very Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783214253,"sku":"9391","price":11500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9391.jpg?v=1636224785"},{"product_id":"1439200-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439200 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry IV Pt. 1.  Twelve leaves.","description":"9392. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHenry IV.  Part One.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTwenty-four Pages.  (49-56, 59-73)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTHE FIRST PART OF HENRY IV - FRAGMENT FROM THE FIRST FOLIO OF SHAKESPEARE.  SHAKESPEARE. (The First Part of King Henry the Fourth). [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Eight folio leaves, measuring 8 by 12-1\/2 inches, disbound.  (The final page is on the recto of the title page of Henry IV pt. 2 elsewhere in the collection.)  All but the title page of this, considered by many the greatest of Shakespeare's history plays.  Fragment contains all of Hal and Falstaff's incomparable repartee and the complete arc of Hal's transition from profligate tavern denizen to the noblest and most admired of England's monarchs.  Sixteen pages of the 1623 printing, extracted from the landmark First Folio \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19).  Shakespeare’s \"arresting portrayal both of political struggle and and of conflict within the family\" (David Bevington). \"No play of Shakespeare’s is better than Henry IV.  History as a dramatic form ripens here to a point past which no further growth is possible\" (Mark Van Doren). Composed circa 1595, the second play in Shakespeare’s second tetralogy masterfully blends ominous drama, as Bolingbroke grapples with rising rebellions, and high comedy as young Prince Hal accompanied by one of the Bard’s most enduring creations, Sir John Falstaff begins his rise to power. The text was first published in 1598; an altered version appeared in the First Folio of 1623. These pages include the last few lines of Act I and all of Act II, Scenes 1-3 and much of Scene 4 (lacking leaf [e4]); much of Act III, Scenes 1 and 2 and all of Scene 3; all of Act IV; and Act V, Scenes 1-3 and almost all of Scene 4 (lacking Prince Henry and Falstaff’s final lines). See Jaggard, 327.  This missing final page is found (recto of the title page) in the complete Henry Fourth Part II in this collection.  The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio.  Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Leaves e2-e3, [e5], f1-[f5]. See Jaggard, 327. Contemporary faint marginalia to lower margins of [f4]. Light soiling to upper corners of f1-[f5]. Light edge-wear, tissue and paper restoration to corners and margins.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Henry IV part one.  H 49-72, 73\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTHE FIRST PART OF HENRY IV - FRAGMENT FROM THE FIRST FOLIO OF SHAKESPEARE.  SHAKESPEARE. (The First Part This fragment can briefly be summarized as follows: King Henry expresses his wish to mount a crusade to the Holy Land and of the year long plan he’s constructed to mount such a campaign;  Westmoreland then informs the king that “noble Mortimer” has been defeated by the Welsh rebellion led by Owen Glendower;  the King realizes he must put aside his dreams of a crusade and face the “civil butchery” that has marred his reign; he laments the fact that his son Harry is a profligate roustabout, while Northumberland’s son (also Harry) known as Hotspur, is heroic and valiant. The king fantasizes if only the two had been switched at birth and from this sentiment we segue directly into the establishing scene with Prince Hal and Falstaff.  Basically, the only material the fragment does not address is the back story of the uprisings taking place in the kingdom and the civil unrest that the king must address.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAn amazing fact about Henry IV that Shakespeare of course does not mention, was that somewhere around 1406 Henry contracted a severely disfiguring skin condition (either due to leprosy, syphilis or psoriasis).  The disease inflicted open and suppurating sores on Henry’s face and body.  In addition, a great bulbous tumor erupted under his nose.  In Shakespeare’s narrative, after Prince Hal proves himself by putting down Northumberland’s uprising in the battle of Shrewsbury and killing Hotspur (Part I), we see the king is indeed very worn down, has taken to bed a great deal and finally dies in the room called Jerusalem.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e1 Henry IV was Shakespeare’s most popular play, at least in print.  During his lifetime, no fewer than nine quarto editions had been printed.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  Very Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783247021,"sku":"9392","price":10500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9392.jpg?v=1636224787"},{"product_id":"1439300-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439300 1623 Shakespeare.  Macbeth.  Three pivotal Leaves.","description":"\u003cp\u003e10255.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMacbeth.   From the First Folio.\u003c\/strong\u003e   \u003cstrong\u003e1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Leaf plus two others.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\n\u003c!--StartFragment --\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\"Actus Primus. Scoena Prima.\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e7.25\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\" x \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e11.65\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\". A beautiful leaf in Fine condition. Macbeth being one of the plays for which there is no early quarto, the First Folio is thus the very first appearance of the play in print. The title page with its immortal opening lines \"When shall we three meet again, in thunder, darkness or in raine\" ranks among the most sought after of the entire canon.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eTextual Notes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eFirst Folio is considered the authoritative text for \"Macbeth\" and serves as the basis for most modern editions\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e\"Macbeth\" was likely written around \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1606\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, and it is believed to have been performed for King James I in August or December of that year\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The play features many compliments to King James VI\/I, suggesting that the original writing is Jacobean rather than Elizabethan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The procession of Kings in Act Four could date the composition to around \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1603\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, the year James Stuart ascended the English throne\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Additionally, references to \"equivocation\" by the Porter in Act Two and other allusions are seen as references to the trial of the Gunpowder Plot conspirators, which took place in January-March \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e16061\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe primary source for \"Macbeth\" was Raphael Holinshed's \"Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland\" (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1587\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e), a popular history well known to Shakespeare and his contemporaries\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Holinshed's account of the reigns of Duncan and Macbeth provided the historical context and details for the play, though with some notable differences\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. For example, in Holinshed's \"Chronicles,\" Banquo is Macbeth's accomplice in the plot to overthrow King Duncan. However, in \"Macbeth,\" Shakespeare recasts Banquo and his descendants as Macbeth's adversaries, undoubtedly to please King James, who traced his lineage to Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Other minor sources contributed to Shakespeare's dramatic version of history, including Reginald Scot's \"Discovery of Witchcraft\" and \"Daemonologie,\" written in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e1599\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eby King James I\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eSynopses of Fragments: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eTitle Lwaf (Pages \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e131-132\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThis fragment consists of the first two pages of Macbeth. It opens with the three Weyard sisters (Witches) incanting Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es name, proceeds to a bloody messenger informing King Duncan of Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heroism in the recent battle, then on to Macbeth and Banquo actually meeting the witches. The witches foretell that Macbeth will be made Thane of Cawdor and eventually King. When the witches depart another messenger tells Macbeth that because of his heroism, he will be made Thane of Cawdor. When Macbeth argues that the Thane of Cawdor still lives, he is told that the king has deposed him and named Macbeth in his place. Macbeth begins to ponder about the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003esecond prophecy concerning him, that of his becoming king. It is a remarkable leaf.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe opening scene of Macbeth comprises thirteen lines of loosely rhymed iambic tetrameter, a style more commonly associated with lighter fare and employed by Shakespeare in an opening scene only one other time (Gower\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es prologue in Pericles). The text of the scene references nothing specific about the play other than the name of the title character. It could in fact be presented entirely in dumb show without much loss of visceral impact.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eYet the text is itself a masterpiece of economy. Employing a mere \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e62\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ewords, Shakespeare provides his audience with an ocean of subtext: there is not only an immediate awareness of the historical time and place of the action, there is an almost palpable sense that darkness and deviltry will figure heavily in the overall tone and mood of the piece. The weyard sisters convey a sense of foreboding and inevitability that will propel the action forward until the bloodied head of Macbeth is brought forth in Act \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e5\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e. Not even the Porter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es scene in Act Two provides relief: the hapless Porter envisions himself as the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003egatekeeper of hell\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eand the repeated knocking at the door emphasizes the theme of sleeplessness and unrest.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThough modern audiences have become somewhat inured to the terror inspired by the weyard sisters, in Jacobean times their presence would conjure lurid and haunting images of hellish torments visited upon the unfaithful. Shakespeare knew his audience well: King James was himself a scholar of witches and witchcraft, and had indeed authored a book on the subject called Daemonologie. In fact, James had on more than one occasion put witches to death prior to the first performance of the play in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1606\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e. Shakespeare also deviates from the historical Macbeth in order to depict Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heirs, long held to be the ancestors of the Stuart line, as not only reigning in perpetuity but also of re-unifying England and Scotland which indeed James did.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eDespite the economy, brilliance and impact of the opening scene, some modern directors choose to transpose it with the scene immediately following, that of a bloodied Captain relating the tale of Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heroic defeat of Norway to a grateful Duncan. This can be quite effective as evidenced by the recent Patrick Stewart outing directed by Rupert Goold. The result is that a great deal of exposition is brought out early, but this quickening of the narrative comes at a price. We lose the immediacy of being plunged headfirst into a world of darkness and terror, a world where\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eFair is foul, and foul is fair\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eIn the original sequence it is only after this pronouncement that we hear of the heroics of Macbeth. The audience\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es expectations of Macbeth are thus suspended until we initially encounter him in scene three with Banquo where his very first line\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eSo Foul and Fair a day I have not seen\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eimmediately associates him with the powers of darkness. Both sequences work. But only one perfectly captures the tenor and tone of its time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ePages \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e143-144\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e- \"Something wicked this way comes\" Item \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e10381\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eFrightened, Macbeth goes to visit the witches in their cavern. There, they show him a sequence of demons and spirits who present him with further prophecies: he must beware of Macduff, a Scottish nobleman who opposed Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es accession to the throne; he is incapable of being harmed by any man born of woman; and he will be safe until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane Castle. Macbeth is relieved and feels secure, because he knows that all men are born of women and that forests cannot move. When he learns that Macduff has fled to England to join Malcolm, Macbeth orders that Macduff\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es castle be seized and, most cruelly, that Lady Macduff and her children be murdered.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eWhen news of his family\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es execution reaches Macduff in England, he is stricken with grief and vows revenge. Prince Malcolm, Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es son, has succeeded in raising an army in England, and Macduff joins him as he rides to Scotland to challenge Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es forces. The invasion has the support of the Scottish nobles, who are appalled and frightened by Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es tyrannical and murderous behavior. Lady Macbeth, meanwhile, becomes plagued with fits of sleepwalking in which she bemoans what she believes to be bloodstains on her hands. Before Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es opponents arrive, Macbeth receives news that she has killed herself, causing him to sink into a deep and pessimistic despair. Nevertheless, he awaits the English and fortifies Dunsinane, to which he seems to have withdrawn in order to defend himself, certain that the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eprophecies guarantee his invincibility. He is struck numb with fear, however, when he learns that the English army is advancing on Dunsinane shielded with boughs cut from Birnam Wood. Birnam Wood is indeed coming to Dunsinane, fulfilling half of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eprophecy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eIn the battle, Macbeth hews violently, but the English forces gradually overwhelm his army and castle. On the battlefield, Macbeth encounters the vengeful Macduff, who declares that he was not \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eof woman born\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ebut was instead \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003euntimely ripped\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003efrom his mother\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es womb (what we now call birth by cesarean section). Though he realizes that he is doomed, Macbeth continues to fight until Macduff kills and beheads him. Malcolm, now the King of Scotland, declares his benevolent intentions for the country and invites all to see him crowned at Scone.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eill Fleance, who escapes into the night. Macbeth becomes furious: as long as Fleance is alive, he fears that his power remains insecure. At the feast that night, Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es ghost visits Macbeth. When he sees the ghost, Macbeth raves fearfully, startling his guests, who include most of the great Scottish nobility. Lady Macbeth tries to neutralize the damage, but Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es kingship incites increasing resistance from his nobles and subjects.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ePages \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e147-148\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e- \"Out Damn spot, out I say\" (Item \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e10255)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe Tragedie of Macbeth, single leaf extracted from the first folio, pp.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e147\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\/\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e148\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e, lightly foxed, repair to lower margin (not affecting text or ruled border), repair to lower corner slightly affecting text, folio (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e304\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ex \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e194\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003emm.), [\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e].\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eAn excellent leaf from the original printing of Macbeth, one of Shakespeare's greatest and most popular plays. Though written c. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1606-07\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e, Macbeth was only first published in the First Folio (no prior quartos exist). This leaf includes one of the bard's most famous yet oft-misquoted lines \"Out damned spot: out I say.\" as Lady Macbeth despairs of trying to remove all traces of the murder of Duncan.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eMalcolm the son of Duncan and the true heir to the throne does not trust macduff and feels that possibly Macbeth has sent Macduff to him. In order to test Macduff, Malcolm reveals terrible traits of character about himself saying in effect that he simply cannot be trusted. Macduff breaks down and says that Malcolm is unfit to rule Scotland, at which point Malcolm assures Macduff that what he has what he has said it's not at all true and that in effect he will make a very capable leader.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eA doctor says that a \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ecrew of wretched souls\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eis waiting for the English king, Edward the confessor, to cure them. He urges Malcolm to return quickly to Scotland and Malcolm agrees to with the aid of the English king. Fittingly \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eIn a new scene, a doctor and a gentlewoman wait outside Lady Macbeth's chamber to see if they can uncover evidence of her sleepwalking. Lady Macbeth enters, speaks of the smell of blood and expresses horror that Lady Macduff and Banquo have been murdered. Gazing at her hands she says \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eLook here's another spot. Out damn spot Out I say.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ethe doctor maintains that there is no medicine that can cure Lady Macbeth and that she will need \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003edivine\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eassistance.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eSome additional notes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe newly empowered Macbeth commands the witches to reveal his ultimate fate. They comply in a deliberately obscure and misleading manner.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eLennox informs a Lord of his suspicion that neither Duncan or Banquo were murdered by their sons and that he believes it was Macbeth who was responsible.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe fragment begins with a brief scene in which Hecate visits the Weyard Sisters and accosts them of excluding her from the affairs of Macbeth. Finally, Macbeth, no longer in awe of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003epower demands of them his ultimate fate. He is told first that the greatest threat against him is Macduff at which point he resolves to attack and murder Macduff and his family. He then learns that no man born of woman can bring him harm. He takes this as a virtual statement of invulnerability and justification for attacking and murdering Macduff. He then learns that no harm shall come to Macbeth until \"Birnam wood doth come to Dunsinane\". This too buoys his feelings of invincibility and rather than letting things go at that, he then asks what will become of Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heirs. He is then shown a series of eight apparitions, each wearing a crown and each bearing a double orb and sceptre the meaning of which is apparent: after Macbeth dies, Banquo's heirs will unite England and Scotland and reign well into the future.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e The play begins with the brief appearance of a trio of witches and then moves to a military camp, where the Scottish King Duncan hears the news that his generals, Macbeth and Banquo, have defeated two separate invading armies\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eone from Ireland, led by the rebel Macdonwald, and one from Norway. Following their pitched battle with these enemy forces, Macbeth and Banquo encounter the witches as they cross a moor. The witches prophesy that Macbeth will be made thane (a rank of Scottish nobility) of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. They also prophesy that Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es companion, Banquo, will beget a line of Scottish kings, although Banquo will never be king himself.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eThe witches vanish, and Macbeth and Banquo treat their prophecies skeptically until some of King Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es men come to thank the two generals for their victories in battle and to tell Macbeth that he has indeed been named thane of Cawdor. The previous thane betrayed Scotland by fighting for the Norwegians and Duncan has condemned him to death. Macbeth is intrigued by the possibility that the remainder of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eprophecy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003ethat he will be crowned king\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003emight be true, but he is uncertain what to expect. He visits with King Duncan, and they plan to dine together at Inverness, Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es castle, that night. Macbeth writes ahead to his wife, Lady Macbeth, telling her all that has happened.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eLady Macbeth suffers none of her husband\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es uncertainty. She desires the kingship for him and wants him to murder Duncan in order to obtain it. When Macbeth arrives at Inverness, she overrides all of her husband\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es objections and persuades him to kill the king that very night. He and Lady Macbeth plan to get Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es two chamberlains drunk so they will black out; the next morning they will blame the murder on the chamberlains, who will be defenseless, as they will remember nothing. While Duncan is asleep, Macbeth stabs him, despite his doubts and a number of supernatural portents, including a vision of a bloody dagger. When Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es death is discovered the next morning, Macbeth kills the chamberlains\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eostensibly out of rage at their crime\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eand easily assumes the kingship. Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es sons Malcolm and Donalbain flee to England and Ireland, respectively, fearing that whoever killed Duncan desires their demise as well.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eFearful of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eprophecy that Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es heirs will seize the throne, Macbeth hires a group of murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance. They ambush Banquo on his way to a royal feast, but they fail to kill Fleance. Malcolm however flees to England where he discusses all that has gone on and his fears for the future edward assures him that the future indeed is rosy for Malcolm and Banquo. