Stephen Orgel
Jackson Eli Reynolds Professor of Humanities, Emeritus
English
Bio
Stephen Orgel has published widely on the political and historical aspects of Renaissance literature, theater, art history and the history of the book. His work is interdisciplinary, and is increasingly concerned with the patronage system, the nature of representation, and performance practice in the Renaissance. His most recent book is Imagining Shakespeare (2003), and he is the author of The Authentic Shakespeare (2002), Impersonations: The Performance of Gender in Shakespeare's England (Cambridge, 1996), The Illusion of Power (Berkeley, 1975), Inigo Jones (London and Berkeley, 1973, in collaboration with Sir Roy Strong), and The Jonsonian Masque (Cambridge, Mass., 1965). He has edited Ben Jonson's masques, Christopher Marlowe's poems and translations, the Oxford Authors John Milton, The Tempest and The Winter's Tale in The Oxford Shakespeare, Trollope's Lady Anna, and Edith Wharton's The Custom of the Country, The Age of Innocence and The Reef in the Oxford World's Classics. He is the general editor of Cambridge Studies in Renaissance Literature and Culture, and of the new Pelican Shakespeare. He has been awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship, NEH Fellowships, and ACLS Fellowships; he has been a Getty Fellow, a visiting fellow at New College, Oxford, and most recently the Clark Lecturer at Trinity College, Cambridge. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Academic Appointments
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Emeritus Faculty, Acad Council, English
Administrative Appointments
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visiting professor, villa I Tatti, Harvard University, Fiesole (2014 - 2014)
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Dean’s Lecturer, University of Melbourne (2013 - 2013)
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Margaret Dalziel Lecturer, University of Otago (2013 - 2013)
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Visiting Professor, Nicholson Center for British Studies, University of Chicago (2012 - 2012)
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Whitney J. Oates Fellow, Princeton Univesity (2012 - 2012)
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Clark Lecturer, Trinity College, Cambridge (1996 - 1996)
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Hudson Strode Memorial Professor, University of Alabama (1990 - 1990)
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Getty Scholar, The Getty Center (1986 - 1987)
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Professor, Stanford University (1985 - 1987)
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Visiting Scholar, University of Kansas (1985 - 1985)
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Fellow, Humanities Research Centre, Australian National University (1983 - 1983)
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Visiting Fellow, Humboldt University, Berlin (1982 - 1982)
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Literature, The Johns Hopkins University (1981 - 1985)
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Sir William Osler Professor of English Literature, The Johns Hopkins University (1981 - 1985)
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Visiting Fellow, New College (1981 - 1981)
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Professor, The Johns Hopkins University (1974 - 1981)
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Professor, University of California Berkeley (1972 - 1974)
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Visiting Lecturer, University of Reading (1970 - 1971)
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Assistant Proffesor, University of California Berkeley (1966 - 1972)
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Assistant Proffesor, University of California Berkeley (1960 - 1966)
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Instructor, Harvard (1959 - 1960)
Honors & Awards
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Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
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Laurea (Honorary doctorate), Università Cà Foscari (University of Venice) (2017)
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Academy Award in Literature, American Academy of Arts and Letters (2005)
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Guggenheim Fellowship, Guggenheim Foundation (2000-2001)
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National Endowment for the Humanities Senior Fellowship, National Endowment for the Humanities (1993-1994)
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Fellowship, Getty Foundation (1986-1987)
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National Endowment for the Humanities Senior Fellowship, National Endowment for the Humanities (1982-1983)
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ACLS Fellowship, American Council of Learned Societies (1973-1974)
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ACLS Study Fellowship, American Council of Learned Societies (1967-1968)
