The bestselling, authoritative Folger Shakespeare Library edition of Julius Caesar, featuring Shakespeare's complete original text, expert annotations, scene-by-scene summaries, and trusted scholarship for students, teachers, and general readers.For more than seventy years, the Folger Shakespeare Library editions have been the standard classroom and reading editions of Shakespeare's plays. Used in high schools, colleges, universities, and theaters around the world, each volume combines the complete original text with expert editorial guidance that makes Shakespeare's language more accessible while preserving every nuance of the play. Shakespeare may have written Julius Caesar as the first of his plays to be performed at the Globe, in 1599. For it, he turned to a key event in Roman history: Caesar’s death at the hands of friends and fellow politicians. Renaissance writers disagreed over the assassination, seeing Brutus, a leading conspirator, as either hero or villain. Shakespeare’s play keeps this debate alive. Whether you're reading Julius Caesar for school, teaching it in the classroom, preparing for AP English Literature, studying Shakespeare in college, performing the play, or simply returning to one of the greatest works of English literature, this edition provides the context and guidance to help you read Shakespeare with confidence. This Folger Shakespeare Library edition includes: Shakespeare's complete original text, carefully edited from the best early printed version of the playClear explanatory notes conveniently placed on facing pagesScene-by-scene plot summaries for quick review and studyAn introduction to Shakespeare's language and dramatic styleA guide to the play's most famous speeches, quotations, and memorable linesA scholarly introduction exploring the play's historical background, themes, characters, and enduring significanceAn essay by acclaimed Shakespeare scholar Coppélia KahnIllustrations and images from the Folger Shakespeare Library's world-renowned collectionsAn annotated guide for further reading and study The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, is home to the world's largest collection of Shakespeare's printed works and one of the world's leading centers for Shakespeare scholarship, performance, and education. Every Folger Shakespeare Library edition combines authoritative scholarship with practical classroom support, making it an ideal choice for students, educators, actors, book clubs, and anyone seeking an accessible, reliable edition of Shakespeare's original plays.