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e Dramatis Personae\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eMacbeth: A Scottish general and the Thane of Glamis who is led to wicked thoughts by the prophecies of the three witches. He becomes Thane of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. Macbeth is a brave soldier but is easily tempted into murder to fulfill his ambitions. His response to every problem is violence and murder, and he is unable to bear the psychological consequences of his actions \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eLady Macbeth: Macbeth's wife, a deeply ambitious woman who lusts for power and position. She is the stronger and more ruthless of the two, urging Macbeth to kill King Duncan and seize the crown. However, she falls victim to guilt and madness, eventually committing suicide \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eThe Three Witches: Also known as the \"Weird Sisters,\" they plot mischief against Macbeth using charms, spells, and prophecies. Their predictions prompt Macbeth to murder Duncan and lead him to believe in his own immortality \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eBanquo: A brave and noble general whose children, according to the witches' prophecy, will inherit the Scottish throne. Unlike Macbeth, Banquo does not act on his ambitious thoughts. He is later murdered by Macbeth, and his ghost haunts Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eDuncan: The good and benevolent King of Scotland whom Macbeth murders in his ambition for the crown \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eMacduff: The Thane of Fife who becomes Macbeth's nemesis. He eventually kills Macbeth in revenge for the murder of his family \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eMalcolm: The son of and heir to King Duncan, who flees Scotland after his father's murder. He later returns with an army to reclaim the throne from Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eHecate: The goddess of witchcraft who helps the three witches work their mischief on Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eFleance: Banquo's son, who survives Macbeth's attempt to murder him. His whereabouts are unknown at the end of the play \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eLennox, Ross, Menteith, Angus, and Caithness: Scottish nobles who eventually turn against Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eThe Murderers: A group of ruffians hired by Macbeth to kill Banquo, Fleance, and Macduff's family \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eLady Macduff: Macduff's wife, who is murdered along with her children by Macbeth's hired assassins \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eDonalbain: King Duncan's younger son, who flees to Ireland after his father's murder\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783279789,"sku":"10255","price":10000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10255.jpg?v=1636224788"},{"product_id":"1439500-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439500 1623 Shakespeare.  Twelfth Night.  First Five Leaves.","description":"9390. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTwelfth Night.  From the First Folio.  1623  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  First Ten Pages.  (255-264)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eTwelfth Night. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio, five leaves (measuring 8 by 12-1\/2 inches), disbound.  The first ten pages of \"one of the most irresistible of Shakespeare’s comedies\" (New York Times), extracted from the First Folio (1623), \"the most valuable volume in the whole range of English literature\" (Grolier 100 19).  \"An improbable world of hair’s-breadth rescues at sea, romantic disguises, idealistic friendships and sudden, irrational loves. This is not quite the country behind the North Wind, but it approaches those latitudes\" (Anne Barton). These are leaves Y2-[Y6] from the First Folio.  The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. First performed in 1602. \"So far as can be gleaned, it remained unprinted until the Jaggard canon presented it in 1623\" (Jaggard, 478). Light dampstaining to outer margins. Minor restoration to extremities. Excellent condition.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe fragment comprises the first 10 pages of this, among the most delightful of Shakespeare’s comedies. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eAt the very first line of the play we know we are in for some fun as we hear Duke Orsino bemoaning his fate  \"If music be the food of love play on\".  We learn that he is in love with the Countess Olivia who does not - at least for the moment - requite him as she is in seven years mourning for her brother.  Viola, recently shipwrecked, washes ashore and goes to meet the Duke.  She decides ahead of time to disguise herself as a young man (Cesario) so she might seek employment with him. The basic premise of the plot then unfolds as the Duke employs Viola\/Cesario as his servant and sends him to try to win the favors of the Countess. Viola in the meantime has fallen in love with the Duke. The Countess Olivia falls in love with what she thinks is the young man Cesario but is actually Viola.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eFurther complicating the plot is the fact that Malvolio, servant to Olivia, is also smitten with the Countess and jealous of anyone trying to curry her favor.  The fragment contains one of the funniest scenes in all of Shakespeare when Malvolio discovers a letter which has been planted for him and which is supposedly from the countess.  The hapless but impossibly vain Malvolio interprets the letter as an indication of Olivia’s being in love with him though he is merely her servant.  He is convinced by a passage in the letter “Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em.”  He then follow’s the letter’s exhortation to dress with crossed garters if he is to woo her.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe fragment ends with the opening of act three where we see-Feste the clown asking for a handout from Viola\/Cesario.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Very Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783312557,"sku":"9390","price":7500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9390.jpg?v=1636224790"},{"product_id":"1439600-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439600 1623 Shakespeare.  Cymbeline.  Title Plus Four Leaves.","description":"10213. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCymbeline.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Title Page plus Four Leaves.  Tragedies 369-370, 385-388, 391-392.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe title leaf consisting of the title page and one other, comprises all of Act One, Scene One as it appears in modern texts and lays bare most of the elements of the primary plot.  Cymbeline has been characterized as a sort of “fantasy romance” and has possibly the most intricately convoluted structure of any in the canon.  It opens with two gentlemen discussing present conditions at the court of King Cymbeline who ruled during the time of Augustus?\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eWe learn that the king’s daughter, princess Imogen, has gone against the wishes of her father and that this has greatly upset the queen (her stepmother) and therefore Cymbeline as well.  Imogen has secretly married a gentleman named Posthumous Leonatus rather than Cloten, the son of the queen (whose name is never mentioned).  The two gentlemen further reveal that Posthumous is a man of many virtues and is a perfect mate for the saintly Imogen as opposed to Cloten whom they characterize as a clod and dullard who is “too bad for bad report”.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eSince Imogen is the king’s only child (his two boys having been stolen twenty years before and never yet found) the queen’s chances of succession are now nil.  Cymbeline banishes Posthumous and virtually imprisons Imogen, leaving her in the care of her scheming stepmother.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe queen deceitfully tells Imogen and Posthumous that she ill plead their case to the king leading Imogen to whisper “how far this tyrant can tickle where she wounds”.  Before parting, Imogen and Posthumous exchange gifts: she giving him a ring which had been her mother’s, he placing a bracelet on her wrist and saying\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e“For my sake wear this\/It is a manacle of love.  I’ll plsce it upon this fairest prisoner.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eTheir parting scene is lovely and somewhat reminiscent of Shakespeare’s much earlier play “Romeo and Juliet.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eCymbeline bursts in upon them and threatens Posthumous:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e“Thou basest thing avoid hence, from my sight!\/ if after this command thou frought the court\/with thou unworthiness, thou diest!  Away!\/ Thou’rt poison to my blood.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe queen enters and while soothing Cymbeline, has Imogen “penned away”.  Just then Pisanio, servant to Posthumous, enters and says that Cloten had drawn his sword on Posthumous, but Posthumous rather easily fended him off.  It is not the last encounter of the two and as the play unfolds we are taken to a fairy-land of intrigue culminating in a lengthy final scene in which no fewer that twenty-two plot points are neatly resolved.  Though the play is now considered a “romance” its placement in the first folio is among the tragedies.  Incidentally, the final leaf of Cymbeline,being the final leaf of the entire folio  is considered the rarest, since it was most easily lost through wear and tear. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(385-388)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eSince Imogen has rejected him, Cloten decides he will revenge himself by dressing in Posthumus’ clothing, killing Posthumus, raping Imogen and bringing her back to court.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eImogen, disguised as a boy Fidele, and totally exhausted, stumbles into a cave inhabited by Belarius and his two sons, Arviragus and Guiderius, happily take (him\/her) in and accept Fidele as a new friend that for some reason they feel very close to (we learn later that the two boys are actually the long-lost sons of Cymbeline and that therefore Fidele (Imogen) is their sister.  Fidele also finds herself strongly drawn to the boys “I’d change my sex to be companion with them.”  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eMeantime, in Rome, a senator announces that the army readying to attack Britain to demand tribute which Cymbeline has refused, will be led by Caius Lucius.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eCloten, dressed in Posthumus’ garments arrives at the spot at which Imogen was to meet Posthumus.  His plan is to behead Posthumus and rape Imogen.  Meanwhile, Imogen still exhausted and not feeling well, takes a potion she has been given, thinking it is a restorative.  Instead, it places her into a deathlike sleep.  Outside the cave, the two boys encounter Posthumus who insults them.  Cloten and Guiderius engage in battle and exit.  Belarius, their ‘father’ enters saying that the stranger they encountered was the Queen’s son, Cloten.  As though on cue, Guiderius reenters carrying the head of Cloten, which all realize will place them in grave danger from the Queen.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eAlone, Belarius muses about the fact that the boys bear themselves so regally, though unaware of their true heritage.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(391-392)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eCymbeline laments that the Romans are invading and he is stripped of his daughter, his queen and her son, Cloten.  Pisanio, who had been Posthumus’ servant but spared Imogen from his wrath, tells us in an aside that he best serves Cymbeline by withholding certain truths from him.  Arviragus and Guiderius  persuade their father that he should put his ill feelings toward Cymbeline aside and join him in the fight against the Romans.  Aside, their father says that should their blood be spilled, their secret will be out and reveal them to be true princes (sons of Cymbeline).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003ePosthumus, in Britain as part of the Roman army, laments the (purported) fact that Imogen is dead and decides to join the Britons as a lowly soldier in their forces.  In a series of battles, Posthumus defeats Iachimo whose treachery caused Posthumus to order the death of Imogen.  He then joins Arviragus, Guiderius and their father and succeeds in rescuing Cymbeline.  On the Roman side, Caius Lucius then urges his aide Fidele (Imogen) to flee.  Posthumus, still harboring a death wish, rejoins the Roman army whereupon he is captured by the Britons and Cymbeline himself, not recognizing him, packs him off to jail.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e** if what is written here as synopsis seems obscure, opaque and convoluted, I can only assure you the play is more so.  In the final two scenes no fewer that twenty-four loose ends are tied up as in a comedy, yet it is classified in the folio as tragedy.  Best bet is to watch a performance, as many of the difficulties are resolved visually. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783378093,"sku":"10213","price":7400.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10213.jpg?v=1636224792"},{"product_id":"1439700-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439700 1623 Shakespeare.  Macbeth.  Title Leaf plus two other Pivotal Leaves..","description":"\u003cp\u003e9184.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMacbeth.   From the First Folio.\u003c\/strong\u003e   \u003cstrong\u003e1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Leaf plus two others.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: left;\"\u003e\n\u003c!--StartFragment --\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\"Actus Primus. Scoena Prima.\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e7.25\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\" x \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e11.65\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\". A beautiful leaf in Fine condition. Macbeth being one of the plays for which there is no early quarto, the First Folio is thus the very first appearance of the play in print. The title page with its immortal opening lines \"When shall we three meet again, in thunder, darkness or in raine\" ranks among the most sought after of the entire canon.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eTextual Notes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eFirst Folio is considered the authoritative text for \"Macbeth\" and serves as the basis for most modern editions\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e\"Macbeth\" was likely written around \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1606\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, and it is believed to have been performed for King James I in August or December of that year\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The play features many compliments to King James VI\/I, suggesting that the original writing is Jacobean rather than Elizabethan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The procession of Kings in Act Four could date the composition to around \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1603\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, the year James Stuart ascended the English throne\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Additionally, references to \"equivocation\" by the Porter in Act Two and other allusions are seen as references to the trial of the Gunpowder Plot conspirators, which took place in January-March \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e16061\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe primary source for \"Macbeth\" was Raphael Holinshed's \"Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland\" (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1587\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e), a popular history well known to Shakespeare and his contemporaries\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Holinshed's account of the reigns of Duncan and Macbeth provided the historical context and details for the play, though with some notable differences\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. For example, in Holinshed's \"Chronicles,\" Banquo is Macbeth's accomplice in the plot to overthrow King Duncan. However, in \"Macbeth,\" Shakespeare recasts Banquo and his descendants as Macbeth's adversaries, undoubtedly to please King James, who traced his lineage to Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Other minor sources contributed to Shakespeare's dramatic version of history, including Reginald Scot's \"Discovery of Witchcraft\" and \"Daemonologie,\" written in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e1599\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eby King James I\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eSynopses of Fragments: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eTitle Leaf (Pages \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e131-132\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThis fragment consists of the first two pages of Macbeth. It opens with the three Weyard sisters (Witches) incanting Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es name, proceeds to a bloody messenger informing King Duncan of Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heroism in the recent battle, then on to Macbeth and Banquo actually meeting the witches. The witches foretell that Macbeth will be made Thane of Cawdor and eventually King. When the witches depart another messenger tells Macbeth that because of his heroism, he will be made Thane of Cawdor. When Macbeth argues that the Thane of Cawdor still lives, he is told that the king has deposed him and named Macbeth in his place. Macbeth begins to ponder about the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003esecond prophecy concerning him, that of his becoming king. It is a remarkable leaf.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe opening scene of Macbeth comprises thirteen lines of loosely rhymed iambic tetrameter, a style more commonly associated with lighter fare and employed by Shakespeare in an opening scene only one other time (Gower\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es prologue in Pericles). The text of the scene references nothing specific about the play other than the name of the title character. It could in fact be presented entirely in dumb show without much loss of visceral impact.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eYet the text is itself a masterpiece of economy. Employing a mere \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e62\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ewords, Shakespeare provides his audience with an ocean of subtext: there is not only an immediate awareness of the historical time and place of the action, there is an almost palpable sense that darkness and deviltry will figure heavily in the overall tone and mood of the piece. The weyard sisters convey a sense of foreboding and inevitability that will propel the action forward until the bloodied head of Macbeth is brought forth in Act \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e5\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e. Not even the Porter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es scene in Act Two provides relief: the hapless Porter envisions himself as the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003egatekeeper of hell\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eand the repeated knocking at the door emphasizes the theme of sleeplessness and unrest.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThough modern audiences have become somewhat inured to the terror inspired by the weyard sisters, in Jacobean times their presence would conjure lurid and haunting images of hellish torments visited upon the unfaithful. Shakespeare knew his audience well: King James was himself a scholar of witches and witchcraft, and had indeed authored a book on the subject called Daemonologie. In fact, James had on more than one occasion put witches to death prior to the first performance of the play in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1606\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e. Shakespeare also deviates from the historical Macbeth in order to depict Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heirs, long held to be the ancestors of the Stuart line, as not only reigning in perpetuity but also of re-unifying England and Scotland which indeed James did.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eDespite the economy, brilliance and impact of the opening scene, some modern directors choose to transpose it with the scene immediately following, that of a bloodied Captain relating the tale of Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heroic defeat of Norway to a grateful Duncan. This can be quite effective as evidenced by the recent Patrick Stewart outing directed by Rupert Goold. The result is that a great deal of exposition is brought out early, but this quickening of the narrative comes at a price. We lose the immediacy of being plunged headfirst into a world of darkness and terror, a world where\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eFair is foul, and foul is fair\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eIn the original sequence it is only after this pronouncement that we hear of the heroics of Macbeth. The audience\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es expectations of Macbeth are thus suspended until we initially encounter him in scene three with Banquo where his very first line\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eSo Foul and Fair a day I have not seen\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eimmediately associates him with the powers of darkness. Both sequences work. But only one perfectly captures the tenor and tone of its time.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ePages \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e143-144\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e- \"Something wicked this way comes\" Item \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e10381\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eFrightened, Macbeth goes to visit the witches in their cavern. There, they show him a sequence of demons and spirits who present him with further prophecies: he must beware of Macduff, a Scottish nobleman who opposed Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es accession to the throne; he is incapable of being harmed by any man born of woman; and he will be safe until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane Castle. Macbeth is relieved and feels secure, because he knows that all men are born of women and that forests cannot move. When he learns that Macduff has fled to England to join Malcolm, Macbeth orders that Macduff\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es castle be seized and, most cruelly, that Lady Macduff and her children be murdered.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eWhen news of his family\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es execution reaches Macduff in England, he is stricken with grief and vows revenge. Prince Malcolm, Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es son, has succeeded in raising an army in England, and Macduff joins him as he rides to Scotland to challenge Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es forces. The invasion has the support of the Scottish nobles, who are appalled and frightened by Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es tyrannical and murderous behavior. Lady Macbeth, meanwhile, becomes plagued with fits of sleepwalking in which she bemoans what she believes to be bloodstains on her hands. Before Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es opponents arrive, Macbeth receives news that she has killed herself, causing him to sink into a deep and pessimistic despair. Nevertheless, he awaits the English and fortifies Dunsinane, to which he seems to have withdrawn in order to defend himself, certain that the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eprophecies guarantee his invincibility. He is struck numb with fear, however, when he learns that the English army is advancing on Dunsinane shielded with boughs cut from Birnam Wood. Birnam Wood is indeed coming to Dunsinane, fulfilling half of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eprophecy.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eIn the battle, Macbeth hews violently, but the English forces gradually overwhelm his army and castle. On the battlefield, Macbeth encounters the vengeful Macduff, who declares that he was not \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eof woman born\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ebut was instead \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003euntimely ripped\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003efrom his mother\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es womb (what we now call birth by cesarean section). Though he realizes that he is doomed, Macbeth continues to fight until Macduff kills and beheads him. Malcolm, now the King of Scotland, declares his benevolent intentions for the country and invites all to see him crowned at Scone.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eill Fleance, who escapes into the night. Macbeth becomes furious: as long as Fleance is alive, he fears that his power remains insecure. At the feast that night, Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es ghost visits Macbeth. When he sees the ghost, Macbeth raves fearfully, startling his guests, who include most of the great Scottish nobility. Lady Macbeth tries to neutralize the damage, but Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es kingship incites increasing resistance from his nobles and subjects.