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Woodrow Wilson Fellowship, The Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation (1954-1955)
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Phi Beta Kappa, Phi Beta Kappa Society (1954)
Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations
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General Editor, Garland English Texts
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General Editor, The New Pelican Shakespeare (Penguin)
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General Editor, Cambridge Studies in Renaissance Literature and Culture, Cambridge University Press
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Member, The Society for Textual Studies
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Member, Editorial Board, Text
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Member, Editorial Board, Early Modern Literature Studies
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Trustee, Shakespeare Association of America (1999 - 2002)
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Member, The Renaissance English Text Society (1992 - 1996)
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General Editor, Garland Publications in American and English Literature, Garland Publishing, Inc (1988 - 1988)
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General Editor, Harvard Dissertations in American and English Literature, Garland Publishing, Inc. (1987 - 1987)
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General Editor, Satire and Sense (Restoration and 18th Century Texts), Garland Publishing, Inc. (1987 - 1987)
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Member, Editorial Board, Shakespeare Studies (1983 - 1993)
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Editor in Chief, Journal of English Literary History (1980 - 1985)
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Member, Variorum Shakespeare (1980 - 1985)
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Member, The Renaissance English Text Society (1980 - 1983)
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General Editor, Renaissance Drama, Garland Publishing, Inc (1979 - 1981)
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Member, Central Executive Committee, Folger Shakespeare Library (1977 - 1985)
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Member, Editorial Board, Theater Journal, Theatre Survey (1977 - 1981)
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Chairman, The English Institute (1977 - 1977)
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Member, Editorial Board, Journal of English Literary History (1975 - 2012)
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Member, Board of Supervisors, The English Institute (1974 - 1977)
Professional Education
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B.A., Columbia University (1954)
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M.A., Harvard University (1956)
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Ph.D., Harvard University (1959)
All Publications
- The Idea of the Book and the Creation of Literature Oxford University Press. 2023
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The Archeology of Texts
JOURNAL OF EARLY MODERN STUDIES
2022; 11: 5-14
View details for DOI 10.13128/JEMS-2279-7149-13426
View details for Web of Science ID 000864471300003
- The Invention of Shakespeare and Other Essays U of Pennsylvania Press. 2022
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Italian Shakespeare
LINGUE ANTICHE E MODERNE
2022; 11: 99-111
View details for DOI 10.4424/lam112022-5
View details for Web of Science ID 000983735800005
- Wit's Treasury: Renaissance England and the Classics U of Pennsylvania Press. 2021
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English Classical: The Reform of Poetry in Elizabethan England
ARION-A JOURNAL OF HUMANITIES AND THE CLASSICS
2019; 27 (2): 43–62
View details for Web of Science ID 000496898400009
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The Further Adventures of Ganymede
CHILDHOOD, EDUCATION AND THE STAGE IN EARLY MODERN ENGLAND
2017: 143–61
View details for Web of Science ID 000445814500008
- The Reader In the Book Oxford Textual Perspectives Oxford University Press. 2015
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Shakespeare all'italiana
3rd International Colloquium on Travels and Translations
EDITIONS RODOPI B V. 2013: 375–382
View details for Web of Science ID 000326844500022
- Shakespeare and the Art of Forgetting Shakespeare and Renaissance Literary Theories: Anglo-Italian Transactions edited by Marrapodi, M. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate. 2011
- Spectacular Performances Manchester University Press. 2011
- Prologue: I am Richard II Representations of Elizabeth I in Early Modern Culture edited by Petrina, A., Tosi, L. Houndmills: Palgrave Macmillan. 2011
- Il commediante come carattere C Il teatro inglese tra Cinquecento e Seicento edited by Payne, S., Pellis, V. CLEUP Padova. 2011
- Spectacular Performances Manchester/Palgrave-Macmillan. 2011
- The Statue in the Gallery: Ambiguous Art in The Winter’s Tale Lectures de The Winter’s Tale de William Shakespeare edited by Lemonnier-Texier, D., Winter, G. Rennes: Presses Universitaire de Rennes. 2010
