PREFACE The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare's Poetry is the first volume in print to study the achievement of Shakespeare's poetry both in his poems and in his plays.As such,the companion aims to complement other volumes in the Shakespeare companion series.These volumes,all published by Cambridge University Press,concentrate on the plays and Shakespeare's role as a man of the theatre:Shakespeare on Film,edited by Russell Jackson (2ooo); Shakespeare on Stage,edited by Stanley Wells and Sarah Stanton (2002); Shakespearean Comedy,edited by Alexander Leggatt(2002);Shakespeare's History Plays,edited by Michael Hattaway (2002);Shakespearean Tragedy, edited by Claire McEachern(2002);and Shakespeare,edited by Margreta de Grazia and Stanley Wells (zoo).This last volume includes only a single chapter on the poems(by John Kerrigan),and nothing on the topic of poetry in the plays,although it does include a few chapters relevant to the present volume:those on Shakespeare's texts by Barbara A.Mowat,on his reading by Leonard Barkan,and,most importantly,on his language by de Grazia.Only incidentally,however,do these chapters mention the poems,so that the texts, the reading,and the language discussed are overwhelmingly for and of the plays.Accordingly,this new companion assembles a distinguished group of scholars from the United Kingdom,the United States,the Republic of Ireland, Switzerland,and South Africa to present a series of chapters on the individual poems,on the topic of poetry in the plays,on the special contexts important for viewing 'Shakespeare's poetry',and on the afterlife of this topic. The companion consists of fourteen chapters,each dealing with a literary, historical,or cultural feature of Shakespeare's poetry,and each concluding with a select 'Reading list'of recommended works.The volume also includes a chronology geared to the individual chapters and a concluding note on the reference works available on Shakespeare's poetry.The 'Introduction'draws a frame for viewing Shakespeare's poetry in the twenty-first century,while the structure of the subsequent chapters conforms to the tripartite format of the companion series. xiPREFACE The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare’s Poetry is the first volume in print to study the achievement of Shakespeare’s poetry both in his poems and in his plays. As such, the companion aims to complement other volumes in the Shakespeare companion series. These volumes, all published by Cambridge University Press, concentrate on the plays and Shakespeare’s role as a man of the theatre: Shakespeare on Film, edited by Russell Jackson (2000); Shakespeare on Stage, edited by Stanley Wells and Sarah Stanton (2002); Shakespearean Comedy, edited by Alexander Leggatt (2002); Shakespeare’s History Plays, edited by Michael Hattaway (2002); Shakespearean Tragedy, edited by Claire McEachern (2002); and Shakespeare, edited by Margreta de Grazia and Stanley Wells (2001). This last volume includes only a single chapter on the poems (by John Kerrigan), and nothing on the topic of poetry in the plays, although it does include a few chapters relevant to the present volume: those on Shakespeare’s texts by Barbara A. Mowat, on his reading by Leonard Barkan, and, most importantly, on his language by de Grazia. Only incidentally, however, do these chapters mention the poems, so that the texts, the reading, and the language discussed are overwhelmingly for and of the plays. Accordingly, this new companion assembles a distinguished group of scholars from the United Kingdom, the United States, the Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, and South Africa to present a series of chapters on the individual poems, on the topic of poetry in the plays, on the special contexts important for viewing ‘Shakespeare’s poetry’, and on the afterlife of this topic. The companion consists of fourteen chapters, each dealing with a literary, historical, or cultural feature of Shakespeare’s poetry, and each concluding with a select ‘Reading list’ of recommended works. The volume also includes a chronology geared to the individual chapters and a concluding note on the reference works available on Shakespeare’s poetry. The ‘Introduction’ draws a frame for viewing Shakespeare’s poetry in the twenty-first century, while the structure of the subsequent chapters conforms to the tripartite format of the companion series. xi