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ePages \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e147-148\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e- \"Out Damn spot, out I say\" (Item \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e10255)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe Tragedie of Macbeth, single leaf extracted from the first folio, pp.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e147\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\/\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e148\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e, lightly foxed, repair to lower margin (not affecting text or ruled border), repair to lower corner slightly affecting text, folio (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e304\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ex \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e194\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003emm.), [\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e].\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eAn excellent leaf from the original printing of Macbeth, one of Shakespeare's greatest and most popular plays. Though written c. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1606-07\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e, Macbeth was only first published in the First Folio (no prior quartos exist). This leaf includes one of the bard's most famous yet oft-misquoted lines \"Out damned spot: out I say.\" as Lady Macbeth despairs of trying to remove all traces of the murder of Duncan.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eMalcolm the son of Duncan and the true heir to the throne does not trust macduff and feels that possibly Macbeth has sent Macduff to him. In order to test Macduff, Malcolm reveals terrible traits of character about himself saying in effect that he simply cannot be trusted. Macduff breaks down and says that Malcolm is unfit to rule Scotland, at which point Malcolm assures Macduff that what he has what he has said it's not at all true and that in effect he will make a very capable leader.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eA doctor says that a \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ecrew of wretched souls\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eis waiting for the English king, Edward the confessor, to cure them. He urges Malcolm to return quickly to Scotland and Malcolm agrees to with the aid of the English king. Fittingly \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eIn a new scene, a doctor and a gentlewoman wait outside Lady Macbeth's chamber to see if they can uncover evidence of her sleepwalking. Lady Macbeth enters, speaks of the smell of blood and expresses horror that Lady Macduff and Banquo have been murdered. Gazing at her hands she says \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eLook here's another spot. Out damn spot Out I say.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ethe doctor maintains that there is no medicine that can cure Lady Macbeth and that she will need \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e“\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003edivine\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eassistance.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eSome additional notes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe newly empowered Macbeth commands the witches to reveal his ultimate fate. They comply in a deliberately obscure and misleading manner.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eLennox informs a Lord of his suspicion that neither Duncan or Banquo were murdered by their sons and that he believes it was Macbeth who was responsible.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe fragment begins with a brief scene in which Hecate visits the Weyard Sisters and accosts them of excluding her from the affairs of Macbeth. Finally, Macbeth, no longer in awe of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003epower demands of them his ultimate fate. He is told first that the greatest threat against him is Macduff at which point he resolves to attack and murder Macduff and his family. He then learns that no man born of woman can bring him harm. He takes this as a virtual statement of invulnerability and justification for attacking and murdering Macduff. He then learns that no harm shall come to Macbeth until \"Birnam wood doth come to Dunsinane\". This too buoys his feelings of invincibility and rather than letting things go at that, he then asks what will become of Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003es heirs. He is then shown a series of eight apparitions, each wearing a crown and each bearing a double orb and sceptre the meaning of which is apparent: after Macbeth dies, Banquo's heirs will unite England and Scotland and reign well into the future.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e The play begins with the brief appearance of a trio of witches and then moves to a military camp, where the Scottish King Duncan hears the news that his generals, Macbeth and Banquo, have defeated two separate invading armies\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eone from Ireland, led by the rebel Macdonwald, and one from Norway. Following their pitched battle with these enemy forces, Macbeth and Banquo encounter the witches as they cross a moor. The witches prophesy that Macbeth will be made thane (a rank of Scottish nobility) of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. They also prophesy that Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es companion, Banquo, will beget a line of Scottish kings, although Banquo will never be king himself.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eThe witches vanish, and Macbeth and Banquo treat their prophecies skeptically until some of King Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es men come to thank the two generals for their victories in battle and to tell Macbeth that he has indeed been named thane of Cawdor. The previous thane betrayed Scotland by fighting for the Norwegians and Duncan has condemned him to death. Macbeth is intrigued by the possibility that the remainder of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eprophecy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003ethat he will be crowned king\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003emight be true, but he is uncertain what to expect. He visits with King Duncan, and they plan to dine together at Inverness, Macbeth\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es castle, that night. Macbeth writes ahead to his wife, Lady Macbeth, telling her all that has happened.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eLady Macbeth suffers none of her husband\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es uncertainty. She desires the kingship for him and wants him to murder Duncan in order to obtain it. When Macbeth arrives at Inverness, she overrides all of her husband\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es objections and persuades him to kill the king that very night. He and Lady Macbeth plan to get Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es two chamberlains drunk so they will black out; the next morning they will blame the murder on the chamberlains, who will be defenseless, as they will remember nothing. While Duncan is asleep, Macbeth stabs him, despite his doubts and a number of supernatural portents, including a vision of a bloody dagger. When Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es death is discovered the next morning, Macbeth kills the chamberlains\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eostensibly out of rage at their crime\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e—\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eand easily assumes the kingship. Duncan\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es sons Malcolm and Donalbain flee to England and Ireland, respectively, fearing that whoever killed Duncan desires their demise as well.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eFearful of the witches\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eprophecy that Banquo\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003es heirs will seize the throne, Macbeth hires a group of murderers to kill Banquo and his son Fleance. They ambush Banquo on his way to a royal feast, but they fail to kill Fleance. Malcolm however flees to England where he discusses all that has gone on and his fears for the future edward assures him that the future indeed is rosy for Malcolm and Banquo. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003e Dramatis Personae\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eMacbeth: A Scottish general and the Thane of Glamis who is led to wicked thoughts by the prophecies of the three witches. He becomes Thane of Cawdor and eventually King of Scotland. Macbeth is a brave soldier but is easily tempted into murder to fulfill his ambitions. His response to every problem is violence and murder, and he is unable to bear the psychological consequences of his actions \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eLady Macbeth: Macbeth's wife, a deeply ambitious woman who lusts for power and position. She is the stronger and more ruthless of the two, urging Macbeth to kill King Duncan and seize the crown. However, she falls victim to guilt and madness, eventually committing suicide \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eThe Three Witches: Also known as the \"Weird Sisters,\" they plot mischief against Macbeth using charms, spells, and prophecies. Their predictions prompt Macbeth to murder Duncan and lead him to believe in his own immortality \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eBanquo: A brave and noble general whose children, according to the witches' prophecy, will inherit the Scottish throne. Unlike Macbeth, Banquo does not act on his ambitious thoughts. He is later murdered by Macbeth, and his ghost haunts Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eDuncan: The good and benevolent King of Scotland whom Macbeth murders in his ambition for the crown \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eMacduff: The Thane of Fife who becomes Macbeth's nemesis. He eventually kills Macbeth in revenge for the murder of his family \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eMalcolm: The son of and heir to King Duncan, who flees Scotland after his father's murder. He later returns with an army to reclaim the throne from Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eHecate: The goddess of witchcraft who helps the three witches work their mischief on Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eFleance: Banquo's son, who survives Macbeth's attempt to murder him. His whereabouts are unknown at the end of the play \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eLennox, Ross, Menteith, Angus, and Caithness: Scottish nobles who eventually turn against Macbeth \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eThe Murderers: A group of ruffians hired by Macbeth to kill Banquo, Fleance, and Macduff's family \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eLady Macduff: Macduff's wife, who is murdered along with her children by Macbeth's hired assassins \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eDonalbain: King Duncan's younger son, who flees to Ireland after his father's murder\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!--EndFragment --\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFine\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783410861,"sku":"9184","price":6600.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9184.jpg?v=1644781648"},{"product_id":"1439800-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439800 1623 Shakespeare.  Romeo and Juliet.  Eight Leaves Plus Final Page.","description":"10210. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRomeo and Juliet.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Page, Final Page and Sixteen Others.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e53-56 including the Title Page.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eProbably the most interesting thing about the first page of Romeo and Juliet in the First Folio is that it lacks the prologue spoken by Chorus which is the familiar and lovely sonnet that begins: \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eTwo households both alike in dignity\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cem\u003eIn fair Verona, where we lay our scene\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eScholarly conjecture on the omission has to do with the final lines using the phrase “the two hours’ traffic of our stage,” and by cutting the prologue the finished performance comes a bit closer to that goal. Whether this is true or not the action of the play picks up immediately at the outset as two serving men of the house of Montague rail on about what they would do if they met their opposite numbers of the Capulet’s.  Naturally they do, and a very dramatic scene unfolds in which the two draw swords.  They are separated by Benvolio of the Montague faction who then is confronted by Tybalt the cousin of Juliet.  Lord and Lady Capulet arrive followed immediately by Lord and Lady Montague who intervene and call for peace. They are followed immediately by Prince Escalus who declares that the next weapon drawn in anger will be the death of its owner.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eRomeo enters looking very down in the mouth and tells Benvolio that he is very much distracted by thoughts of a fair lady but that his love is unrequited.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eIn the next scene, we learn Juliet Capulet is being pursued by Paris but that she is not particularly fond of him. Lady Capulet reminds her that there will be a masked ball that night that Paris will be attending and that her parents urge her to keep an open mind. We subsequently learn that Romeo’s unrequited love, Rosaline, will also be at the party but that no one from the house of Montague will dare show his face.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eBenvolio tells Romeo that Rosaline will be at the ball and Romeo decides that he will attend the ball at the Capulet’s house and since it is a masked ball he will be able to pass among the guests. Thus very early on in the play we learn that both Romeo and Juliet are either pursued by or pursuing other potential loves.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eRomeo, Benvolio and Mercutio then arrive in full disguise at the Capulet’s house and the stage is set for the tragic consequences that will ensue.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Pages 61-72)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe first fragment, comprising twelve pages, picks up immediately following the balcony scene after Romeo and Juliet have parted.  Early the next morning Romeo visits Friar Lawrence to whom its apparent that Romeo has not slept all night. Romeo tells the Friar he needs to be married in a hurry.  The Friar thinks he’s finally hooking up with Rosaline but is shocked to learn that no, it is a Capulet that Romeo pursues.  The Friar assures Romeo that he will inform Juliet of his whereabouts and tell Juliet tomeet up with him later.  But things go astray and Juliet winds up confronting her mother and dashing out. Romeo in the meantime becomes embroiled in a dual with Tybalt, a very close cousin of Juliet.  He kills Tybalt because Tybalt has just slain Mercutio, Romeo’s best friend.   On learning of the death of Tybalt, lady Capulet urges the Prince to kill a Montague. The Prince instead demands that Romeo be banished from Verona.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eNot knowing of these skirmishes and particularly not knowing Romeo’s part in them Juliet delivers one of the most beautiful speeches in  the entire Shakespeare canon beginning “Gallup apace you fiery footed steeds” as she longs to once again be united with Romeo. She wishes that Romeo could be cut into “little stars” so that he “will make the face of heaven so fine\/K that all the world will be in love with night\/and pay no worship to the garish sun”.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe nurse rushes breathlessly into Juliet’s chamber crying only that “he is dead he is dead.”. Juliet is horrified thinking the Nurse is referring to Romeo when actually the she is speaking of Romeo’s killing  of Tybalt. The nurse then says that because of this Romeo has been banished but tells Juliet that he is currently in Friar Lawrence’s cell. \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eIn the friar’s cell the two reunite briefly in a passage of poignant, haunting beauty.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eIn the friar’s cell tells the friar that unless he can somehow prevail against her wedding to Paris she will kill herself.  The Friar gives her a potion that will give her the appearance of death but that the spell will last only “two and forty hours”.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eA message from Juliet does not reach Romeo, so that when he discovers Juliet’s apparently lifeless body, he assumes she has killed herself.  Romeo drinks a potion supplied by his own apothecary and gives Juliet a parting kiss before he succumbs.  When Juliet wakes from her spell, sees Romeo’s body then stabs herself and dies.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Page 79 - Final Page, on recto of title page of Timon of Athens)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe second fragment is the final page of the tragedy with its beautiful haunting speech by the Prince at the very end: “where be these enemies.  Capulet.  Montague.  See what a scourge is laid upon your hates that heaven finds means to kill your joys with love” and  a little bit later “a glooming piece this morning with it brings\/the sun for sorrow will not show his head…for never was a story of more woe\/ than this of Juliet and her Romeo”.  \u003c\/div\u003e  Fair","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783476397,"sku":"10210","price":6000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10210.jpg?v=1636224797"},{"product_id":"1439900-1623-shakespeare","title":"1439900 1623 Shakespeare.  Cymbeline Leaves.","description":"10271. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCymbeline.  Extracted from the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(369-72, 385-394, 397-398)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(See much fuller description in lot 10213 of this collection)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCymbeline has been characterized as a sort of “fantasy romance” and has possibly the most intricately convoluted structure of any in the canon.  It opens with two gentlemen discussing present conditions at the court of King Cymbeline who ruled during the time of Augustus.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eWe learn that the king’s daughter, princess Imogen, has gone against the wishes of her father and that this has greatly upset the queen (her stepmother) and therefore Cymbeline as well.  Imogen has secretly married a gentleman named Posthumous Leonatus rather than Cloten, the son of the queen (whose name is never mentioned).  The two gentlemen further reveal that Posthumous is a man of many virtues and is a perfect mate for the saintly Imogen as opposed to Cloten whom they characterize as a clod and dullard who is “too bad for bad report”.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eSince Imogen is the king’s only child (his two boys having been stolen twenty years before and never yet found) the queen’s chances of succession are now nil.  Cymbeline banishes Posthumous and virtually imprisons Imogen, leaving her in the care of her scheming stepmother.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe queen deceitfully tells Imogen and Posthumous that she ill plead their case to the king leading Imogen to whisper “how far this tyrant can tickle where she wounds”.  Before parting, Imogen and Posthumous exchange gifts: she giving him a ring which had been her mother’s, he placing a bracelet on her wrist and saying\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“For my sake wear this\/It is a manacle of love.  I’ll plsce it upon this fairest prisoner.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTheir parting scene is lovely and somewhat reminiscent of Shakespeare’s much earlier play “Romeo and Juliet.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCymbeline bursts in upon them and threatens Posthumous:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Thou basest thing avoid hence, from my sight!\/ if after this command thou frought the court\/with thou unworthiness, thou diest!  Away!\/ Thou’rt poison to my blood.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe queen enters and while soothing Cymbeline, has Imogen “penned away”.  Jus then Pisanio, servant to Posthumous and says that Cloten had drawn his sword on Posthumous, but Posthumous rather easily fended him off.  It is not the last encounter of the two and as the play unfolds we are taken to a fairy-land of intrigue culminating in a lengthy final scene in which no fewer that twenty-two plot points are neatly resolved.  Though the play is now considered a “romance” its placement in the first folio is among the tragedies.  Incidentally, the final leaf of Cymbeline,being the final leaf of the entire folio  is considered the rarest, since it was most easily lost through wear and tear. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783509165,"sku":"10271","price":4800.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10271.jpg?v=1636224798"},{"product_id":"1440000-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440000 1623 Shakespeare.  Troilus and Cressida.  Two Leaves.","description":"10216. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTroilus and Cressida.  From the First Folio. 1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTwo Leaves.  (Not paginated in Folio)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTroilus and Cressida is the only play in the first folio that does not have page numbering. This stems from the fact that it was not included in the original index of plays but was added sometime after the pages had been set.  In the fragment Thersites is insulting Ajax calling him a fool and once again revealing his own unpleasant character.  Thersites keeps needling Ajax, but as befits a true Shakespearean fool there is some merit to his insults. After Ajax exits, Achilles enters saying that:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Marry this, sir, is proclaimed through all our host;\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThat Hector, by the fifth hour of the sun,\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eWill with a trumpet twixt our tents and Troy \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTomorrow morning will call some knight to arms.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAchilles says the challenge was clearly meant for him, but Agamemnon and the other Greek leaders decree the challenger will be determined by lottery.  The scene says a lot about Ulysses’ argument concerning the lack of order in the Greek camp. It also sets the scene for much of the drama in the rest of the play.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn the Trojan camp King Priam relays a message from the Greeks reiterating the demand that the Trojans “deliver Helen” and thus end the war.  Hector suggests they do so, but his brother Troilus argues against it saying it is now a matter of principle.  The passage is very enlightening in that it shows just how much Shakespeare’s text differs from the Iliad.  Later we’ll see that when Achilles is actually called upon to battle Hector, he is hardly the hero whose praises were sung by Homer but rather a cowardly assassin who sets his followers upon Hector rather than engaging him in single combat.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe tension is further heightened as Cassandra, wildly shrieks that they must return Helen, else, she proclaims “Troy will burn”.  Hector wholly believes her claim, but Troilus says she is mad and that her prophecy is merely a “brain sick rapture.”  Paris declares that if necessary, he would continue to fight alone for Helen.  He echoes Troilus’s argument concerning honor: his abduction of Helen is only wiped clean by his  honorable keeping of her. If they were to give her up it would heap shame and disgrace upon them. Hector is against the view of Troilus and Paris; nevertheless, he agrees to continue to fight for Helen as it is a matter of honor.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eMeanwhile, Troilus is waiting to see Cressida.  His language is conventionally poetic as he begs Pandarus to have Cupid’s “painted wings” fly him to Cressida, but his language is undermined by Pandarus’ prosaic response.  Nevertheless, Pandarus goes to fetch Cressida. As he waits, Troilus anticipates their meeting in language that while poetic has clear sexual overtones reinforcing the essentially physical basis for Troilus and Cressida’s relationship. The fragment ends as Pandarus returns with Cressida.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783541933,"sku":"10216","price":3500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10216.jpg?v=1636224799"},{"product_id":"1440100-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440100 1623 Shakespeare.  Richard III.  Two Leaves.","description":"10214. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRichard III.  From the First Folio.  1623 \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTwo Leaves.  (History 197-198, 203-204)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(See also complete play - item 10235 in this collection)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThese fragments present several of the final scenes of this, the masterful capstone of the first of Shakespeare’s history tetralogies.  We see the new King (Richard) who has just inherited the throne from his brother Edward the Fourth whom Richard has murdered.   Richard confronts Edward’s wife, Queen Elizabeth, and using basically the same charm and flow of speech he did earlier in the play with Anne, tries to convince her that he is a good person.  She should try to get past the minor unpleasantries of his having murdered the Two Princes in the tower and his brothers Edward the Fourth and Clarence and a few others.  