Charles Lamb

Charles Lamb and Mary Lamb, acclaimed for their contribution to children's literature, compiled Tales from Shakespeare as a wonderful introduction to Shakespeare. Their purpose was to provide accessible Shakespeare stories for young readers, presenting prose stories Shakespeare based on his famous plays. These are essentially Shakespeare abridgments, referred to as imperfect abridgments by the authors, intended as Shakespeare for children and Shakespeare for young people to give them a foretaste of pleasure that awaits in the original dramas. The collection features Shakespeare play tales covering a wide range of plots, offering helpful Shakespeare plot summaries to aid in the study of Shakespeare. Included are the The Tempest summary, introducing characters like Prospero Tempest and Ariel; A Midsummer Night's Dream summary with figures such as Puck A Midsummer Night's Dream; the Winter's Tale summary detailing events involving Hermione; the Much Ado About Nothing summary highlighting the witty exchanges of Much Ado Benedick Beatrice; the As You Like It summary, partly set in the famous forest of Arden; the Merchant of Venice summary, focusing on the conflict involving Shylock Merchant of Venice; the Cymbeline summary, recounting the trials of Imogen Cymbeline; the tragic King Lear summary and the loyalty of King Lear Cordelia; the story of Macbeth summary and the ambitious Lady Macbeth; the narrative of All's Well That Ends Well summary and Helena's pursuit of Bertram; the comedic account of Taming of the Shrew summary and the titular Katharine the Shrew; the confusing events in The Comedy of Errors summary involving separated twins; the serious themes explored in Measure for Measure summary through characters like Angelo Isabella; the mistaken identities of Twelfth Night summary and Viola/Sebastian; the downfall depicted in Timon of Athens summary; the poignant tale within Romeo and Juliet story summary; the internal struggle in the Hamlet story centered on Hamlet Prince of Denmark; the jealousy-driven plot of the Othello story involving Othello Desdemona; and the adventurous life detailed in the Pericles story following Pericles Marina. This work serves as an excellent resource for Shakespeare beginners, making understanding Shakespeare plots more accessible and introducing readers to the memorable Tales from Shakespeare characters in the beautiful and rich beautiful English tongue inspired by Shakespeare's own language.