Simon Barker – författare

This New Casebook offers a wide-ranging selection of contemporary critical readings of Shakespeare's three 'problem plays': All's Well that Ends Well, Measure for Measure and Trolius and Cressida. Together, they reflect the diversity of late twentieth-century theory and the controversy that continues to be generated by the plays, and discuss a variety of key issues. These include the meaning of the term 'problem play', the historical context and political and cultural significance of the plays, as well as issues of staging and theatre history. The volume also provides a helpful introduction which guides the reader through the critical approaches, terms and debates, as well as explanatory notes for each essay and a useful section on further reading.

This New Casebook offers a wide-ranging selection of contemporary critical readings of Shakespeare's three 'problem plays': All's Well that Ends Well, Measure for Measure and Trolius and Cressida. Together, they reflect the diversity of late twentieth-century theory and the controversy that continues to be generated by the plays, and discuss a variety of key issues. These include the meaning of the term 'problem play', the historical context and political and cultural significance of the plays, as well as issues of staging and theatre history. The volume also provides a helpful introduction which guides the reader through the critical approaches, terms and debates, as well as explanatory notes for each essay and a useful section on further reading.

For over a century, drummers have been turning to a variety of percussive traditions as prompts for the creation of new expressive possibilities on the drumset. In this book, Simon Barker sets out in detail the developmental processes he has followed creating an improvisational language for the drumset utilizing Korean rhythm/sticking cells, aesthetic conceptions, improvisatory codes, and developmental procedures. Barker offers historical overviews of Korean traditional rhythmic forms, analysis of rhythmic structures appearing in a variety of styles, an analysis and chronological account of his development of a 'Koreanized' approach to the drumset, a methodology for performing p’ansori accompaniment on the drumset, an introduction to Korean extended techniques, and a large collection of drumset studies based on Korean traditional forms such as tasÅ­rÅ­m, ch’ilch’ae, and ritual music structures from Korea’s East Coast. Barker also explores physical practices employed by Korean musicians which aid in the development of a relaxed, dynamic approach to performance. He creates a framework for creating an alternative approach to drumset education and performance through an engagement with Korea’s extraordinary rhythmic and aesthetic traditions. The volume includes accompanying downloadable resources featuring recordings of developmental exercises, solo drumset improvisations, and ensemble performances, each track representing a subject of discussion within the volume.

The last decade has seen a revival of interest in John Ford and especially 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, his tragedy of religious scepticism, incestuous love, and revenge. This text in particular has provided a focus for scholarship as well as being the subject of a number of major theatrical productions.Simon Barker guides the reader through the full range of previous interpretations of the play; moving from an overview of traditional readings he goes on to enlarge upon new questions that have arisen as a consequence of critical and cultural theory.

This anthology offers a full introduction to Renaissance theatre in its historical and political context, along with newly edited and thoroughly annotated texts of the following plays:* The Spanish Tragedy (Thomas Kyd)* Arden of Faversham (Anon.)* Edward II (Christopher Marlowe)* A Woman Killed with Kindness (Thomas Heywood)* The Tragedy of Mariam (Elizabeth Cary)* The Masque of Blackness (Ben Jonson)* The Knight of the Burning Pestle (Francis Beaumont)* Epicoene, or the Silent Woman (Ben Jonson)* The Roaring Girl (Thomas Middleton & Thomas Dekker)* The Changeling (Thomas Middleton & William Rowley)* 'Tis Pity She's a Whore (John Ford).Each play is prefaced by an introductory headnote discussing the thematic focus of the play and its textual history, and is cross-referenced to other plays of the period that relate thematically and generically.An accompanying website contains a wide selection of contextual documents which supplement the anthology: www.routledge.com/textbooks/0415187346

This anthology offers a full introduction to Renaissance theatre in its historical and political context, along with newly edited and thoroughly annotated texts of the following plays:* The Spanish Tragedy (Thomas Kyd)* Arden of Faversham (Anon.)* Edward II (Christopher Marlowe)* A Woman Killed with Kindness (Thomas Heywood)* The Tragedy of Mariam (Elizabeth Cary)* The Masque of Blackness (Ben Jonson)* The Knight of the Burning Pestle (Francis Beaumont)* Epicoene, or the Silent Woman (Ben Jonson)* The Roaring Girl (Thomas Middleton & Thomas Dekker)* The Changeling (Thomas Middleton & William Rowley)* 'Tis Pity She's a Whore (John Ford).Each play is prefaced by an introductory headnote discussing the thematic focus of the play and its textual history, and is cross-referenced to other plays of the period that relate thematically and generically.An accompanying website contains a wide selection of contextual documents which supplement the anthology: www.routledge.com/textbooks/0415187346