- Reconstructing the Spectacles of State The Ben Jonson Journal 2010; 17 (1)
- Shakespeare, Sexuality and Gender The New Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare edited by de Grazia, M., Wells, S. Cambridge University Press. 2010
- What Knights Really Want Thinking Allegory Otherwise edited by Machosky, B. Stanford University Press. 2010
- Editing: Art or Science Marginal Textualities, Textus: English Studies in Italy 2009; Xxii (3)
- Reading Lady Anne Clifford’s A Mirovr for Magistrates Culture, Patronage and Gender in 17th Century Britain edited by Hearn, K., Hulse, L. Yorkshire Archeological Society Occasional Paper No. 7. 2009
- Spenser from the Gutters to the Margins: An Archeology of Reading The Construction of Textual Identity in Medieval and Early Modern Literature, SPELL Swiss Papers in English Language and Literature 22 edited by Ghose, I., Reavey, D. Gunter Narr Verlag Tübingen. 2009
- Marginal Textualities. Textus: English Studies in Italy 2009; xxii (3)
- Shakespeare and the Art of Forgetting Memory and Invention: Medieval and Renaissance Literature edited by Berger, A. M., Rossi, M. Leo S. Olschki, Florence. 2009
- Seeing Through Costume Proceedings of the 2008 Société Française Shakespeare conference 2008
- Teaching the History of Books Imprint 2008
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The desire and pursuit of the whole (Shakespeare)
SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY
2007; 58 (3): 290-310
View details for Web of Science ID 000250270700002
- Complete Poems and Translations edited by Orgel, S. New edition, Penguin Classics. 2007
- Shakespeare Illustrated The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare and Popular Culture edited by Shaughnessy, R. Cambridge. 2007
- The Afterlife of Lady Macbeth Zyzzyva 2007; 23 (3)
- Poetika renesansne kulture: novi historizam edited by Sporer, D. Zagreb: Disput. 2007
- Introduction, Shakespeare The Sonnets edited by Evans, G. B. Cambridge. 2006
- Entries on ‘Inigo Jones’ and ‘The Masque’ The Oxford Encyclopedia of British Literature edited by Kastan, D. S. Oxford University Press. 2006
- The Book of the Play From Performance to Print in Shakespeare’s England edited by Holland, P., Orgel, S. Huntington Library/ Palgrave. 2006
- Afterword Shakespeare, Memory and Performance edited by Holland, P. Cambridge. 2006
- From Performance to Print in Shakespeare’s England Huntington Library/ Palgrave. 2006
- The Age of Innocence edited by Orgel, S. Oxford World’s Classics. 2006
- Reading Occasions Renaissance Drama Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern University Press. 2005
- Well-intended obscurity Around the Globe 2005; 29
- Love Letters A Little More Hobart, Tasmania: Summerhill Publishing. 2005
- Marginal Maternity: Reading Lady Anne Clifford’s A Mirror for Magistrates Printing and Parenting in Early Modern England edited by Brooks, D. A. Ashgate. 2005
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Ganymede agonistes
GLQ-A JOURNAL OF LESBIAN AND GAY STUDIES
2004; 10 (3): 485-501
View details for Web of Science ID 000222588700008
- Shylock’s Tribe Shakespeare and the Mediterranean, 7th International Shakespeare Congress, Valencia, 2001 edited by Clayton, T., Brock, S., Fores, V. Newark NJ: University of Delaware Press; London, Associated University Press. 2004
- Foreword Shakespeare’s Songbook Norton. 2004
- Foreword In Folio: Rare Volumes in the Stanford University Libraries Stanford University Libraries. 2004
- Introduction to From Script to Stage Early Modern England edited by Holland, P., Orgel, S. Huntington Library/ Palgrave. 2004
- The Portable Shakespeare edited by Orgel, S. Penguin. 2004
- From Script to Stage in Early Modern England Huntington Library/Palgrave. 2004
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Original copies (Shakespeare portraiture)
WORD & IMAGE
2003; 19 (1-2): 115-132
View details for Web of Science ID 000180690300009
- Plagiarism and Original Sin Plagiarism in Early Modern England edited by Kewes, P. Palgrave Macmillan. 2003
- Othello and the End of Comedy Shakespeare and Comedy edited by Hallond, P. Cambridge University Press. 2003
- Imagining Shakespeare Palgrave. 2003
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The case for 'Comus' (John Milton)
REPRESENTATIONS
2003: 31-45
View details for Web of Science ID 000181743000003
- The Complete Pelican Shakespeare edited by Braunmuller, A. R., Orgel, S. Pelican Classics. 2002
- Afterword: Records of Culture Books and Readers in Early Modern England edited by Andersen, J., Sauer, E. University of Pennsylvania Press. 2002
- ‘Mr Who He?,’ review article on Shakespeare’s poems and sonnets London Review of Books 2002; 24 (15)
- Introduction The Key Keeper edited by Knowles, J. The Foundling Press. 2002
- The Authentic Shakespeare, and Other Problems of the Early Modern Stage Routledge. 2002
- Pericles Prince of Tyre edited by Orgel, S. New Pelican Shakespeare. 2001
- Cymbeline at Santa Cruz Shakespeare Quarterly 2001; 52 (2)
- The Sonnets edited by Orgel, S. New Pelican Shakespeare. 2001
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Tobacco and boys - How queer was Marlowe?
