Hamlet's Heirs

'A rigorous, theoretically based mining of the assumptions and anxieties underlining life in the Western world today ... Hamlet's Heirs brilliantly questions and challenges pervasive assumptions and business as usual in the arenas of both literary theory and contemporary politics.' – Renaissance Quarterly'Balances irreverent wit with penetrating critical insight while discussing, respectively, how Anglo-American political traditions have sought to reconcile the notions of filial entitlement and meritocratic democracy.' --Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900'In Hamlet's Heirs, Charnes takes Hamlet through several complementary iterations, creating a multifaceted portrait: historical, psychological, theoretical, pop-cultural, and primarily political. She weaves complex readings of sociology and poststructuralism with her own expert observations into an often brilliant tapestry... Linda Charnes has given us new ways to see how Hamlet pitches us into our own time and, without a doubt, beyond.' - Shakespeare Quarterly'I found myself turning the pages irresistably because provoked into wanting to re-read and re-think Hamlet, despite having edited Hamlet Studies for twenty-five years.' R.W. Desai, The Shakespeare Newsletter

• 1 Introduction: Passing which Torch? 2 The Fetish of ‘the Modern’ 3 Dismember Me: Shakespeare, Paranoia, and the Noir World Order 4 We Were Never Early Modern 5 The Hamlet Formerly Known as Prince 6 It’s the Monarchy, Stupid 7 Operation Enduring Hamlet 8 Conclusion