He asserts (all the while winking at the audience) that he is a good man who will be a good King.  Elizabeth bitterly comments that she has no more sons for Richard to slaughter, but Richard is much more interested in her royal and gracious daughter whom he wishes to make his queen.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e We learn that Richmond’s army is approaching the coast with the intention of joining Buckingham and his army.  Derby enters and brings the news that Richmond is planning to take the throne from Richard. Richard heads for Salisbury to do battle.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eNow Begins a series of  quick exchanges showing the armies on each side readying for battle.  In a very interesting juxtaposition: each man (Richard and Richmond) has dream sequences that are quite prophetic.  A vision of a series of ghosts appears on the stage and all curse Richard for his role in their deaths repeating that he will “Despair and die”.  Each also addresses Richmond blessing him and wishing him victory.  When the last ghost (that of Buckingham) has spoken Richard awakes crying out “give me another horse bind up my wounds”.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFinally, Richard enters crying “a horse a horse my kingdom for a horse”.  He ventures forth on foot, encounters Richmond and is slain.  Richmond then announces his intention to marry princess Elizabeth thus uniting the two houses of York and Lancaster  As Henry the 7th and the first of the Tudors, he will restore peace to the long fractured Kingdom.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783574701,"sku":"10214","price":3300.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10214.jpg?v=1636224800"},{"product_id":"1440200-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440200 1623 Shakespeare.  Othello.  Four Leaves.","description":"10251. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOthello.  From the First Folio.  1623.  Four Leaves.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(315-318, 335-338)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(See item 10217 in this collection for full description of Othello Fragment)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe Othello fragment is divided into two parts, the second part being far and away the more important.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Pages 315-318)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOthello and Desdemona appear before Brabantio (Desdemona’s father) and the duke, the lovers pleading for Brabantio to accept them.  The duke, thinking they were meeting to discuss the Turkish fleet now headed for Cyprus, tells them to decide it among themselves, it being more critical the Othello captain the fleet and head to intercept the Turks.  Before leaving, Othello informs the others that he and Desdemona have secretly wed.  Desdemona begs the duke to allow her to go with  Othello and he agrees.  Othello, completely trusting and unwary, places Desdemona in the care of Iago.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eWith the lovers gone, Iago pulls Rodorigo (who also loves Desdemona) aside and claims he has a way to win her back for him.  He urges Rodorigo to “put money in thy purse,” that Moors are an inconstant breed and no match for a “subtle Venetian”.  He says that Rodorigo will soon “enjoy” Desdemona.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAlone Iago reveals his hatred for Rodorigo and outlines his plot to use convince Othello that Cassio is having an affair with Desdemona.  Later he takes note of the way Cassio greets Desdemona and how they stand aside and talk.  They are awaiting Othello’s ship which arrives with much fanfare and cheering for Othello.  Iago’s soliloquy re-emphasizes his hatred for Othello and claims that Cassio has also been sleeping with Aemilia (Iago’s wife).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Pages 335-338)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThese pivotal leaves comprise the most powerful and dramatic scenes of the play.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eUnder cover of night Iago has stabbed Cassio and then made a hasty exit he then reenters and comes to Cassio’s aid as though totally unaware of what has transpired as the rest of the group lead Cassio off Iago in an aside tells us \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003ethis is the night\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003ethat either makes me or fordoes me quite\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003ethe next scene opens with what is perhaps Othello’s best known soliloquy\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt is the cause, it is the cause my soul:\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eHe asks Desdemona if she has made her peace with heaven then tells her that if she has not she best hurry for this is her last night on earth.  Pleading with him, Desdemona begs to know why he is so set on killing her and he tells her that it is because of the handkerchief I gave you and that you then gave to Cassio.  I told you how much that meant to me and yet as a token of your love you gave it to Cassio when she denies that it was Cassio and says bring him here but Othello tells her he is already dead that Iago has carried out the deed for him he then smothers her and her handmaiden Emilia Iago’s wife rushes in to try to stay him.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOthello has just slain Desdemona and Iago’s wife, Emilia, confronts him and demands to know how he could have killed one who was so pure, so completely chaste and in love with him.  Othello tells her his wife was not true; he knows this from Iago.  “…thy husband knew it all”.  Incredulous, Emilia can only repeatedly ask “My husband?”  Othello also tells her that Iago informed him of Desdemona having slept with Cassio.  Still unbelieving, Emilia asks \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“did my husband say she was false?”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“He, woman” Othello raves \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“I say thy husband\/dost understand the word?  My friend, thy husband: honest, honest Iago.”  Emilia screams “Help, Help, oh help\/ the Moor hath killed my mistress.  Murder!  Murder!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eStill in shock Emelia says that her husband is basically a “gull”; she screams for help and Iago is one of three that rush in to attend her.   As further proof of Desdemona’s treachery Othello produces the handkerchief that he has given her saying it was his mother’s and that Desdemona should guard it closely.  Emilia screams and says that it was she who found it “by fortune” and gave it to Iago as “he begged of me to steal it.”   Iago cries “villainous whore?” and stabs her.  Dying, Emilia asks that she be lain beside her mistress.  Her last words are: \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Moor she was chaste: she loved thee cruel Moor\/So come my soul to bliss, as I speak true\/So speaking as I think, alas, I die.” \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIago rushes out again.  Othello, grieving, calls to hell itself:  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Who me ye devils\/from the possession of this heavenly sight\/\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eBlow me about in winds, roast me in Sulphur.\/Wash me in steep down gulfs of liquid fire!\/O Desdemon!  Dead.  Desdemon!  Dead!  O, O!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTwo noble Venetians, Ludovico and Montano, both friends of Desdemona, enter with Iago as prisoner and Cassio who has only been wounded.  Cassio says he found the handkerchief in his chamber where Iago had just now told him he dropped it “for a special purpose.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOthello, completely distraught, delivers his final speech beginning with “Soft you now, a word or two before I go”.   He then stabs himself and crosses to Desdemona.  “I kissed thee ere I killed thee: no way but this.  Killing myself to die upon a kiss.”  He kisses her lifeless body and dies at her side.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783673005,"sku":"10251","price":3200.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10251.jpg?v=1636224801"},{"product_id":"1440300-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440300 1623 Shakespeare.  Richard II.  Title Leaf Plus One Other.","description":"9389. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Richard II.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Leaf Plus one other   (23-24, 37-38).\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe life and death of King Richard the Second [first two pages of the play from the First Folio]. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio, one leaf measuring 8 by 12-1\/2 inches.  The first page of Shakespeare’s fifth historical drama, King Richard II, extracted from the landmark First Folio (1623), \"the most valuable volume in the whole range of English literature\" (Grolier 100 19).   Likely composed circa 1594 and first published in a 1597 quarto edition, Shakespeare’s Richard II \"is essentially the story of a man who loses a kingdom and gains a soul\" (New York Times). This is leaf b6 from the First Folio.   The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Minor restoration to lower edges. An excellent piece.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(23-24)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThis fragment comprising the first two pages of Richard the second is significant in that it sets the stage for it as well as the following seven English history plays of Shakespeare’s canon. John of Gaunt has brought his son Henry Bolingbroke (later to be Henry IV) currently the Duke of Hereford to court to make his accusations against Thomas Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk.  The two men face off against each other and are about to joust when the king throws down his gauntlet and breaks the action off.  The king says the two will meet again at Coventry on St. Lambert’s day.  Later Henry Bolingbrook will be banished and that will foment his drawing together troops then breaking his exile and deposing Richard the second. and ascending the throne as King Henry IV.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIt is difficult to tell from Shakespeare’s text just how much Richard the second was reviled and just how corrupt his reign had become as he confiscated goods and visited a host of wrongs on his subjects. Yet such was the power of the king the power of the monarchy itself and its association of the king representing God’s presence on earth that still Bolingbrook’s assumption of the crown was viewed as wholly improper much as Bolingbrook after being crowned tried to pass laws that number one would banish certain members of the Beaufort family from ever being kings but also would justify his usurpation of the monarchy. Interestingly, Richard the second was more revered after his death and in fact for nearly 2 decades rumors circulated that he was indeed still alive and ready to lead an army back and regain his throne and he had a vast number of followers who were willing to take up arms on his behalf.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(37-38)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThis leaf depicts what is probably the most pivotal event of the play: the deposition scene.  It was so controversial that it was discreetly excised during the reign of Elizabeth I.  Confronted by Bullingbrook, Richard speaks despairingly of the state of affairs saying he will exchange \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eMy subjects for a pair of carved saints\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eAnd my large kingdom for a little grave\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eA little little grave, an obscure grave\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eOr I’ll be buried in the king’s highway.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eHe then descends from the battlements of Flint castle to meet Bullingbrook, the scene perfectly dramatizing his descent from power.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eDown, down I come\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eLike glistering Phaeton\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe scene then switches to a garden where the queen and her attendant are bemoaning the current state of affairs and waiting word from Richard.  They eavesdrop on two gardeners who discuss the state of the garden as a metaphor for the fate of the monarchy.  The speak of “the sea-walled garden” being “full of weeds” and “swarming with caterpillars.”  When they speak of the deposition, the queen makes her presence known and demands if they speak the truth.  The gardener apologetically admits it is indeed true and that Richard’s vanities that make him light” had made Bullingbrook “great.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Very Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783804077,"sku":"9389","price":2500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/9389.jpg?v=1636224803"},{"product_id":"1440400-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440400 1623 Shakespeare.  Titus Andronicus.  Title Page.","description":"10212. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitus Andronicus.  From the First Folio.  1623. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Page.  Tragedies 31-32.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTitus Andronicus was a very popular play in Shakespeare’s time.  In keeping with the late 16th century audience tastes it includes an enormous cast of characters and a great many very gory scenes. This fragment is the title page which opens with a flourish as Romans crowd onto the stage from above and from stage left and Stage right.  Also entering from opposite sides are two sons (Saturninus and Bassianus) of the recently deceased Emperor.  Each side pleads with the people of Rome to elect their candidate to assume their father’s place.   However the tribune, Marcus Andronicus, silences the crowd  with the announcement that the people have chosen instead his brother Titus, a long-serving fiercely loyal and mighty general of Rome who has recently returned after conquering the Goths .\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTamora, Queen of the Goths, who will later in the play become Empress of Rome, she begs Titus not to execute her eldest son Alarbist as payment for the 21 Sons he is lost in battle.  Titus’s brother Marcus now discloses to him the news of his election by the people but Titus refuses citing his old age and preferring a younger man.   he passes the honor on to Saturninus as first born.  Saturninus demands Titus daughter Lavinia as his empress.  Since Lavinia is currently betrothed to Bassanius  she flees with him.  Saturninus then takes Tamora as his bride.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  About Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783836845,"sku":"10212","price":2000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10212.jpg?v=1636224804"},{"product_id":"1440500-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440500 1623 Shakespeare.  Antony and Cleopatra.  Five Leaves.","description":"10218. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAntony and Cleopatra.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Tragedies 351-352, 353-356, 361-364.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThis fragment consists of ten pages (five leaves) of the play which are in poor condition and damaged with areas of the upper border and page numbers missing.  The text of the leaves, however, is nearly complete and supplies pivotal insights into the overall dynamics of the play.   The leaders of the Roman triumvirate have just finished a banquet set out by Pompey aboard his galley and are exchanging ribald tales.  In particular, Antoanyare gathered around a banquet table describing in humorous detail the features of Egypt.  Menas, one of Pompey’s men, pulls Pompey aside and urges that the time is ripe for Pompey to overthrow the triumvirate.  Pompey replies that Means should have proceeded without telling him, as now he cannot abide by the plan. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Ah this thou shouldst have done\/ and not have spoken on it.  In me ‘tis villainy:\/In thee’t had been good service.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAmidst the revelry, we see that Caesar is not at all interested in imbibing with the othees and looks down on Antony’s drunkenness.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAntony “Here’s to Caesar!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCaesar “I could well forbear it.\/It’s monstrous labor when I wash my brain\/And it grow fouler.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAntony “Be a child o’ the time.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCaesar “’Possess it’ I’ll make answer.\/But I had rather fast from all four days\/Than drink so much in one.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eBy “Possess it” Ceasar clearly means to allow drink to take over his mind and affect his decision-making.  The text shows the inherent instability in the forces of the triumvirate and especially the growing weakness of Lepidus’ position.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThere is then a brief scene between Caesar and his sister Octavia now married to Antony who is also present.  He assures her that she will remain ever close to him though she be here with Antony.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“No sweet Octavia\/You shall hear from me still: the time shall not\/Outgo my thinking on you.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe scene quickly changes to one of the genuinely funny scenes in just about all of Shakespeare.  Cleopatra is once again visited by the hapless messenger whom she had previously beaten because he had brought news of Antony’s marriage to Octavia.  This time she has sent for him to describe Octavia to her since she is now with Antony.  The exchange is hilarious as the messenger is asked to describe Anthony's former wife and Cleopatra's great rival, Octavia, and his answers are so cleverly given that he manages to convey to Cleopatra that Octavia is really quite an unattractive woman and that there is no chance at all that she’ll be any competition for Cleopatra.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCleo.  “Is she as tall as me?”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eMess. “She is not, madam.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCleo. “”Dids’t hear her speak?  Is she shrill-tongued or low?”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eMess. “Madam I heard her speak.  She is low-voiced.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCleo “That’s not so good.  He cannot like her long.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCharmian (Cleo’s handmaid  “Like her?  O Isis.  ‘Tis impossible.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCleo  “I think so, Charmian.  Dull of tongue and dwarfish!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(353-356)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn Athens, Antony is angry with Caesar for waging “new wars ‘gainst Pompey” ant tells his wife, Octavia that Caesar “spoke scantily of me”.  Octavia, who is also Caesar’s sister, is thus in an extremely difficult position wedged between the two chief members of the triumvirate and “praying for both parts.”  Antony tries to comfort her, saying “choose your own company, and command what cost\/ your heart has mind to.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eEros reports to Enobarbus that Pompey has been killed by the third member of the triumvirate, Lepidus, and Enobarbus that war between Antony and Caesar is now inevitable and rushes to inform Antony.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCaesar is enraged that Antony has been enthroned with Cleopatra, has given her Roman provinces and is demanding shares of the spoils arising from Pompey’s death.  When Octavia arrives in Rome, Caesar is furious that Antony has not arranged a formal entry for her.  Caesar tells her Antony has “given his empire up to a whore.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eEnobarbus tries to persuade Cleopatra not to fight alongside of Antony, saying that Antony has become a laughing-stock in Rome.  Cleopatra says that she must represent their kingdom and has little care what the Romans think “sink Rome and their tongues rot that that speak against us.”  Because Caesar has dared him to fight at sea, Antony, against all advice says he will fight at sea because Caesar has dared him to do it.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eNow is heard the sounds of a great sea battle and Enobarbus is shocked to see Cleopatra’s ship turn tail and flee the battle.  Still worse, Antony then turns his ship around and flees as well.  Deeply shamed by his own actions, Antony bids his men to flee and make what peace they can with Caesar.  Cleopatra tries to assuage him, but he says he is lost.  They kiss and Antony laments “Fortune knows we scorn her most when most she offers blows.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAntony sends a messenger to Caesar asking him to allow him to live peaceably in Athens.  Caesar tells the messenger that if Cleopatra will deliver Antony to him, she may remain as Queen in Egypt.  In response, Antony challenges Caesar to single combat.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(361-364)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAntony bids farewell to Cleopatra.  He will once again face Caesar by sea but this time there will be no turning back.  Enobarbus, despondent to the point of suicide bids “the poisonous damp of night desponge upon me\/ that life, a very rebel to my will\/ may hang no longer on me.”  He cries “O Antony!  O Antony!” then, per an unusual stage direction, “He sinks down and dies.”  Antony bids that they be ready to fight by land or sea.  He climbs to a nearby hill to watch the battle at sea.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAs his aide, Scarrus, laments the fact that the Egyptian fleet is no match for the Romans.  Antony returns with news that “all is lost”: the Egyptian fleet has surrendered.  He blames Cleopatra entirely and when she arrives he threatens to kill her.  Cleopatra and her attendants flee to her monument.  She sends her attendant Mardian to tell Antony that she is dead.  She stage manages Mardian telling him to deliver the message “word it – prithee – most piteously” and Mardian claims that Cleopatra’s last words were “Most noble Antony!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAntony decides he will kill himself so he can lie with Cleopatra “Where souls do couch on flowers.”  He aske his aide Eros to kill him but Eros instead stabs himself so he can “escape the sorrow\/ of Antony’s death.”  Antony then stabs himself but succeeds only in wounding himself, after which he learns that Cleopatra is still alive.  He asks to be brought to her, and in a wonderfully dramatic scene, is hoisted up to her on her monument.  “I am dying, Egypt.  Dying.”  They kiss one last time, then he dies and she faints.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eCleopatra receives Caesar’s messenger and agrees to meet with him.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783869613,"sku":"10218","price":1800.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10218.jpg?v=1636224805"},{"product_id":"1440600-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440600 1623 Shakespeare.  Merchant of Venice.  Final Leaf.","description":"10215. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Merchant of Venice.  1623. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFinal Leaf Extracted from First Folio.  Comedies 183-184.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"A light wife doth make a heavy husband\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe fragment is the final leaf of the play. Following Portia’s triumphant session with Shylock, where Portia, disguised as Balthazar a doctor of laws, maintained that the “quality of mercy is not strained.”  She says that the bond between Shylock and Antonio does indeed call for a “pound of flesh” but that “not a drop of blood” be taken.  She also rules that Shylock had plotted to kill a Venetian and therefore must forfeit his entire estate.  Antonio interceded on Shylock’s behalf and had the penalty reduced.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn the final leaf, Portia and Nerissa return to Belmont.  As part of an elaborate deception, “discover” that their husbands have given away their rings, but Antonio steps in and pleads with Portia to forgive Bassanio, who has been the recipient of Antonio’s largesse. The women return the rings to their husbands and reveal that Portia was the lawyer who saved Antonio from Shylock. Portia also tells Antonio that three of his ships have successfully returned and tells Lorenzo that he is Shylock’s heir.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783902381,"sku":"10215","price":1500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10215.jpg?v=1636224806"},{"product_id":"1440700-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440700 1623 Shakespeare.  Othello.  Four Leaves.","description":"10217. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOthello.  From the First Folio.  1623.  Four Leaves.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe Othello fragment is divided into two parts, the second part being far and away the more important.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Pages 315-318)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOthello and Desdemona appear before Brabantio (Desdemona’s father) and the duke, the lovers pleading for Brabantio to accept them.  The duke, thinking they were meeting to discuss the Turkish fleet now headed for Cyprus, tells them to decide it among themselves, it being more critical the Othello captain the fleet and head to intercept the Turks.  Before leaving, Othello informs the others that he and Desdemona have secretly wed.  