GLQ-A JOURNAL OF LESBIAN AND GAY STUDIES
2000; 6 (4): 555-576
View details for Web of Science ID 000165168300003
- Introduction Henry V, War Criminal Oxford. 2000
- Macbeth edited by Orgel, S. New Pelican Shakespeare. 2000
- Textual Icons: Reading Early Modern Illustrations The Renaissance Computer edited by Rhodes, N., Sawday, J. Routledge. 2000
- The Taming of the Shrew edited by Orgel, S. New Pelican Shakespeare. 2000
- Impersonations: The Performance of Gender in Shakespeare's England Japanese edition, Nagoya University Press. 2000
- What Is an Editor A Shakespeare Reader Macmillan/The Open University. 2000
- Jonson and the Arts The Cambridge Companion to Ben Jonson edited by Harp , R., Stewart, S. Cambridge University Press. 2000
- Margins of Truth The Renaissance Text edited by Murphy, A. Manchester University Press. 2000
- Idols of the Gallery: Becoming a Connoisseur in Renaissance England Early Modern Visual Culture edited by Erickson, P., Hulse, C. University of Pennsylvania Press. 2000
- Macbeth and the Antic Round Shakespeare Survey 1999; 52
- King Lear edited by Orgel, S. New Pelican Shakespeare. 1999
- King Lear: The Quarto and Folio Texts edited by Orgel, S. New Pelican Shakespeare. 1999
- Shakespeare: The Critical Complex Garland. 1999; 10
- Why Did the English Stage Take Boys for Women? Teaching Shakespeare through Performance edited by Riggio, M. C. Modern Language Association of America. 1999
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What's the Globe good for? (Experiencing authentic theater visually and acoustically)
SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY
1998; 49 (2): 191-194
View details for Web of Science ID 000089699100005
- The Reef edited by Orgel, S. Oxford World's Classics. 1998
- The Winter’s Tale: A Modern Perspective The Winter’s Tale edited by Mowat, B. A., Werstine, P. New Folger Library Shakespeare. 1998
- Marginal Jonson The Politics of the Stuart Court Masque edited by Bevington, D., Holbrook, P. Cambridge University Press. 1998
- Boys Will Be Girls Around the Globe 1997
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THE STATUS OF EVIDENCE - A ROUNDTABLE
PMLA-PUBLICATIONS OF THE MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
1996; 111 (1): 21-31
View details for Web of Science ID A1996TJ31100002
- What Is an Editor Shakespeare Studies 1996; 24
- The Winter's Tale edited by Orgel, S. The Oxford Shakespeare. 1996
- What Is a Character Text 1996; 8
- Impersonations: The Performance of Gender in Shakespeare's England Cambridge University Press. 1996
- Gendering the Crown Subject and Object in Renaissance Culture edited by de Grazia, M., Quilligan, M., Stallybrass, P. Cambridge. 1996
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INSOLENT WOMEN AND MANLIKE APPAREL + COSTUMES IN ELIZABETHAN THEATER
TEXTUAL PRACTICE
1995; 9 (1): 5-25
View details for Web of Science ID A1995RH97300001
- The Custom of the Country edited by Orgel, S. Oxford World's Classics. 1995
- The Play of Conscience Performativity and Performance edited by Parker, A., Kosofsky, E. New York:Routledge. 1995
- The Comedian as the Character C English Comedy edited by Cordner, M., et al Cambridge. 1994
- Selected Poems, Oxford Poetry Library edited by Orgel, S. Oxford. 1994
- Acting Scripts, Performing Texts Crisis in Editing: Texts of the English Renaissance edited by McLeod, R. NY: AMS Press. 1994
- Il teatro elisabettiano edited by Innocenti, L. Bologna:Il Mulino. 1994
