Explanatory notes and guidance to help students understand Shakespeare's plays. Hamlet's openness to all kinds of possible interpretations make it the most theatrical of plays. It is itself vitally concerned with theatre, full of the language of acting, and of characters who dissemble, pretending to be what they are not. These guides help students to evaluate the historical, social and cultural contexts for a broader understanding of Shakespeare’s plays. The content of each book in the series follows the pattern of an introduction; detailed running commentary on the text; insight into historical, social and cultural contexts; analysis of the language; an overview of critical approaches and different interpretations; essay-writing tips and lists of recommended resources. The first Shakespeare A Level study guide series to be published since the major changes to A Levels Rex Gibson as series editor Complements the play editions of both Cambridge School Shakespeare and New Cambridge Shakespeare or any other edition