Desdemona begs the duke to allow her to go with  Othello and he agrees.  Othello, completely trusting and unwary, places Desdemona in the care of Iago.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eWith the lovers gone, Iago pulls Rodorigo (who also loves Desdemona) aside and claims he has a way to win her back for him.  He urges Rodorigo to “put money in thy purse,” that Moors are an inconstant breed and no match for a “subtle Venetian”.  He says that Rodorigo will soon “enjoy” Desdemona.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eAlone Iago reveals his hatred for Rodorigo and outlines his plot to use convince Othello that Cassio is having an affair with Desdemona.  Later he takes note of the way Cassio greets Desdemona and how they stand aside and talk.  They are awaiting Othello’s ship which arrives with much fanfare and cheering for Othello.  Iago’s soliloquy re-emphasizes his hatred for Othello and claims that Cassio has also been sleeping with Aemilia (Iago’s wife).\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Pages 335-338)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThese pivotal leaves comprise the most powerful and dramatic scenes of the play.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eUnder cover of night Iago has stabbed Cassio and then made a hasty exit he then reenters and comes to Cassio’s aid as though totally unaware of what has transpired as the rest of the group lead Cassio off Iago in an aside tells us \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003ethis is the night\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003ethat either makes me or fordoes me quite\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003ethe next scene opens with what is perhaps Othello’s best known soliloquy\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eIt is the cause, it is the cause my soul:\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eHe asks Desdemona if she has made her peace with heaven then tells her that if she has not she best hurry for this is her last night on earth\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003ePleading with him, Desdemona begs to know why he is so set on killing her and he tells her that it is because of the handkerchief I gave you and that you then gave to Cassio.  I told you how much that meant to me and yet as a token of your love you gave it to Cassio when she denies that it was Cassio and says bring him here but Othello tells her he is already dead that Iago has carried out the deed for him he then smothers her and her handmaiden Emilia Iago’s wife rushes in to try to stay him.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOthello has just slain Desdemona and Iago’s wife, Emilia, confronts him and demands to know how he could have killed one who was so pure, so completely chaste and in love with him.  Othello tells her his wife was not true; he knows this from Iago.  “…thy husband knew it all”.  Incredulous, Emilia can only repeatedly ask “My husband?”  Othello also tells her that Iago informed him of Desdemona having slept with Cassio.  Still unbelieving, Emilia asks “did my husband say she was false?”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“He, woman” Othello raves “I say thy husband\/dost understand the word?  My friend, thy husband: honest, honest Iago.”  Emilia screams “Help, Help, oh help\/ the Moor hath killed my mistress.  Murder!  Murder!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eStill in shock Emelia says that her husband is basically a “gull”; she screams for help and Iago is one of three that rush in to attend her.   As further proof of Desdemona’s treachery Othello produces the handkerchief that he has given her saying it was his mother’s and that Desdemona should guard it closely.  Emilia screams and says that it was she who found it “by fortune” and gave it to Iago as “he begged of me to steal it.”   Iago cries “villainous whore?” and stabs her.  Dying, Emilia asks that she be lain beside her mistress.  Her last words are: \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Moor she was chaste: she loved thee cruel Moor\/So come my soul to bliss, as I speak true\/So speaking as I think, alas, I die.” \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIago rushes out again.  Othello, grieving, calls to hell itself:  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“Who me ye devils\/from the possession of this heavenly sight\/\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eBlow me about in winds, roast me in Sulphur.\/Wash me in steep down gulfs of liquid fire!\/O Desdemon!  Dead.  Desdemon!  Dead!  O, O!”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTwo noble Venetians, Ludovico and Montano, both friends of Desdemona, enter with Iago as prisoner and Cassio who has only been wounded.  Cassio says he found the handkerchief in his chamber where Iago had just now told him he dropped it “for a special purpose.”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOthello, completely distraught, delivers his final speech beginning with “Soft you now, a word or two before I go”.   He then stabs himself and crosses to Desdemona.  “I kissed thee ere I killed thee: no way but this.  Killing myself to die upon a kiss.”  He kisses her lifeless body and dies at her side.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033783935149,"sku":"10217","price":1200.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10217.jpg?v=1636224808"},{"product_id":"1440800-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440800 1623 Shakespeare.  Romeo and Juliet.  Nine Leaves.","description":"10249. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRomeo and Juliet.  From the First Folio.  1623.   \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEighteen pages.  (53-56, 61-72, 79).\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e (See item 10216 for full description of Romeo and Juliet Fragment)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe first fragment, comprising twelve pages, picks up immediately following the balcony scene after Romeo and Juliet have parted.  Early the next morning Romeo visits Friar Lawrence to whom its apparent that Romeo has not slept all night. Romeo tells the Friar he needs to be married in a hurry.  The Friar thinks he’s finally hooking up with Rosaline but is shocked to learn that no, it is a Capulet that Romeo pursues.  The Friar assures Romeo that he will inform Juliet of his whereabouts and tell Juliet tomeet up with him later.  But things go astray and Juliet winds up confronting her mother and dashing out. Romeo in the meantime becomes embroiled in a dual with Tybalt, a very close cousin of Juliet.  He kills Tybalt because Tybalt has just slain Mercutio, Romeo’s best friend.   On learning of the death of Tybalt, lady Capulet urges the Prince to kill a Montague. The Prince instead demands that Romeo be banished from Verona.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eNot knowing of these skirmishes and particularly not knowing Romeo’s part in them Juliet delivers one of the most beautiful speeches in  the entire Shakespeare canon beginning “Gallup apace you fiery footed steeds” as she longs to once again be united with Romeo. She wishes that Romeo could be cut into “little stars” so that he “will make the face of heaven so fine\/ that all the world will be in love with night\/and pay no worship to the garish son”.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe nurse rushes breathlessly into Juliet’s chamber crying only that “he is dead he is dead.”. Juliet is horrified thinking the Nurse is referring to Romeo when actually the she is speaking of Romeo’s killing  of Tybalt. The nurse then says that because of this Romeo has been banished but tells Juliet that he is currently in Friar Lawrence’s cell. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn the friar’s cell the two reunite briefly in a passage of poignant, haunting beauty.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn the friar’s cell tells the friar that unless he can somehow prevail against her wedding to Paris she will kill herself.  The Friar gives her a potion that will give her the appearance of death but that the spell will last only “two and forty hours”.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eA message from Juliet does not reach Romeo, so that when he discovers Juliet’s apparently lifeless body, he assumes she has killed herself.  Romeo drinks a potion supplied by his own apothecary and gives Juliet a parting kiss before he succumbs.  When Juliet wakes from her spell, sees Romeo’s body then stabs herself and dies.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe last fragment is the final page of the tragedy with its beautiful haunting speech by the Prince at the very end \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“where be these enemies.  Capulet.  Montague.  See what a scourge is laid upon your hates that heaven finds means to kill your joys with love” and  a little bit later “a glooming piece this morning with it brings\/the sun for sorrow will not show his head…for never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo”.  \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  About Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784000685,"sku":"10249","price":1000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10249.jpg?v=1636224809"},{"product_id":"1440900-1623-shakespeare","title":"1440900 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry VI Pt. 1.  Title Plus Four Leaves.","description":"10250. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHenry VI Part I.  First Folio.  1623.  First Printing.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Page plus Seven Others.  (96-102, 113-114)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Page \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eOne of the great historical figures in the annals of the British monarchy is Henry V who, using a rather liberal interpretation of the obtuse Salic laws, invaded France and at the battle of Agincourt won back for England all the French territories she had previously lost.  In Henry VI we meet his son who was just the opposite: an aesthete given to quiet contemplation and peaceful resolution of problems.   Nevertheless, Henry VI is the subject of three of Shakespeare’s history plays.  It was during his reign that the wars of the roses began and occupied both England and France for the next 70 years.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eHung be the heavens with black,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eyield day to night!\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThe Title page, a damaged leaf, the recto of which is the final page of Henry V, opens with a funeral procession of the deceased monarch.  As Henry VI is not yet of age to assume the throne, the Dukes of Gloucester and Exeter have been given joint protectorship of the crown.  As news comes in that France is once again taking up arms, the Dukes send Exeter to bolster the defending English forces.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(97-102)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eIn this fragment we meet Queen Margaret, a savvy political schemer who will figure in all three of the Henry VI plays.  We also meet two figures of near-mythological proportion, both short in stature but practically invincible in battle.  The leading military figure for the English in part one is Lord Talbot who had so distinguished himself in the field that the French were said to cower at the mere mention of his name.   Talbot tries to pack his son, John, off to safety but John replies “Is my name Talbot and am I your son?”  Later in the play, both are killed.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eOpposing Talbot is an even more legendary figure, this a mere  teenage maid who went by the name of Jeanne d’Arc, was known to the English as Joan la Pucelle (the maid) and to us as Joan of Arc.   As Talbot advances on the French troops he is confronted by this unlikeliest of heroes.  He duels Joan in protracted hand to hand combat while in the background there are “alarums and excursions”. They engage in battle through nearly 40 lines of text after which the surrounding action forces them to break off.  Nevertheless, it is quite clear to even the casual audience member that, incredibly, Joan was getting the better of the great Lord Talbot.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eLater in this fragment, we watch as Joan is convicted of heresy and hauled off to be burned at the stake which event Shakespeare mercifully spares his audience by having the action occur off stage.  Later in the fragment we meet another of the history plays’ genuinely offbeat characters, Margaret of Anjou, who later becomes Queen Margaret.  The Earl of Suffolk whom Henry has dispatched to France as an envoy first encounters Margaret and is smitten with her and woos her to bring her back to court.  Henry dutifully makes her his bride.  Margaret will continue through all three of the Henry history plays and is depicted first as a very enticing young lady who gradually over the course of time becomes a harridan. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eFinally in the fragment we meet Richard, Duke of Gloucester, whose machinations we follow all the way to the finale of Henry VI part three at which point Richard’s brother is made King Edward IV and thus begins the wars of the roses. As most schoolboys know, Gloucester, through an incredible series of marriages, murders and mayhem rises to become Richard the Third, protagonist of his own play and possibly Shakespeare’s greatest schemer except perhaps for Iago.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Fair","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784033453,"sku":"10250","price":800.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10250.jpg?v=1636224810"},{"product_id":"1441000-1623-shakespeare","title":"1441000 1623 Shakespeare.  The Tempest.  Three pages.","description":"\u003cp\u003e10226.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Tempest.  From the First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Single Leaf plus final page.  (13-14, 19).\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(Pages 13-14)\u003c\/strong\u003e This single leaf shows Prospero at the height of his magical powers.  Prospero, now invisible, conjures “strange shapes” who set out a lush banquet before the courtiers who are amazed.  Suddenly there is a flash of lightning and thunder and Ariel appears and accuses Alonso, Sebastian and Antonio of being “three men of sin”.  Earlier in the fragment, we have seen Antonio and Sebastian plotting to murder Alonso (King of Naples).  As the men draw their swords, Prospero tells them that he and his Ariel are invulnerable and reminds them that their part in his overthrow years ago is the reason they are now being punished and why Alonso is now bereft of his son Ferdinand.  There is another of thunder and Ariel vanishes and the strange shapes reappear and begin setting out the banquet again.  Meanwhile we have seen earlier in the play that Alonso’s son, Ferdinand,has also washed safely ashore and is now wooing Prospero’s daughter, Miranda.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eIn a new scene, Prospero explains to Ferdinand that his harsh treatment has been a test of his character and love for Miranda.  Having now passed the test, he is rewarded by Prospero giving Miranda’s hand in marriage.  Prospero then plans to provide an even more elaborate demonstration of his magical powers,  a nuptial masque with the goddesses Iris, Juno and Ceres in attendance.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFinal Page (19 - Recto of Title Page of Two Gentlemen ov Verona)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eProspero invites the company to his cell and tells the King and his son, Sebastian, that in the morning he will bring them to their ship and sail with them to Naples where they will witness the wedding of Miranda and Ferdinand.  All then exit save Prospero.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eIn the Epilogue, Prospero tells the audience that he no longer has his \"charmes\" (powers) only his own strength.  He will therefore be confined to the island forever unless they (the audience) indulge him with their breath and hands so he may be pardoned as he is sure they would wish to be pardoned.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: Calibri; font-size: medium;\"\u003eInterestingly, The Tempest is one of the few plays in the Furst Folio in which the cast of characters appears, possibly as a result of there being a geat deal of white space remaining on this last page.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eExtremely Fine\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784066221,"sku":"10226","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10226.jpg?v=1636224811"},{"product_id":"1441100-1623-shakespeare","title":"1441100 1623 Shakespeare.  Merry Wives.  Title plus one other leaf.","description":"10225. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMerry Wives of Windsor.  First Folio.  1623.   \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTwo Leaves.  Comedies 39-40 (Title), 45-46.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn Merry wives, we once again encounter the fantastical character of Falstaff fresh from his exploits in Henry IV part one and about to embark on his painful and demeaning  fall from grace in Henry IV part two. Merry wives is as close as Shakespeare gets to outright farce: written virtually entirely in prose, it contains some of the wittiest passages of the plays and provides quite deep characterizations (many carried over from other plays) and provides a very three-dimensional view of its chief characters.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn this second leaf (the two leaves are connected and constitute a bifolium) Mistress Page and Mistress Ford have both received identical love letters from Falstaff. The letters have hardly been flattering as both women are described as being “Not young” and fond of drinking.  Mistress Quickly arrives with the response from Mistress Ford to Falstaff advising him that her husband will be away from the house “from 10 to 11” in the morning. The very presentation of the letter is riotous in that the combination of Mistress Quickly’s verbosity and Falstaff’s inpatience make for quite a duet.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eMr. Ford, disguising himself as a Mr. Broome, calls on Falstaff and tells him he has been trying to woo Mrs. Ford for ages but has fallen short at every turn.  Broome flatters Falstaff and offers him money to use his superior  “art of wooing”  to “lay an amiable siege” to the honesty of Ford’s wife. Falstaff is willing but puzzled, so Broome explains that if Falstaff can destroy Mistress Ford’s reputation of honor and purity, she will have no defense against him. Falstaff takes the money and promises that Broome will “enjoy Ford’s wife”.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe fragment perfectly encapsulates all that we’ve come to love and admire about this deliciously disreputable knight called Falstaff.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Extremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784098989,"sku":"10225","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10225.jpg?v=1636224812"},{"product_id":"1441200-1623-shakespeare","title":"1441200 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry VI Pt. 2.  Seven Leaves.","description":"10223. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHenry VI Part Two.  From the First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\n\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSeven Leaves.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(141-146, 117-118, 127-128, 121-124).\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eThis fragment contains the last eight pages of the play and there is a great deal that takes place during the segment.  Jack Cade, a commoner about whose background little is known,  has just brought his rebels over the bridge and into London where he is confronted by Kent who makes the foolish mistake of referring to him as Jack Cade.  Since Cade has decreed that he be known only as Lord Mortimer, he has his men set upon the poor messenger and kill him.  Cade also executes Lord Saye for setting up grammar schools and thereby educating the people. Shakespeare\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e’\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003es rendering of Cade is probably best known for one of his men shouting \u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e“\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003efirst we kill all the lawyers\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e”\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eIn Kent Cade addresses the people saying that he will be the next King and that he will change the laws of England to favor the common man.  Stafford and his brother attempt to quell the rebellion but they are killed by Cade\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e’\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003es men and their bodies dragged into London.  King Henry, hearing of the approach of Cade, decides that he and Margaret will leave England, thus allowing Cade and his men to run wild until Buckingham and Clifford arrive to quell the rebellion.  Cade escapes and is tracked for five days and finally killed in Alexander Aydin\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e’\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003es garden in Kent.   \u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003eIn Henry\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e’\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003es absence York returns to England and claims the crown; he will reign as Edward IV.  He then claims that Henry still out of England is a coward. Henry and Margaret lead forces back into England and at St. Albans engage in the first encounter between Lancastrian\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e’\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont size=\"3\"\u003es and Yorkists and thus the beginning of the wars of the roses.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e  Extremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784164525,"sku":"10223","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10223.jpg?v=1636224813"},{"product_id":"1441300-1623-shakespeare","title":"1441300 1623 Shakespeare.  Two Gentlemen.  Two Leaves.","description":"10227. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTwo Gentlemen of Verona.  First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.  Two Leaves.  Comedies  27-28, 33-34.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eTwo gentlemen tells the story of two best friends who for different reasons wind up leaving Verona and pursuing interests in the world.   Valentine goes off simply for adventure and seeing the world.  Proteus wants to stay behind to woo his girlfriend Julia but his father says no and packs him off in a different direction. They both wind up going to Milan where Valentine falls in love with the Duke’s daughter, Silvia.  It then turns out that Proteus is also smitten with Sylvia and complications ensue. Proteus is quite clearly the villain in this story as he lies and connives his way into wooing Silvia.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe first two page fragment is pivotal in that among other things it shows Proteus’ decision to deceive his friend and run off with Sylvia before Valentine has the opportunity to woo her.  Proteus deceives the Duke, Silvia’s father, as well and from this point on the plot thickens as the two of them compete for Silvia’s love.  In the meantime, Julia, whom Valentine had vowed to return to and marry is worried about what he’s doing over in Milan so she disguises herself as a boy Sebastian and goes to spy on him.  This is Shakespeare’s use of a woman disguising herself as a man, a device he will repeatedly employ in his comedies.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn the second fragment Julia, disguised as a boy, arrives in Milan and overhears that her boyfriend Proteus has been seeing Silvia frequently and has apparently been wooing her. She decides to show up at the Duke’s tower, where the other two have intended to meet.   Complexities ensue and very gradually the comedy becomes quite dark with Proteus insinuating that if Silvia does not give in to him he will rape her  (\"I'll force thee yield to my desire\"), but at this point, Valentine intervenes and denounces Proteus..  Eventually the lovers all resolve their difficulties, the gentlemen reunite, Valentine with Julia and Proteus with Silvia.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eBefore that happens the second segment reveals one of the funniest scenes in all of Shakespeare:  a monologue between a man and his dog.  Lancelot Gobbo has a dog named Crab that for an awful lot of burlesque and pantomime he tells the story of why Crab hasn’t really worked out that well for him.  It’s a wonderful showpiece for an actor that never fails to enchant an audience.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Extremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784197293,"sku":"10227","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10227.jpg?v=1636224814"},{"product_id":"1441400-1623-shakespeare","title":"1441400 1623 Shakespeare.  Henry VI Pt. 1.  Title plus Seven Others.","description":"10222. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHenry VI Part I.  First Folio.  1623.  First Printing.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Page plus Seven Others.  (96-102, 113-114).\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTitle Page \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOne of the great historical figures in the annals of the British monarchy is Henry V who, using a rather liberal interpretation of the obtuse Salic laws, invaded France and at the battle of Agincourt won back for England all the French territories she had previously lost.  In Henry VI we meet his son who was just the opposite: an aesthete given to quiet contemplation and peaceful resolution of problems.   Nevertheless, Henry VI is the subject of three of Shakespeare’s history plays.  