Measure for Measure

"Measure for Measure" has been strikingly popular for more than 30 years, both on the stage and in the study, and there have been wide divergences of theatrical and critical interpretation.

It has continuing power to excite and puzzle us. But it is also a play deeply rooted in the period of its writing and this edition seeks to illuminate that historical background as well as tracing the history of the play on the stage, in particular in our own age.

The first record of its performance come in a set of revels accounts for the Christmas entertainments at court during the winter of 1604-5, but it may well have been written earlier - indeed, perhaps it is unlikely that a new play would first have been tried out on such an occasion.

The editior discusses the various topical allusions which help to date the play, and throws light on many aspects of early Jacobean life - in particular, the legal implications of marriage contracts and pre-contracts, and the punishments of sexual offences. Shakespeare's sources are also examined, shedding light on the markedly different religious and social sensibilities of his day and our own, which tends to view the central story of the play as one of unrelieved painfulness.

The fortunes of the play in performance are examined and illustrated in a section on its theatrical history, and there are appendices dealing with particular textual problems, changes in lineation, and the song "Take, O take".