George Bernard Shaw (Paperback)

Christopher Wixson

ISBN 10: 0198850093 / ISBN 13: 9780198850090

Published by Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2020

About this Item

Paperback. George Bernard Shaw has been called the second greatest playwright in English (after William Shakespeare) and one of the inventors of modern celebrity as the most famous public intellectual of his time. Beginning in the 1880s, as a critic and as a playwright, he transformed British drama, bringing to it intellectual substance, ethical imperatives, and modernity itself, setting the theatrical course for the subsequent century. That his legacy endures seventy yearsafter his death is testament to the prescience of his thinking and his prolific creativity. This Very Short Introduction looks at Shaw's life, starting with his upbringing inIreland, and then takes a chronological approach through his works. Considering Shaw's committed antagonism on behalf of a range of socio-political issues; his use of comedy as a mode for communicating serious ideas; and his rhetorical style that pushes conventional boundaries, Christopher Wixson provides an overview of the creative evolution of core themes throughout Shaw's long career. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions seriesfrom Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts,analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable. Christopher Wixson introduces George Bernard Shaw, the greatest playwright in English after Shakespeare. Taking a chronological approach through his works, he provides an overview of Shaw's sensibility as a writer, and studies the creative evolution of core themes and styles throughout his long career. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780198850090

Bibliographic Details

• Title: George Bernard Shaw (Paperback)
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, Oxford
• Publication Date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0198850093
• ISBN 13: 9780198850090
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

Christopher Wixson introduces George Bernard Shaw, the greatest playwright in English after Shakespeare. Taking a chronological approach through his works, he provides an overview of Shaw's sensibility as a writer, and studies the creative evolution of core themes and styles throughout his long career.

About the Author

Christopher Wixson is Professor of English and Theatre Arts at Eastern Illinois University, USA. He teaches advanced courses in early modern drama and modernism, script analysis and dramaturgy, and general courses in writing and literature. He has published widely on twentieth-century British and American drama, including Bernard Shaw and Modern Advertising, Prophet Motives (Palgrave Macmillan 2018), and is General Editor of the bi-annual scholarly journal SHAW: The Journal of Bernard Shaw Studies.