It was during his reign that the wars of the roses began and occupied both England and France for the next 70 years.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eHung be the heavens with black,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eyield day to night!\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eThe Title page, a damaged leaf, the recto of which is the final page of Henry V, opens with a funeral procession of the deceased monarch.  As Henry VI is not yet of age to assume the throne, the Dukes of Gloucester and Exeter have been given joint protectorship of the crown.  As news comes in that France is once again taking up arms, the Dukes send Exeter to bolster the defending English forces.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e(97-102)\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eIn this fragment we meet Queen Margaret, a savvy political schemer who will figure in all three of the Henry VI plays.  We also meet two figures of near-mythological proportion, both short in stature but practically invincible in battle.  The leading military figure for the English in part one is Lord Talbot who had so distinguished himself in the field that the French were said to cower at the mere mention of his name.   Talbot tries to pack his son, John, off to safety but John replies “Is my name Talbot and am I your son?”  Later in the play, both are killed.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eOpposing Talbot is an even more legendary figure, this a mere  teenage maid who went by the name of Jeanne d’Arc, was known to the English as Joan la Pucelle (the maid) and to us as Joan of Arc.   As Talbot advances on the French troops he is confronted by this unlikeliest of heroes.  He duels Joan in protracted hand to hand combat while in the background there are “alarums and excursions”. They engage in battle through nearly 40 lines of text after which the surrounding action forces them to break off.  Nevertheless, it is quite clear to even the casual audience member that, incredibly, Joan was getting the better of the great Lord Talbot.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eLater in this fragment, we watch as Joan is convicted of heresy and hauled off to be burned at the stake which event Shakespeare mercifully spares his audience by having the action occur off stage.  Later in the fragment we meet another of the history plays’ genuinely offbeat characters, Margaret of Anjou, who later becomes Queen Margaret.  The Earl of Suffolk whom Henry has dispatched to France as an envoy first encounters Margaret and is smitten with her and woos her to bring her back to court.  Henry dutifully makes her his bride.  Margaret will continue through all three of the Henry history plays and is depicted first as a very enticing young lady who gradually over the course of time becomes a harridan. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Calibri\" size=\"3\"\u003eFinally in the fragment we meet Richard, Duke of Gloucester, whose machinations we follow all the way to the finale of Henry VI part three at which point Richard’s brother is made King Edward IV and thus begins the wars of the roses. As most schoolboys know, Gloucester, through an incredible series of marriages, murders and mayhem rises to become Richard the Third, protagonist of his own play and possibly Shakespeare’s greatest schemer except perhaps for Iago.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e  Extremely Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41033784230061,"sku":"10222","price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10222.jpg?v=1636224816"},{"product_id":"1441500-1623-shakespeare","title":"1437950 1623 Shakespeare.  Loves Labour's Lost.  Complete.","description":"10234. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLove Labor's Lost.  1623\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFrom the First Folio.  Complete.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eSHAKESPEARE.  Loues Labour’s lost. Complete. [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Folio (8 by 12-1\/2 inches), modern half orange morocco gilt; 22 leaves. \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eEleven leaves extracted from the landmark First Folio (1623) \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19) Containing the complete text of one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, Love’s Labour’s Lost.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eFirst performed in 1594 or 1595, Love’s Labour’s Lost is presumably one of the earliest plays from Shakespeare’s pen, written around the same time as Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It is surely among his wittiest and linguistically nimblest; more of its lines are rhymed than in any other of the Bard’s works. \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eShakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell prepared the First Folio; in 1623, William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount published it. Of Shakespeare’s 39 undisputed plays, 18 survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio, making the book \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19). Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. The earliest extant printed text of Loues Labour’s Lost is the 1598 quarto edition. See Jaggard, 378, 418. A fine copy.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe only quarto of Loves Labors Lost to precede the First Folio was printed in London by W. White for Cutbert Burby in 1598.  There are only eleven known copies, (three of which are in the Folger Museum??) so for all intents and purposes the Folio represents the earliest obtainable copy of the play, considered by many to be Shakespeare’s first complete play.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eLove’s Labors Lost is alone among all of Shakespeare’s works as having no antecedent.  The work is entirely original, being based on no known story or characters, and thus it could be said that the present copy is about as close as one is likely to get to having a Shakespeare original.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eThere is a fascinating passage toward the end of Act IV in the Folio text in which Shakespeare can be seen “reworking” a crucial lengthy speech given by Berowne about love.  A full twenty-three lines of text (lines 297 thru 319) are immediately followed by a substantially reworked passage suggesting that the printed text retains elements of Shakespeare’s first draft as well as the final version.\u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\r\n\r\n\u003cdiv\u003eInclusion of Loves Labors Lost in the First Folio was made possible by the printer Jaggard forming a partnership with John Smethwick who also owned the rights to Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet.  In Elizabethan times a play was originally owned by the acting company who first performed it, the company then free to sell the rights to whomever they chose, typically a bookseller or printer.  The new owner would then register his ownership with the Stationer’s company which would provide a rather limited enforcement of his rights.\u003c\/div\u003e  About Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41035034132653,"sku":"10234","price":25000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10234.jpg?v=1641674532"},{"product_id":"1438050-1623-shakespeare-henry-iv-pt-1-complete","title":"1438050  1623 Shakespeare.  Henry IV Pt. 1.  Complete.","description":"\u003cdiv align=\"center\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" size=\"4\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma; font-size: large;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eShakespeare's \"The First Part of Henry the Fourth\".  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\n\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" size=\"4\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma; font-size: large;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eExtracted from the First Folio.  1623.  Complete. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Calibri\" style=\"font-family: Calibri;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ePHYSICAL DESCRIPTION This fragment consists of 13 printed pages of antique Renaissance rag paper. Eleven of the printed pages are double-sided and two pages, the first and last, are single-sided. Five additional pages of modern paper were inserted by the binder, three in front and two in back, including one single-sided title page. It is very finely bound in bright red textured patent leather with gold print and trim and labeled only on the spine, \"First Folio, 1623.\" The bound cover measures 8-1\/8\" x 12-1\/8\" x 3\/8\". Inside pages measure 8\" x 12\". Inside the front cover on the bottom edge of the visible binding is tiny gold print that reads \" Bound by Sangorski \u0026amp; Sutcliffe London England\". Sangorski \u0026amp; Sutcliffe was established in 1901 and soon became one of Englandís foremost luxury bookbinders. The firm achieved world-wide fame for the exquisite bindings it produced throughout the 1900s, earning recognition as the most important bookbindery of the 20th century. The first three bound pages, inserted by the binder, are heavy, off white stationary paper of very high quality. Pages 1 and 2 are blank on both sides. The third page is a printed, single-sided title page: \"Henry IV. \/ Part 1 \/ by \/ Wm. Shakespeare \/ The First Folio \/ 1623\" The fourth bound page leaf is the first page of the original fragment. It is blank on side one, and side two is printed with the first page of print from Part 1 of Henry IV. The first printed page is on heavier paper than the inside pages. The page numbering begins with the first page of print and is numbered 46. It is followed by page 49. No portion of the play is missing or omitted between these pages. This is a pagination error that \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003emeeting with Dr. Eric Rasmussen to authenticate this fragment, he explained that the printing process of the First Folio took two years to complete and paper represented the biggest overhead expense because of how costly it was to manufacture. The cost was so high that it was prohibitive to print production, limiting publishers to 1000 print copies or less per job. To cut down on expenditures, publishers did not allow any paper to go to waste. Errors that already printed were bound \"as is\"; every page was filled with text, regardless of section breaks or chapters. Pages were printed on both sides and rarely left blank. These practices were applied to the First Folio as well and is the reason many plays share a page with the play printed before or after in the folio. The first page of one play was printed on the back side of the last page of the preceding play when necessary. Therefore, if an original complete First Folio was split up or fragmented into individual plays, those that shared a page might lose one page for the other to be complete. For this reason, many fragments are missing the first or last page. In other First Folio copies we viewed in digital format, Part 1 of Henry IV shares both the first and the last pages; the first page is printed on the back side of the last page of Richard II, and the last page is printed on the front side of the first page of Part II of Henry IV. In this fragment, not only are both the first and last page present, but they appear to be printed on a single side of much heavier paper or cardstock. The first page of print, however, has a barely detectable line along the bound edge of the text that resembles a very faint glue line. The heavier paper appears to be authentic rag paper from the same time period, though, ruling out the possibility that pages 46 and 73 were substituted with 19th century facsimiles. The only reference to heavy paper our research uncovered indicated that the main title pages only of certain copies of the complete Second Folio were printed on heavier paper. (Ref: The Variant Issues of Shakespeare's Second Folio..... by Robert Metcalf Smith, Ph.D.) Fortunately, we had access to the leading world expert on First Folios and inquired about this anomaly. According to Dr. Rasmussen, single plays from the first folio were sometimes prepared for individual sale by adhering the first and last page to heavier paper, which served as covers. He said this was done by the print house to maximize profits, possibly during the two-year printing process, as individual plays were completed, and printing costs were piling up. One could speculate that perhaps the reason only 750 complete First Folios were published, rather than 1000, is because a couple hundred copies of individual plays were pre-sold as fragments with card stock covers, as a way to generate revenue and cover expenses during the lengthy production process. In his explanation of the process of binding individual play copies with heavy card stock, Dr. Rasmussen confirmed for us that the faint line we saw on the inside edge of the first page, was indeed visible evidence that the original first page of the play, which was printed double-sided on the much thinner, light weight paper used for every other First Folio page, was glued to a page of heavy card stock paper. Rasmussen stated that if the page were removed from \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eKing Henry IV Pt.1.  Extracted from the First Folio.  1623.  Complete.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cspan face=\"Tahoma\" style=\"font-family: Tahoma;\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003ethe heavy paper, the second side would be printed with the last page of ìThe Life \u0026amp; death of Richard the Second,î as expected of a true First Folio page copy. TEXT The complete First Folio of the work of William Shakespeare (1564-1616) that was published in 1623 included 36 plays. Half of the published plays were printed by pirates and sold during Shakespeare's lifetime, but about 18-20 plays were never published in print before the folio was compiled, seven years after Shakespeare's death. Dr. Rasmussen estimates that about 750 complete copies of the First Folio were originally produced but to date fewer than 240 copies (considered \"complete\" or near complete) are known to exist. Most of those are now in the Special Collections of prestigious Universities or in special exhibits of world-class museums, but a few complete First Folios exist in the private libraries of a select group of very fortunate collectors.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41082540654765,"sku":"10314","price":36000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/products\/10314.jpg?v=1637883419"},{"product_id":"1438820-henry-vi-pt-3-from-the-first-folio-complete-1623","title":"1438820  1623 Shakespeare.  Henry VI. Pt. 3.  From the First Folio.  Complete.","description":"\u003cp\u003e10395.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eKing Henry VI Part Three.  Complete.  1623.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eExtracted from the First Folio.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eFIRST FOLIO PRINTING of the complete third part of this history play set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England. See STC 22273; Pforzheimer 905; Grolier English 19; PMM 122 (for first folio).\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eSHAKESPEARE, William (1564-1616). The third Part of Henry the Sixt, with the death of the Duke of Yorke [Extracted from: THE FIRST FOLIO]. [London: Printed by Isaac Jaggard, and Ed. Blount), 1623].\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eFolio in sixes (330 x 222 mm). Comprising 26 pages (pp. 147-172) on 13 leaves (o4-q4). (51mm tear repaired to each leaf near top margin affecting headlines, 64mm tear repaired to lower corner of o4, repaired closed tear to o5, some spotting or browning). Woodcut head and taillpiece. Loose in chemise; morocco backed slipcase gilt.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThis play is pivotal in depicting the dramatic arc of the Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III).  We get our first real glimpse of his implacable pursuit of the crown as early as Act 3, Scene 2:\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eAy, Edward will use women honourably.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWould he were wasted, marrow, bones and all,\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThat from his loins no hopeful branch may spring,\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eTo cross me from the golden time I look for!\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Numismatic Rarities, Ltd.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42330001801389,"sku":"","price":35000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/files\/10395.jpg?v=1691438391"},{"product_id":"1438920-as-you-like-it-single-leaf-from-the-first-folio-1623","title":"1438920.  1623 Shakespeare.  As You Like It.  Single leaf from the First Folio.","description":"\u003cp\u003e10416.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAs You Like It.  Single Leaf from First Folio.  1623.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFirst Printing.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cspan size=\"4\" style=\"font-size: large;\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWith leaves from 2nd, 3rd and 4th Folios.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eOriginal Leaves from The First Four Folios of The Plays of William Shakespeare 1623, 1632, 1663, 1685.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe four leaves comprise: 1. First Folio (1623): As You Like It, pp. 205-6, comprising the end of Act 5  Scene 2 through most of Scene 4. As the play draws to its close, the forest-dwelling characters and the courtiers come together, and multiple couples find love and get married. The First Folio marked the first publication of As You Like It. 2. Second Folio (1632): Henry the Fourth Part II, pp. 83-4, comprising most of Act 2 Scene 4. At Mistress Quickly's inn in Eastcheap, the disguised Prince Hal and Poins hear Falstaff's demeaning comments about them. 3. Third Folio (1663-4): Hamlet, pp. 751-2, comprising the end of Act 4, scene 3 through to the end of scene 5. Hamlet reveals he has killed Polonious, and is sent to leave for England, but he turns around with a renewed dedication to revenge. Ophelia further descends into madness and sings love songs. 4. Fourth Folio (1685): The Tragedy of King Lear, pp. 109-110, comprising most of Act 5 scene 3. The scene, the final in the play, includes one of Shakespeare's best-known passages, Lear's speech over the body of Cordelia, and his death from grief. Folio. Four folio leaves, tipped-in to volume of red quarter morocco, spine lettered in gilt, patterned paper sides. Each folio text leaf preceded by a facsimile title page from each folio. Folio leaves a little browned, neat repair to short closed tear at foot of that of First Folio leaf; in very good condition\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eA relic of the greatest playwright in world literature: a leaf from each of the four folios, that is, the first four collected editions of Shakespeare's plays. The leaves were gathered for issue by the Grabhorn Press and specially bound with an introductory essay by Edwin Eliott Willoughby of the Folger library. This is number 54 of 73 copies produced. The four folios were the only collected editions of Shakespeare's plays published in the 17th century. The First Folio of 1623 is of inestimable importance for English literature, being the sole source for 18 of Shakespeare's plays which would have otherwise been lost. The Second Folio of 1632 included an additional encomium by the young John Milton, his first published poem in English, and modernized some of the spelling and punctuation. \"The Second Folio was issued when England under Charles I was drifting into civil war. It helped to keep alive the poetry of Shakespeare during the days of the Commonwealth when play-acting was proscribed as a work of the devil\" (Willoughby's introduction). The Third Folio of 1664 added the play Pericles, and six spurious Shakespeare plays. It is the rarest of the folios, due no doubt to a large part of the edition being destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. The Fourth Folio completed the great quartet in 1685. It maintained the text of the Third Folio, and was in turn used as the basis for the edited texts of the 18th century.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePages. 205-6\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eWonderful penultimate leaf of the play in which Rosalind assures Orlando, Phoebe and Silvius that although it seems improbable at the moment, they will all have their loves requited and reconciled by tomorrow in time for the wedding celebration.  Rosalind (as Ganymede) and Orlando (who may or may not know of Rosalind’s disguise) then discuss the odd fact that Oliver has undergone a sudden strong fascination with Aliena (Celia in disguise).  We then further learn that Touchstone and Audrey will also be married tomorrow.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe next day, Rosalind and Celia arrive (dressed as themselves) together with Hymen and in one of the great comic scenes of the canon, Hymen declares that he will “bar all confusion” and perform four marriages.  \u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Numismatic Rarities, Ltd.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42330007404717,"sku":"","price":15000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/files\/10416.jpg?v=1691438710"},{"product_id":"1611000-1623-shakespeare","title":"1611000 1623 Shakespeare","description":"10314. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShakespeare's \"The First Part of Henry the Fourth\".  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eExtracted from the First Folio.  1623.  Complete.  \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003ePhysical description, textual analysis and comments by the auction house.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eThis fragment consists of 13    printed pages of antique Renaissance rag paper. Eleven of the printed pages are double-sided and two pages, the first and last, are single-sided. Five additional pages of modern paper were inserted by the binder, three in front and two in back, including one single-sided title page. It is very finely bound in bright red textured patent leather with gold print and trim and labeled only on the spine, \"First Folio, 1623.\" The bound cover measures 8-1\/8\" x 12-1\/8\" x 3\/8\". Inside pages measure 8\" x 12\". Inside the front cover on the bottom edge of the visible binding is tiny gold print that reads \" Bound by Sangorski \u0026amp; Sutcliffe London England\". Sangorski \u0026amp; Sutcliffe was established in 1901  and soon became one of Englandís foremost luxury bookbinders. The firm achieved world-wide fame for the exquisite bindings it produced throughout the 1900s, earning recognition as the most important bookbindery of the 20th century. The first three bound pages, inserted by the binder, are heavy, off white stationary paper of very high quality. Pages 1 and 2 are blank on both sides. The third page is a printed, single-sided title page: \"Henry IV. \/ Part 1 \/ by \/ Wm. Shakespeare \/ The First Folio \/ 1623\" The fourth bound page leaf is the first page of the original fragment. It is blank on side one, and side two is printed with the first page of print from Part 1 of Henry IV. The first printed page is on heavier paper than the inside pages. The page numbering begins with the first page of print and is numbered 46. It is followed by page 49. No portion of the play is missing or omitted between these pages. This is a pagination error that when meeting with Dr. Eric Rasmussen to authenticate this fragment, he explained that the printing process of the First Folio took two years to complete and paper represented the biggest overhead expense because of how costly it was to manufacture. The cost was so high that it was prohibitive to print production, limiting publishers to 1000 print copies or less per job. To cut down on expenditures, publishers did not allow any paper to go to waste. Errors that already printed were bound \"as is\"; every page was filled with text, regardless of section breaks or chapters. Pages were printed on both sides and rarely left blank. These practices were applied to the First Folio as well and is the reason many plays share a page with the play printed before or after in the folio. The first page of one play was printed on the back side of the last page of the preceding play when necessary. Therefore, if an original complete First Folio was split up or fragmented into individual plays, those that shared a page might lose one page for the other to be complete. For this reason, many fragments are missing the first or last page. In other First Folio copies we viewed in digital format, Part 1 of Henry IV shares both the first and the last pages; the first page is printed on the back side of the last page of Richard II, and the last page is printed on the front side of the first page of Part II of Henry IV. In this fragment, not only are both the first and last page present, but they appear to be printed on a single side of much heavier paper or cardstock. The first page of print, however, has a barely detectable line along the bound edge of the text that resembles a very faint glue line. The heavier paper appears to be authentic rag paper from the same time period, though, ruling out the possibility that pages 46 and 73 were substituted with 19th century facsimiles. The only reference to heavy paper our research uncovered indicated that the main title pages only of certain copies of the complete Second Folio were printed on heavier paper. (Ref: The Variant Issues of Shakespeare's Second Folio..... by Robert Metcalf Smith, Ph.D.) Fortunately, we had access to the leading world expert on First Folios and inquired about this anomaly. According to Dr. Rasmussen, single plays from the first folio were sometimes prepared for individual sale by adhering the first and last page to heavier paper, which served as covers. He said this was done by the print house to maximize profits, possibly during the two-year printing process, as individual plays were completed, and printing costs were piling up. One could speculate that perhaps the reason only 750 complete First Folios were published, rather than 1000, is because a couple hundred copies of individual plays were pre-sold as fragments with card stock covers, as a way to generate revenue and cover expenses during the lengthy production process. In his explanation of the process of binding individual play copies with heavy card stock, Dr. Rasmussen confirmed for us that the faint line we saw on the inside edge of the first page, was indeed visible evidence that the original first page of the play, which was printed double-sided on the much thinner, light weight paper used for every other First Folio page, was glued to a page of heavy card stock paper. Rasmussen stated that if the page were removed from \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eKing Henry IV Pt.1.  