This original study explores a vital aspect of early modern cultural history: the way that warfare is represented in the theatre of Shakespeare and his contemporaries. The book contrasts the Tudor and Stuart prose that called for the establishment of a standing army in the name of nation, discipline and subjectivity, and the drama of the period that invited critique of this imperative. Barker examines contemporary dramatic texts both for their radical position on war and, in the case of the later drama, for their subversive commentary on an emerging idealisation of Shakespeare and his work. The book argues that the early modern period saw the establishment of political, social and theological attitudes to war that were to become accepted as natural in succeeding centuries. Barker’s reading of the drama of the period reveals the discontinuities in this project as a way of commenting on the use of the past within modern warfare. The book is also a survey and analysis of literary theory over the last twenty-five years in relation to the issue of early modern war - and develops an argument about the study of literature and war in general.Features* Interdisciplinary approach addressing the early-modern period as one of particular importance in the history of warfare* Examines the way that the period helped shape modern attitudes to war* Sets Shakespeare in the context of those dramatists who preceded him, as well as his contemporaries and successors* Surveys the work of the past and considers the future of criticism in relation to warfare

Although it was probably conceived as a trilogy, only the first two parts of Thomas Deloney's prose romance were completed, dealing with the origins of the shoemaker's trade and how it succeeded in London. The Gentle Craft is best known as the principal source of Thomas Dekker's The Shoemaker's Holiday. But Deloney's tale of Simon Eyre, who founded Leadenhall, the centre of the leather trade, and rose to be Lord Mayor of London, is itself significant for its adaptation of euphemistic romances and jestbooks. In this volume the author offers in modern typography, with explanatory notes and an extensive introduction, an account of the sources and influence of the book, its publication history and what is known of its author. He suggests that Deloney's combination of romance with the practical morality of an emerging social class produced a text that is uniquely important for those interested in late-Elizabethan popular culture.

This title includes new essays by a range of leading theorists on the interdisciplinary study of literature and history. "Literature as History" presents a selection of specially commissioned essays by a range of key contemporary thinkers on the interdisciplinary study of literature and history. Chapters include: Catherine Belsey on Historicism, Helen Carr on Modernism, Terry Eagleton on tragedy, John Lucas on the First World War, R. C. Richardson on Servants in the 18th Century, Judy Simons on Rosamund Lehmann, and Stan Smith on Edward Thomas. The unifying theme is the interrelationship between literary/cultural production and its historical moment. The essays in the collection are astute and exciting in terms of their engagement with ever-changing developments in critical and theoretical practice while retaining an invaluable focus on familiar and engaging texts and authors.The contributors offer a reappraisal of the nature of literary studies today, looking back over the thirty-five years of Peter Widdowson's career - a career which has coincided with the emergence of, challenges to, and reformulations of critical theory - and ask what the future holds, particularly for the interdisciplinary ways of working which Widdowson pioneered. Bringing together distinguished scholars in the interdisciplinary study of English and History, it seizes the opportunity to take stock of the current field of literary studies and to ask searching questions about its future development.

How we engage in epistemic practice, including our methods of knowledge acquisition and transmission, the personal traits that help or hinder these activities, and the social institutions that facilitate or impede them, is of central importance to our lives as individuals and as participants in social and political activities. Traditionally, Anglophone epistemology has tended to neglect the various ways in which these practices go wrong, and the epistemic, moral, and political harms and wrongs that follow. In the past decade, however, there has been a turn towards the non-ideal in epistemology. Articles in this volume focus on topics including intellectual vices, epistemic injustices, interpersonal epistemic practices, and applied epistemology. In addition to exploring the various ways in which epistemic practices go wrong at the level of both individual agents and social structures, the papers gathered herein discuss how these problems are related, and how they may be addressed.

The last decade has seen a revival of interest in John Ford and especially 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, his tragedy of religious scepticism, incestuous love, and revenge. This text in particular has provided a focus for scholarship as well as being the subject of a number of major theatrical productions. Simon Barker guides the reader through the full range of previous interpretations of the play; moving from an overview of traditional readings he goes on to enlarge upon new questions that have arisen as a consequence of critical and cultural theory.

Although it was probably conceived as a trilogy, only the first two parts of Thomas Deloney's prose romance were completed, dealing with the origins of the shoemaker's trade and how it succeeded in London. The Gentle Craft is best known as the principal source of Thomas Dekker's The Shoemaker's Holiday. But Deloney's tale of Simon Eyre, who founded Leadenhall, the centre of the leather trade, and rose to be Lord Mayor of London, is itself significant for its adaptation of euphemistic romances and jestbooks. In this volume the author offers in modern typography, with explanatory notes and an extensive introduction, an account of the sources and influence of the book, its publication history and what is known of its author. He suggests that Deloney's combination of romance with the practical morality of an emerging social class produced a text that is uniquely important for those interested in late-Elizabethan popular culture.

Literature as History presents a selection of specially commissioned essays by a range of key contemporary thinkers on the interdisciplinary study of literature and history. The unifying theme is the interrelationship between literary / cultural production and its historical moment. The essays in the collection are astute and exciting in terms of their engagement with ever-changing developments in critical and theoretical practice while retaining an invaluable focus on familiar and engaging texts and authors. The contributors offer a reappraisal of the nature of literary studies today, looking back over the thirty-five years of Peter Widdowson's career - a career which has coincided with the emergence of, challenges to, and reformulations of critical theory - and ask what the future holds, particularly for the interdisciplinary ways of working which Widdowson pioneered. Bringing together distinguished scholars in the interdisciplinary study of English and History, it seizes the opportunity to take stock of the current field of literary studies and to ask searching questions about its future development.