Rhodri Lewis Libros

An acclaimed new interpretation of Shakespeare's HamletHamlet and the Vision of Darkness is a radical new interpretation of the most famous play in the English language. By exploring Shakespeare's engagements with the humanist traditions of early modern England and Europe, Rhodri Lewis reveals a Hamlet unseen for centuries: an innovative, coherent, and exhilaratingly bleak tragedy in which the governing ideologies of Shakespeare's age are scrupulously upended. Recovering a work of far greater magnitude than the tragedy of a young man who cannot make up his mind, Lewis shows that in Hamlet, as in King Lear, Shakespeare confronts his audiences with a universe that received ideas are powerless to illuminate--and where everyone must find their own way through the dark.

The book explores the seventeenth-century movement in England aimed at creating artificial languages to reflect human thought and the natural order. It delves into the motivations of philosophers, scientists, and educators who sought to reform learning, revealing their intertwining beliefs in occult, religious, and early scientific ideas. By reconstructing this unique linguistic endeavor, the study highlights how these artificial languages challenge the notion of the 'new philosophy' of the time, offering fresh insights into intellectual and linguistic history.

Rhodri Lewis explores Shakespeare's tragedies as experiments aimed at revealing the complexities of human experience. He posits that Shakespeare sought to understand the purpose of tragedy, shaping his plays into cohesive artistic works influenced by earlier tragic traditions. By examining the historical context of sixteenth-century tragedy, Lewis provides a chronological analysis of Shakespeare's plays, asserting their role as a means of conveying truth in a world resistant to rational understanding, distinct from the philosophies of Hegel and Aristotle.