Extracted from the First Folio.  1623.  Complete.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003ethe heavy paper, the second side would be printed with the last page of ìThe Life \u0026amp; death of Richard the Second,î as expected of a true First Folio page copy. TEXT The complete First Folio of the work of William Shakespeare (1564-1616) that was published in 1623 included 36 plays. Half of the published plays were printed by pirates and sold during Shakespeare's lifetime, but about 18-20 plays were never published in print before the folio was compiled, seven years after Shakespeare's death. Dr. Rasmussen estimates that about 750 complete copies of the First Folio were originally produced but to date fewer than 240 copies (considered \"complete\" or near complete) are known to exist. Most of those are now in the Special Collections of prestigious Universities or in special exhibits of world-class museums, but a few complete First Folios exist in the private libraries of a select group of very fortunate collectors.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eSynopsis of entire Play\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e1 Henry IV has two main plots that intersect in a dramatic battle at the end of the play. The first plot concerns King Henry IV, his son, Prince Harry, and their strained relationship. The second concerns a rebellion that is being plotted against King Henry by a discontented family of noblemen in the North, the Percys, who are angry because of King Henry’s refusal to acknowledge his debt to them. The play’s scenes alternate between these two plot strands until they come together at the play’s end.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eWhen the play opens, military news interrupts the aging King Henry’s plans to lead a crusade. The Welsh rebel Glyndˆwr has defeated King Henry’s army in the South, and the young Harry Percy (nicknamed Hotspur), who is supposedly loyal to King Henry, is refusing to send to the king the soldiers whom he has captured in the North. King Henry summons Hotspur back to the royal court so that he can explain his actions.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eMeanwhile, King Henry’s son, Prince Harry, sits drinking in a bar with criminals and highwaymen. King Henry is very disappointed in his son; it is common knowledge that Harry, the heir to the throne, conducts himself in a manner unbefitting royalty. He spends most of his time in taverns on the seedy side of London, hanging around with vagrants and other shady characters. Harry’s closest friend among the crew of rascals is Falstaff, a sort of substitute father figure. Falstaff is a worldly and fat old man who steals and lies for a living. Falstaff is also an extraordinarily witty person who lives with great gusto. Harry claims that his spending time with these men is actually part of a scheme on his part to impress the public when he eventually changes his ways and adopts a more noble personality.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eFalstaff’s friend Poins arrives at the inn and announces that he has plotted the robbery of a group of wealthy travelers. Although Harry initially refuses to participate, Poins explains to him in private that he is actually playing a practical joke on Falstaff. Poins’s plan is to hide before the robbery occurs, pretending to ditch Falstaff. After the robbery, Poins and Harry will rob Falstaff and then make fun of him when he tells the story of being robbed, which he will almost certainly fabricate.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eHotspur arrives at King Henry’s court and details the reasons that his family is frustrated with the king: the Percys were instrumental in helping Henry overthrow his predecessor, but Henry has failed to repay the favor. After King Henry leaves, Hotspur’s family members explain to Hotspur their plan to build an alliance to overthrow the king.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eHarry and Poins, meanwhile, successfully carry out their plan to dupe Falstaff and have a great deal of fun at his expense. As they are all drinking back at the tavern, however, a messenger arrives for Harry. Harry’s father has received news of the civil war that is brewing and has sent for his son; Harry is to return to the royal court the next day.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eAlthough the Percys have gathered a formidable group of allies around them—leaders of large rebel armies from Scotland and Wales as well as powerful English nobles and clergymen who have grievances against King Henry—the alliance has begun to falter. Several key figures announce that they will not join i\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003ein the effort to overthrow the king, and the danger that these defectors might alert King Henry of the rebellion necessitates going to war at once.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e  \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eHeeding his father’s request, Harry returns to the palace. King Henry expresses his deep sorrow and anger at his son’s behavior and implies that Hotspur’s valor might actually give him more right to the throne than Prince Harry’s royal birth. Harry decides that it is time to reform, and he vows that he will abandon his wild ways and vanquish Hotspur in battle in order to reclaim his good name. Drafting his tavern friends to fight in King Henry’s army, Harry accompanies his father to the battlefront.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe civil war is decided in a great battle at Shrewsbury. Harry boldly saves his father’s life in battle and finally wins back his father’s approval and affection. Harry also challenges and defeats Hotspur in single combat. King Henry’s forces win, and most of the leaders of the Percy family are put to death. Falstaff manages to survive the battle by avoiding any actual fighting.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003ePowerful rebel forces remain in Britain, however, so King Henry must send his sons and his forces to the far reaches of his kingdom to deal with them. When the play ends, the ultimate outcome of the war has not yet been determined; one battle has been won, but another remains to be fought (Shakespeare’s sequel to this play, 2 Henry IV, begins where 1 Henry IV leaves off).\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003eHenry IV, Part 1, by William Shakespeare, is an historical play that explores themes of leadership, rebellion, and personal honor in 15th-century England. The play is the first of a two-part historical drama chronicling the reign of King Henry IV. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\" color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eKey Characters:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cul\u003e\n \u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eKing Henry IV:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e A king troubled by the guilt of usurping the throne and the rebellions challenging his authority. He is concerned about his son's seemingly irresponsible behavior.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003ePrince Hal (Henry V):\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e The future king, initially presented as a carefree youth who enjoys the low life of taverns. He is a complex figure, capable of both lightheartedness and strategic planning for his future role as monarch.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eHotspur (Henry Percy):\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e A brave and hot-headed warrior who embodies chivalric honor and becomes a formidable leader of the rebellion.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eSir John Falstaff:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e A witty, gluttonous, and cowardly knight who serves as Prince Hal's companion and a source of comic relief. Falstaff represents a world of freedom and self-indulgence, often contrasting with the more serious themes of the play.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eEarl of Worcester (Thomas Percy):\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e Hotspur's uncle, a shrewd and manipulative figure who plays a significant role in fueling the rebellion.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eOwen Glendower:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e A Welsh leader who joins the rebellion, embodying a sense of mystery and magic with his claims of supernatural abilities.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eEarl of Douglas:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e A Scottish nobleman who allies with the rebels and is a formidable warrior. \u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n \u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eThemes and Interpretations:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cul\u003e\n \u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eHonor:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e The play presents contrasting perspectives on honor, exemplified by Hotspur's idealistic and martial view and Falstaff's cynical and pragmatic stance. Prince Hal grapples with his own definition of honor as he navigates the worlds of the court and the tavern.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eDuty and Kingship:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e The play explores the complexities of leadership and the burden of royal responsibility. King Henry's struggle to maintain his authority, Hal's journey towards assuming his future role, and the rebels' challenge to the legitimacy of the throne all contribute to this theme.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eRebellion and Legitimacy:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e The play is set against the backdrop of the Percy Rebellion, raising questions about the legitimacy of Henry IV's reign and the reasons for challenging established power.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eFathers and Sons:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e The relationships between King Henry and Hal, and Northumberland and Hotspur, highlight the generational conflicts and expectations within aristocratic families, linking personal relationships with the broader political landscape.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eComing-of-Age:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e Hal's development from a seemingly reckless youth to a responsible and capable leader is a central aspect of the play, often viewed as a \"prodigal son\" narrative with a political dimension.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eLanguage and Communication:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e Shakespeare's mastery of language is showcased through the distinct voices and dialects of the characters, reflecting their social status and contributing to the play's exploration of power dynamics. \u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n \u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eLiterary Devices:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cul\u003e\n \u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eContrast:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e The play is structured around contrasts between characters, settings (court vs. tavern), and values (honor vs. pragmatism).\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eSoliloquies:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e Hal's soliloquies provide insights into his inner thoughts and plans for his future transformation.\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eComic Relief:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003e Falstaff provides a significant amount of comedic relief, often subverting the serious tone of the political plot with his wit and antics. \u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n \u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#1F1F1F\"\u003eConclusion:\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#001D35\"\u003eHenry IV, Part 1 is a rich and complex play that seamlessly blends historical events, political intrigue, and character development. Through its exploration of honor, duty, and the challenges of leadership, the play offers a compelling portrait of a fractured kingdom and the emergence of a future king. The characters, particularly Hal, Hotspur, and Falstaff, are among Shakespeare's most memorable creations, contributing to the play's enduring popularity and relevance. \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003cfont size=\"5\"\u003eDuplicate Leaves from Henry IV pt. 1\u003c\/font\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eHenry IV.  Part One.  From the First Folio.  1623.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eTwenty-four Pages.  (49-56, 59-73)\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eTHE FIRST PART OF HENRY IV - FRAGMENT FROM THE FIRST FOLIO OF SHAKESPEARE.  SHAKESPEARE. (The First Part of King Henry the Fourth). [London: Isaac Jaggard and Ed. Blount, 1623]. Eight folio leaves, measuring 8 by 12-1\/2 inches, disbound.  (The final page is on the recto of the title page of Henry IV pt. 2 elsewhere in the collection.)  All but the title page of this, considered by many the greatest of Shakespeare's history plays.  Fragment contains all of Hal and Falstaff's incomparable repartee and the complete arc of Hal's transition from profligate tavern denizen to the noblest and most admired of England's monarchs.  Sixteen pages of the 1623 printing, extracted from the landmark First Folio \"intrinsically the most valuable volume in the whole range of English Literature\" (Grolier 100 19).  Shakespeare’s \"arresting portrayal both of political struggle and and of conflict within the family\" (David Bevington). \"No play of Shakespeare’s is better than Henry IV.  History as a dramatic form ripens here to a point past which no further growth is possible\" (Mark Van Doren). Composed circa 1595, the second play in Shakespeare’s second tetralogy masterfully blends ominous drama, as Bolingbroke grapples with rising rebellions, and high comedy as young Prince Hal accompanied by one of the Bard’s most enduring creations, Sir John Falstaff begins his rise to power. The text was first published in 1598; an altered version appeared in the First Folio of 1623. These pages include the last few lines of Act I and all of Act II, Scenes 1-3 and much of Scene 4 (lacking leaf [e4]); much of Act III, Scenes 1 and 2 and all of Scene 3; all of Act IV; and Act V, Scenes 1-3 and almost all of Scene 4 (lacking Prince Henry and Falstaff’s final lines). See Jaggard, 327.  This missing final page is found (recto of the title page) in the complete Henry Fourth Part II in this collection.  The First Folio was prepared by Shakespeare’s associates John Heminges and Henry Condell, and published by William and Isaac Jaggard along with the bookseller Edward Blount in 1623. Of Shakespeare’s thirty-nine undisputed plays, eighteen survive solely because they appear in the 1623 Folio.  Fewer than 250 copies of the First Folio survive, and most of those copies are incomplete. Leaves e2-e3, [e5], f1-[f5]. See Jaggard, 327. Contemporary faint marginalia to lower margins of [f4]. Light soiling to upper corners of f1-[f5]. Light edge-wear, tissue and paper restoration to corners and margins.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eKing Henry IV part one.  H 49-72, 73\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eTHE FIRST PART OF HENRY IV - FRAGMENT FROM THE FIRST FOLIO OF SHAKESPEARE.  . (The First Part This fragment can briefly be summarized as follows: King Henry expresses his wish to mount a crusade to the Holy Land and of the year long plan he’s constructed to mount such a campaign;  Westmoreland then informs the king that “noble Mortimer” has been defeated by the Welsh rebellion led by Owen Glendower;  the King realizes he must put aside his dreams of a crusade and face the “civil butchery” that has marred his reign; he laments the fact that his son Harry is a profligate roustabout, while Northumberland’s son (also Harry) known as Hotspur, is heroic and valiant. The king fantasizes if only the two had been switched at birth and from this sentiment we segue directly into the establishing scene with Prince Hal and Falstaff.  Basically, the only material the fragment does not address is the back story of the uprisings taking place in the kingdom and the civil unrest that the king must address.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eAn amazing fact about Henry IV that Shakespeare of course does not mention, was that somewhere around 1406 Henry contracted a severely disfiguring skin condition (either due to leprosy, syphilis or psoriasis).  The disease inflicted open and suppurating sores on Henry’s face and body.  In addition, a great bulbous tumor erupted under his nose.  In Shakespeare’s narrative, after Prince Hal proves himself by putting down Northumberland’s uprising in the battle of Shrewsbury and killing Hotspur (Part I), we see the king is indeed very worn down, has taken to bed a great deal and finally dies in the room called Jerusalem.  \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e1 Henry IV was Shakespeare’s most popular play, at least in print.  During his lifetime, no fewer than nine quarto editions had been printed.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  About Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45899654332589,"sku":"10314","price":36000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/files\/10314.jpg?v=1644678890"},{"product_id":"1611100-1623-shakespeare","title":"1611100 1623 Shakespeare","description":"10395. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eKing Henry VI Part Three.  Complete.  1623.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eExtracted from the First Folio.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eFIRST FOLIO PRINTING of the complete third part of this history play set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England. See STC 22273; Pforzheimer 905; Grolier English 19; PMM 122 (for first folio).\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eSHAKESPEARE, William (1564-1616). The third Part of Henry the Sixt, with the death of the Duke of Yorke [Extracted from: THE FIRST FOLIO]. [London: Printed by Isaac Jaggard, and Ed. Blount), 1623].\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eTextual Notes\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003e \u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eFolio in sixes (330 x 222 mm). Comprising 26  pages (pp. 147-172) on 13  leaves (o4-q4). (51mm tear repaired to each leaf near top margin affecting headlines, 64mm tear repaired to lower corner of o4, repaired closed tear to o5, some spotting or browning). Woodcut head and taillpiece. Loose in chemise; morocco backed slipcase gilt.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eThis play is pivotal in depicting the dramatic arc of the Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III).  We get our first real glimpse of his implacable pursuit of the crown as early as Act 3, Scene 2:\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e  \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003e The play was first printed in 1595  in a quarto edition titled \"The True Tragedy of Richard, Duke of York\"1. This edition was printed anonymously and is considered one of the \"bad quartos\" due to its imperfect and reported text1. The second quarto appeared in 1619, and the third in 16232. These early quartos are believed to have been based on unauthorized and possibly reconstructed texts, perhaps from memory by actors2.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eIn 1623, \"Henry VI Part 3\" was included in the First Folio, a collected edition of Shakespeare's plays published by his colleagues John Heminges and Henry Condell2. The Folio version of \"Henry VI Part 3\" is considered more reliable and contains additional passages and variations from the quarto versions2. Scholars believe that the Folio text may have been based on a different manuscript or a revised version by Shakespeare himself2.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eThe sources for \"Henry VI Part 3\" are diverse and include both historical and literary influences. One of the primary sources is Edward Hall's \"The Union of the Two Noble and Illustre Families of Lancastre and Yorke\" (1548), which provided historical context and details about the York and Lancaster divide3. Another important source is Raphael Holinshed's \"Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland\" (1587), which provided historical information about the events depicted in the play3. Additionally, elements of the play were inspired by contemporary works and the political context of Elizabethan England\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eSynopsis\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e In the wake of the Yorkist victory at St. Albans, York now has the crown of England. Henry arranges for a parley and presents an offer to York: Henry will rule England until his death, with ascension at that time passing to the house of York. York agrees, but this infuriates Queen Margaret; the Prince of Wales, her son, will be the next king. At Sandal Castle, Margaret leads an army that defeats the Yorkists, killing the Duke of York and his youngest boy, Rutland. A rally by the Yorkists, however, leads to Margaret and Henry fleeing to France and Scotland, respectively. Edward, eldest son of York, assumes the title of King of England.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eHenry secretly returns to England, where he is captured by Edward and put in the Tower of London. Margaret, meanwhile, is petitioning the King of France to come to Henry's aid. However, Warwick enters the scene trying to broker a marriage between Edward and the King's sister-in-law, Bona, and the King temporarily lends his allegiance to Edward—only to revoke it when word comes that Edward has hastily wed a woman he fancies, Lady Grey. Warwick, also affronted by the betrayal of his mission, joins forces with Margaret as well.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eMeanwhile, back in England, further dissension is sown between the York brothers. Richard seeks the throne for himself, and George, Duke of Clarence, is disgruntled with his own lot. Clarence ends up defecting to Margaret's side with Warwick and the French forces. Warwick, however, manages to capture Edward before the major combat begins, thus temporarily restoring Henry to the throne. But Richard rescues Edward and gathers a force to meet Warwick. Clarence rejoins his brothers as well, and at Barnet and Tewkesbury, Warwick is defeated and slain by Edward. Though the French troops attempt to rally, Margaret and the Prince of Wales are captured; the sons of York slay the Prince, but Edward grants mercy to Margaret.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eAnticipating Edward's further mercy to Henry, Richard pays a visit to the Tower of London, where Henry is held as prisoner.  When Henry foretells Richard's bloody future, Richard kills him. Edward now holds the throne as King Edward IV, but Richard yet plots his own means to usurp the crown for himself.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eKing Henry VI, Part Three is an historical play by Shakespeare that continues the story of the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars for control of the throne of England. The play picks up where \"King Henry VI, Part Two\" left off, with the Yorkists and Lancastrians battling for power.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eThe play opens with the Duke of York claiming the throne and being crowned as King Edward IV. However, his reign is immediately challenged by the Lancastrians, led by Queen Margaret and the deposed King Henry VI. The two sides engage in a series of battles, with fortunes shifting back and forth.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eOne of the key events in the play is the Battle of Towton, where the Yorkists achieve a decisive victory. However, the conflict is far from over, as the Lancastrians continue to resist. Queen Margaret, in particular, is a fierce and determined opponent, leading her forces with great courage and tenacity.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eThe play also explores the personal struggles and ambitions of several characters.  Richard, Duke of Gloucester, emerges as a central figure, driven by his desire for power and willing to commit ruthless acts to achieve his goals. His machinations and betrayals set the stage for the events of \"Richard III.\"\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eThe play concludes with the capture and imprisonment of King Henry VI, who is eventually murdered in the Tower of London. The Yorkists appear to have triumphed, but the seeds of future conflict have been sown, as Richard's ambition and treachery foreshadow the turmoil to come.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#242424\"\u003eOverall, \"King Henry VI, Part Three\" is a gripping tale of power, ambition, and the brutal realities of war. It highlights the complexities of leadership and the devastating impact of civil strife on a nation.