Tragedies. Comedies. Sonnets

Nowadays, the famous English poet and playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616) is one of the most popular authors, whose plays are popular all over the world. Editions of his dramatic and lyrical works are sold in numerous editions.

This collection includes eleven of Shakespeare's plays, one poem and several of his sonnets. Translations of all texts were made by the Russian writer, poetess and playwright Tatyana Lvovna Shchepkina-Kupernik (1874-1952). The publication is decorated with illustrations by British artists who lived and worked at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries: John Byam Liston Shaw (1872–1919), Hugh Thomson (1860–1920), James Dromgole Linton (1840–1916), Arthur Rackham (1867–1939), and William Hatherell (1855–1928).

It is believed that the English poet and playwright William Shakespeare (1564–1616) was born into a large family of John Shakespeare, a glove maker, and his wife Mary Arden. As a child, William loved to listen to the fairy tales that his mother told him; these tales influenced his literary work. The future writer attended grammar school in Stratford, and at the age of eighteen he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children. At the age of about twenty, Shakespeare left Stratford and moved to London, where he became interested in the theater: at first, the young man tried himself as an actor, and later he staged his own plays.

For many years, Shakespeare remained a playwright in the theatrical troupe "The Lord Chamberlain's Men" (after several years renamed "The King's Men"), for which he wrote a significant part of his works. It was the members of the troupe who worked on the creation of the first collection of Shakespeare's works, without which the plays of the talented playwright would have been lost forever. They bought the rights to the texts, removed the distortions introduced by unscrupulous publishers, and brought them into line with their original appearance.

The collection "First Folio" was published in 1623, seven years after Shakespeare's death. It included thirty-six plays (out of thirty-eight currently known): comedies, historical chronicles and tragedies; poetry was not included. Shakespeare received his well-deserved laurels during his lifetime, and now he is one of the most sought-after authors, whose plays are popular all over the world, and editions of his dramatic and lyrical works are sold in numerous print runs. Some of his most famous works can be found in this edition. It includes eleven plays by Shakespeare (All's Well That Ends Well, As You Like It, Measure for Measure, The Merchant of Venice, The Merry Wives of Windsor, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, The Tempest, The Winter's Tale, Romeo and Juliet, King Lear), one poem (A Lover's Complaint) and several sonnets. Translations of all texts are made by the Russian writer, poetess and playwright Tatyana Lvovna Shchepkina-Kupernik (1874–1952).

The publication is decorated with illustrations by five British artists who lived and worked at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. John Byam Liston Shaw (1872–1919) was an artist and illustrator, recognized for his watercolours and graphic works. Hugh Thomson (1860–1920) was an artist who drew illustrations for the works of Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, William Thackeray and other famous authors. James Dromgole Linton (1840–1916) was the president of the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours, awarded a knighthood for his artistic talent. Arthur Rackham (1867–1939) is an illustrator, world famous for his works for classic works of English literature. William Hatherell (1855–1928) often depicted historical scenes and Arthurian legends in his works.