"Shakespeare and the Nature of Women", first published in 1975, inaugurated a new wave of feminist scholarship. Almost 30 years on, it continues to be a useful resource in writing about women in this period and a springboard for new research.

"Shakespeare and the Nature of Women", first published in 1975, inaugurated a new wave of feminist scholarship. It claimed that Shakespeare's plays offered a sustained critique of inherited male thinking about women, theological, literary and social. The book argued that the presence of the boy actor in Shakespeare's theatre created an awareness of gender as performance. Almost 30 years on, it continues to be a useful resource in writing about women in this period and a springboard for new research.

Acknowledgements - Preface to the Third Edition - Preface to the Second Edition - Introduction - The Idea of Chastity - The Problem of Equality - Gods and Devils - Femininity and Masculinity - Shakespeare - Works Cited - Index