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont size=\"4\"\u003eDramatis Personae\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cul\u003e\n \u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cul\u003e\n   \u003cul\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eKing Henry the Sixth\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEdward, Prince of Wales, his son\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eLewis the Eleventh, King of France\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eDuke of Somerset\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eDuke of Exeter\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEarl of Oxford\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEarl of Northumberland\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEarl of Westmoreland\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eLord Clifford\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eRichard Plantagenet, Duke of York\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEdward, Earl of March, afterwards King Edward the Fourth\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEdmund, Earl of Rutland\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eGeorge, Duke of Clarence\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eRichard, Duke of Gloucester\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eDuke of Norfolk\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eMarquess of Montague\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEarl of Warwick\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEarl of Pembroke\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eLord Hastings\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eLord Stafford\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eSir John Mortimer\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eSir Hugh Mortimer\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eHenry, Earl of Richmond\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eEarl Rivers\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eSir William Stanley\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eSir John Montgomery\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eSir John Somerville\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eTutor to Rutland\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eMayor of York\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eLieutenant of the Tower\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eA Nobleman\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eTwo Keepers\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eA Huntsman\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eA Son, who has killed his father\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eA Father, who has killed his son\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eQueen Margaret\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003cli\u003eLady Grey, afterwards Queen to Edward the Fourth\u003c\/li\u003e\n   \u003c\/ul\u003e\n  \u003c\/ul\u003e\n \u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  Good","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45899654430893,"sku":"10395","price":25400.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/files\/10395.jpg?v=1691438391"},{"product_id":"1611200-1623-shakespeare","title":"1611200 1623 Shakespeare","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c!--StartFragment --\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eAs You Like It. Single Leaf from First Folio. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf0\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eFirst Printing. Bought With leaves from \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003end, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e3\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003erd and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eth Folios.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eThe \"As you Like it\" Leaf was the very last acquisition made in the creation of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\"\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eA \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003ePoor Man's First Folio\".\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e\"As You Like It\" was not published in a quarto edition during Shakespeare's lifetime. The first appearance of the play was in the First Folio (F\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e) of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e, a collected edition of Shakespeare's plays published by his colleagues John Heminges and Henry Condell\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003e. This edition is considered the authoritative text and is the basis for most modern editions of the play \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf0\"\u003eTextual Notes\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe sources for \"As You Like It\" are diverse and reflect Shakespeare's wide-ranging interests and influences. One of the primary sources is Thomas Lodge's pastoral romance \"Rosalynde: Euphues' Golden Legacy,\" published in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e15902\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. This work provided the basic plot structure and characters, although Shakespeare's version introduced significant changes and complexities\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Another important source is the anonymous play \"Syr Clyomon and Clamydes,\" which influenced some of the play's themes and motifs\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Additionally, elements of the play were inspired by contemporary English literature and the pastoral tradition\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e\"As You Like It\" also draws on classical sources, such as Ovid's \"Metamorphoses,\" which provided the basis for the themes of transformation and change in the play\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The character of Rosalind, who disguises herself as a man, embodies these themes and reflects the play's exploration of gender and identity\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eSynopsis of This Leaf With references to the entire play \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThis leaf perfectly summarizes the main body of the play. Rosalind disguised as ganymede assures all the eligible principles of the play that they will indeed be married tomorrow to the spouses of their choice. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe leaf begins with Ganymede assuring Orlando (whom she loves as Rosalind) that he (Ganymede) will produce Rosalind tomorrow;\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf2\"\u003e…\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eto set her before your eyes tomorrow, human as she is and without any danger.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eNot only will Orlanda marry the elusive Rosalind, but his brother, Oliver, will marry Celia (no longer disguised as Aliena). Meanwhile, Phoebe, who until now has spurned the advances of Sylvius and panted after Ganymede is told that she will reject Ganymede and instead choose the ever faithful Sylvius Jut to top things off, Touchstone will marry Audrey.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eAll this is solidified with a brilliant exchange:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003ePhoebe (to Silvius): \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eGood Shepherd tell this youth what is to love.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eSilvius: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eIt is to be all made of sighs and tears and so am I for Phoebe.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003ePhoebe: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eAnd I for Ganymede\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eOrlando: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eAnd I for Rosalind.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eRosalind (as Ganymede): \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf3\"\u003eAnd I for no woman.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThus, the scene is now set for a quadruple matrimonial event unique even in Shakespeare. Even the usurping Duke Frederick gets into the spirit of things restores his entire lands and estate to his brother the good Duke and claims he will live out the rest of his life as a shepherd in this forest of Arden. On the next day the entire group is joined by the God Hymen who will officiate at the day's festivities and in effect the play has reached its conclusion save for a wonderful epilogue (not on this leaf) that Rosalind delivers.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eSir Rowland de Bois has recently died, and, according to the custom of primogeniture, the vast majority of his estate has passed into the possession of his eldest son, Oliver. Although Sir Rowland has instructed Oliver to take good care of his brother, Orlando, Oliver refuses to do so. Out of pure spite, he denies Orlando the education, training, and property befitting a gentleman. Charles, a wrestler from the court of Duke Frederick, arrives to warn Oliver of a rumor that Orlando will challenge Charles to a fight on the following day. Fearing censure if he should beat a nobleman, Charles begs Oliver to intervene, but Oliver convinces the wrestler that Orlando is a dishonorable sportsman who will take whatever dastardly means necessary to win. Charles vows to pummel Orlando, which delights Oliver.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eDuke Senior has been usurped of his throne by his brother, Duke Frederick, and has fled to the Forest of Ardenne, where he lives like Robin Hood with a band of loyal followers. Duke Frederick allows Senior\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es daughter, Rosalind, to remain at court because of her inseparable friendship with his own daughter, Celia. The day arrives when Orlando is scheduled to fight Charles, and the women witness Orlando\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es defeat of the court wrestler. Orlando and Rosalind instantly fall in love with one another, though Rosalind keeps this fact a secret from everyone but Celia. Orlando returns home from the wrestling match, only to have his faithful servant Adam warn him about Oliver\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es plot against Orlando\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es life. Orlando decides to leave for the safety of Ardenne. Without warning, Duke Frederick has a change of heart regarding Rosalind and banishes her from court. She, too, decides to flee to the Forest of Ardenne and leaves with Celia, who cannot bear to be without Rosalind, and Touchstone, the court jester. To ensure the safety of their journey, Rosalind assumes the dress of a young man and takes the name Ganymede, while Celia dresses as a common shepherdess and calls herself Aliena.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eDuke Frederick is furious at his daughter\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es disappearance. When he learns that the flight of his daughter and niece coincides with the disappearance of Orlando, the duke orders Oliver to lead the manhunt, threatening to confiscate Oliver\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es lands and property should he fail. Frederick also decides it is time to destroy his brother once and for all and begins to raise an army.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eDuke Senior lives in the Forest of Ardenne with a band of lords who have gone into voluntary exile. He praises the simple life among the trees, happy to be absent from the machinations of court life. Orlando, exhausted by travel and desperate to find food for his starving companion, Adam, barges in on the duke\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf4\"\u003e’\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003es camp and rudely demands that they not eat until he is given food. Duke Senior calms Orlando and, when he learns that the young man is the son of his dear former friend, accepts him into his company. Meanwhile, Rosalind and Celia, disguised as Ganymede and Aliena, arrive in the forest and meet a lovesick young shepherd named Silvius who pines away for the disdainful Phoebe. The two women purchase a modest cottage, and soon enough Rosalind runs into the equally lovesick Orlando. Taking her to be a young man, Orlando confides in Rosalind that his affections are overpowering him. Rosalind, as Ganymede, claims to be an expert in exorcising such emotions and promises to cure Orlando of lovesickness if he agrees to pretend that Ganymede is Rosalind and promises to come woo her every day. Orlando agrees, and the love lessons begin.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eMeanwhile, Phoebe becomes increasingly cruel in her rejection of Silvius. When Rosalind intervenes, disguised as Ganymede, Phoebe falls hopelessly in love with Ganymede. One day, Orlando fails to show up for his tutorial with Ganymede. Rosalind, reacting to her infatuation with Orlando, is distraught until Oliver appears. Oliver describes how Orlando stumbled upon him in the forest and saved him from being devoured by a hungry lioness. Oliver and Celia, still disguised as the shepherdess Aliena, fall instantly in love and agree to marry. As time passes, Phoebe becomes increasingly insistent in her pursuit of Ganymede, and Orlando grows tired of pretending that a boy is his dear Rosalind. Rosalind decides to end the charade. She promises that Ganymede will wed Phoebe, if Ganymede will ever marry a woman, and she makes everyone pledge to meet the next day at the wedding. They all agree.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe day of the wedding arrives, and Rosalind gathers the various couples: Phoebe and Silvius; Celia and Oliver; Touchstone and Audrey, a goatherd he intends to marry; and Orlando. The group congregates before Duke Senior and his men. Rosalind, still disguised as Ganymede, reminds the lovers of their various vows, then secures a promise from Phoebe that if for some reason she refuses to marry Ganymede she will marry Silvius, and a promise from the duke that he would allow his daughter to marry Orlando if she were available. Rosalind leaves with the disguised Celia, and the two soon return as themselves, accompanied by Hymen, the god of marriage. Hymen officiates at the ceremony and marries Rosalind and Orlando, Celia and Oliver, Phoebe and Silvius, and Audrey and Touchstone. The festive wedding celebration is interrupted by even more festive news: while marching with his army to attack Duke Senior, Duke Frederick came upon a holy man who convinced him to put aside his worldly concerns and assume a monastic li\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003eCharacter list of Shakespeare's \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf6\"\u003eAs You Like It\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf5\"\u003e along with brief descriptions of their roles in the play:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eRosalind: The daughter of Duke Senior, who is banished from the court. She disguises herself as a young man named Ganymede and flees to the Forest of Arden.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eOrlando: The youngest son of Sir Rowland de Boys. He falls in love with Rosalind and follows her to the Forest of Arden.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eCelia: The daughter of Duke Frederick and Rosalind's cousin. She accompanies Rosalind to the Forest of Arden and disguises herself as Aliena.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eDuke Senior: Rosalind's father, who has been usurped by his brother Duke Frederick and lives in exile in the Forest of Arden.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eDuke Frederick: The younger brother of Duke Senior who usurps the throne and banishes Rosalind.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eTouchstone: A court jester who accompanies Rosalind and Celia to the Forest of Arden.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eJaques: A melancholic lord who is part of Duke Senior's company in the Forest of Arden. He is known for his philosophical musings.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eOliver: The elder brother of Orlando who initially mistreats him but later reforms and falls in love with Celia.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eSilvius: A young shepherd who is in love with Phebe.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003ePhebe: A shepherdess who falls in love with Ganymede (Rosalind in disguise).\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eAudrey: A country girl who is courted by Touchstone.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eWilliam: A country youth who is also in love with Audrey.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eAdam: An old servant of Sir Rowland de Boys who is loyal to Orlando.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eCharles: A wrestler at Duke Frederick's court who is defeated by Orlando.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf7\"\u003eThis leaf from As You Like it was part of a group of four one from each of the four folios as follows:\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eThe four leaves comprise: \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. First Folio (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e): As You Like It, pp. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e205-6\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, comprising the end of Act \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e5\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eScene \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003ethrough most of Scene \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. As the play draws to its close, the forest-dwelling characters and the courtiers come together, and multiple couples find love and get married. The First Folio marked the first publication of As You Like It. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Second Folio (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1632\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e): Henry the Fourth Part II, pp. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e83-4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, comprising most of Act \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eScene \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. t Mistress Quickly's inn in Eastcheap, the disguised Prince Hal and Poins hear Falstaff's demeaning comments about them. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e3\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Third Folio (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1663-4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e): Hamlet, pp. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e751-2\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, comprising the end of Act \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, scene \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e3\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003ethrough to the end of scene \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e5\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Hamlet reveals he has killed Polonious, and is sent to leave for England, but he turns around with a renewed dedication to revenge. Ophelia further descends into madness and sings love songs. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e4\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. Fourth Folio (\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1685\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e): The Tragedy of King Lear, pp. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e109-110\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e, comprising most of Act \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e5\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003escene \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e3\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The scene, the final in the play, includes one of Shakespeare's best-known passages, Lear's speech over the body of Cordelia, and his death from grief. Folio. Four folio leaves, tipped-in to volume of red quarter morocco, spine lettered in gilt, patterned paper sides. Each folio text leaf preceded by a facsimile title page from each folio. Folio leaves a little browned, neat repair to short closed tear at foot of that of First Folio leaf; in very good condition\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"pf1\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eA relic of the greatest playwright in world literature: a leaf from each of the four folios, that is, the first four collected editions of Shakespeare's plays. The leaves were gathered for issue by the Grabhorn Press and specially bound with an introductory essay by Edwin Eliott Willoughby of the Folger library. This is number \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e54\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eof \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e73\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003ecopies produced. The four folios were the only collected editions of Shakespeare's plays published in the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e17\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eth century. The First Folio of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e1623\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eis of inestimable importance for English literature, being the sole source for \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e18\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eof Shakespeare's plays which would have otherwise been lost. The Second Folio of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e1632\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eincluded an additional encomium by the young John Milton, his first published poem in English, and modernized some of the spelling and punctuation. \"The Second Folio was issued when England under Charles I was drifting into civil war. It helped to keep alive the poetry of Shakespeare during the days of the Commonwealth when play-acting was proscribed as a work of the devil\" (Willoughby's introduction). The Third Folio of \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e1664\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf8\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003ea\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003edded the play Pericles, and six spurious S. It is the rarest of the folios, due no doubt to a large part of the edition being destroyed in the Great Fire of Londhakespeare playson in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1666\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. The Fourth Folio completed the great quartet in \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e1685\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e. It maintained the text of the Third Folio, and was in turn used as the basis for the edited texts of the \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003e18\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"cf1\"\u003eth century.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c!--EndFragment --\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45899654496429,"sku":"10416","price":16500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/files\/10416.jpg?v=1691438710"},{"product_id":"1611300-1623-shakespeare","title":"1611300 1623 Shakespeare","description":"10381. \u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Arial\" size=\"4\" color=\"#333333\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'Macbeth.'  Leaf from First Folio. 1623. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv align=\"center\"\u003e\u003cfont face=\"Arial\" size=\"4\" color=\"#333333\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\"Something wicked this way comes:\"\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cfont color=\"#333333\"\u003eTragedy pages 143\/144 from 'Comedies, Histories, \u0026amp; Tragedies'. Published by Isaac Jaggard \u0026amp; Ed. Blount (London). Page measures 11.75x7.75''.\u003c\/font\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMacbeth  Tragedy Pages 143-144\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eIn this fragment, the newly empowered Macbeth commands the witches to reveal his ultimate fate.  They comply in a deliberately obscure and misleading manner.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eThe fragment begins with a brief scene in which Hecate visits the Weyard Sisters and accosts them of excluding her from the affairs of Macbeth.  Then follows a second short scene in which Lennox informs a Lord of his suspicion that neither Duncan or Banquo were murdered by their sons and that he believes it was Macbeth who was responsible.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003eFinally, Macbeth, no longer in awe of the witches’ power demands of them his ultimate fate he is told first that the greatest threat against him is Macduff at which point he resolves to attack and murder Macduff and his family. He then learns that no man born of woman can bring him harm. He takes this as a virtual statement of invulnerability and justification for attacking and murdering Macduff. He then learns that no harm shall come to Macbeth until Birnam wood just come to Dunsinane. This too bu oys his feelings of invincibility and rather than letting things go at that, he then asks what will become of Banquo’s heirs.   He is then shown a series of eight apparitions, each wearing a crown and each bearing a double orb and sceptre the meaning of which is apparent: after Macbeth dies, Banquo's heirs will unite England and Scotland and reign well into the future.\u003c\/div\u003e\n\n\u003cdiv\u003e \u003c\/div\u003e  About Fine","brand":"1623","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45899654725805,"sku":"10381","price":16000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/files\/10381.jpg?v=1775763333"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0284\/7646\/collections\/9927.jpg?v=1691434226","url":"https:\/\/www.nrarities.com\/collections\/shakespeare-books.oembed","provider":"The Gillespie Collection","version":"1.0","type":"link"}