Research Guides: LIT 3350: Shakespeare: Shakespeare's Life and Times

Shakespeare's Life and Times (Historical Context)

Understanding Shakespeare's own life and the historical context in which he lived will give you greater insight into his works. Below is just a sampling of reference books and main collection books about Shakespeare's world:

Reference Books

The Cambridge Guide to the Worlds of Shakespeare by Bruce R. Smith
Call #: REF 822.33 C178
Publication Date: 2016
Vol 1: "Shakespeare's World," maps out the world that Shakespeare inhabited, such as theatre, business, science, popular culture, and medicine. Vol 2: "The World's Shakespeare" examines what the world has made of Shakespeare as over the past four centuries.
Shakespeare's World and Work: An Encyclopedia for Students by John F. Andrews
Call #: REF 822.33 Z617
Publication Date: 2001
3-volume set covers the plays and the life of Shakespeare, his world, and his influence on modern culture. It presents the plays, and provides details on government, music, theatre, historical figures, critical commentaries, gender, clothing, set design, and characters.
All Things Shakespeare: An Encyclopedia of Shakespeare's World by Kirstin Olsen
Call #: REF 822.33 Z6557
Publication Date: 2002
Covering obscure and everyday items Shakespeare's world, as well as topics like anatomy, astronomy, clothing, currency, death, entertainment, hunting, medicine, mythology, tools, and weapons. A chronology of historical events referenced in Shakespeare's plays.
The Facts on File Companion to Shakespeare by William Baker; Kenneth Womack
Call #: REF 822.33 Z611
Publication Date: 2012
Contains Shakespeare's biography, as well as society, culture, history, and politics in Shakespeare's day. Each entry on a play discusses: Background, Synopsis, Character Studies, Key Passages, Modern Criticism, The Play Today, Topics for Writing, and Bibliography.

Main Collection Books

A Companion to Shakespeare by David S. Kastan
Call #: MAIN 822.33 Z341
Publication Date: 1999
Shakespeare's World: The Comedies: A Historical Exploration of Literature
Historical Explorations of Literature Series by John Pendergast
Call #: MAIN 822.33 Z4625
Publication Date: 2019
Shakespeare's World: The Tragedies: A Historical Exploration of Literature
(Historical Explorations of Literature Series) by Douglas J. King
Call #: MAIN 822.33 Z4391
Publication Date: 2018
Women in the Age of Shakespeare
(Age of Shakespeare Series) by Theresa D. Kemp
Call #: MAIN 822.33 Z43872
Publication Date: 2009
Family Life in the Age of Shakespeare
(Age of Shakespeare Series) by Bruce W. Young
Call #: MAIN 822.33 Z492
Publication Date: 2008
Voices of Shakespeare's England: Contemporary Accounts of Elizabethan Daily Life by John A. Wagner (Editor)
Call #: MAIN 942.055 V889
Publication Date: 2010
Shakespeare in London by Hannah Crawforth; Sarah Dustagheer; Jennifer Young
Call #: MAIN 822.33 Z31761
Publication Date: 2015

History Databases

These history databases can also provide insight into Shakespeare's life and the Elizabethan era too:

Historical Abstracts This link opens in a new window
Contains articles covering world history from 1450 to present (excluding U.S. and Canada).
Historical Abstracts is a reference guide to the history of the world from 1450 to the present (excluding North America, which is covered in America: History and Life). Historical Abstracts indexes key historical journals from virtually every major country, plus a targeted selection of hundreds of journals in the social sciences and humanities that are of special interest to researchers and students of history.

Historical Abstracts also cites new books reviewed in key English-language history and review journals. Dissertation citations relevant to the subject scope are derived from Dissertation Abstracts International.

Subject keywords: History. Multicultural Studies. Sociology. Psychology. Women's Studies/Gender Studies. Religion. Anthropology. Political Science. History of Science, Economics, Business, Education, Music, Art, and Law.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
JSTOR is an interdisciplinary archive of over one thousand leading academic journals from the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, as well as select monographs and other materials valuable for academic work.
JSTOR is an interdisciplinary archive of over one thousand leading academic journals from the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, as well as select monographs and other materials valuable for academic work. It is full-text searchable and includes images. There are embargos of between 3-5 years for most journal titles. Journals are always included from volume 1, issue 1.