- Teaching the Postmodern Renaissance Professions of Desire: Lesbian and Gay Studies in Literature edited by Haggerty, G. E., Zimmerman, B. Modern Language Association of America. 1994
- Why in England did Boys Play Women? Shakespeare Nihyô no Genzai edited by Aoyama, M., Kawachi, Y. Tokyo: Kenkyusha. 1993
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ON DILDOS AND FADINGS + PORNOGRAPHY IN ENGLISH RENAISSANCE TEXTS
ANQ-A QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF SHORT ARTICLES NOTES AND REVIEWS
1992; 5 (2-3): 106-111
View details for Web of Science ID A1992JL16200013
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KNOWING THE CHARACTER + SCENES OF WRITING IN SHAKESPEAREAN DRAMAS
ZEITSCHRIFT FUR ANGLISTIK UND AMERIKANISTIK
1992; 40 (2): 124-129
View details for Web of Science ID A1992JD09400003
- The Subtexts of The Roaring Girl Erotic Politics edited by Zimmerman, S. Erotic Politics. 1992
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THE POETICS OF INCOMPREHENSIBILITY + IN SHAKESPEAREAN AND RENAISSANCE TEXTS AND PUBLIC DISCOURSE
1991 ANNUAL MEETING OF THE SHAKESPEARE ASSOC OF AMERICA
FOLGER SHAKESPEARE LIBRARY. 1991: 431–37
View details for Web of Science ID A1991GR84800003
- What is a text? Staging the Renaissance edited by Scott, D., Stallybrass, P. 1991
- The Illusion of Power 1991
- John Milton (The Oxford Authors) edited by Orgel, S. 1991
- Lady Anna edited by Orgel, S. Oxford World's Classics. 1990
- Jonson and the Amazons Soliciting Interpretation edited by Harvey, E. D., Maus, K. E. 1990
- Counterfeit Presentments: Shakespeare's Ekphrasis England and the Continental Renaissance edited by Chaney, E., Mack, P. Boydell. 1990
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NOBODYS-PERFECT - OR WHY DID THE ENGLISH STAGE TAKE BOYS FOR WOMEN
SOUTH ATLANTIC QUARTERLY
1989; 88 (1): 7-29
View details for Web of Science ID A1989T271200002
- Nobody's Perfect, or Why Did the English Stage Take Boys for Women? Displacing Homophobia edited by Butters, R. R., Clum, J. M., Moon, M. Durham, NC. 1989
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PLATO, THE MAGI, AND CAROLINE POLITICS + JONES,INIGO - A READING OF THE 'TEMPLE OF LOVE'
WORD & IMAGE
1988; 4 (3-4): 663-677
View details for Web of Science ID A1988Q951800004
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THE AUTHENTIC SHAKESPEARE
REPRESENTATIONS
1988: 1-26
View details for Web of Science ID A1988M298600001
- Prospero's Wife Representing the English Renaissance edited by Greenblatt, S. Berkeley. 1988
- The Tempest edited by Orgel, S. The Oxford Shakespeare, Oxford. 1987
- L'Immagine e la Parola Saggiatore. 1987
- Prospero's Wife Rewriting the Renaissance edited by Ferguson, M. W., Quilligan, M., Vickers, N. J. Chicago. 1986
- Shakespeare and the Cannibals Cannibals, Witches and Divorce: Estranging the Renaissance edited by Garber, M. Baltimore. 1986
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SHAKESPEARE IN STUNNING FULL COLOR + COMIC-BOOK VERSIONS OF THE BARDS CLASSICS
WORD & IMAGE
1985; 1 (3): 273-277
View details for Web of Science ID A1985ANR1000003
- Shakespeare and the Cannibals Cannibals, Witches and Divorce: Estranging the Renaissance English Institute Papers. 1985
- The Spectacles of State Persons in Groups edited by Trexler, R. C. Binghampton, N.Y.. 1985
- Making Greatness Familiar Pageantry in the Shakespearean Theater edited by Bergeron, D. M. Athens, GA. 1984
- The Example of Hercules Mythographie der frühen Neuzeit edited by Killy, W. Wolfenbüttler Forschungen Band 27. 1984
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SHAKESPEARE IMAGINES A THEATER + SPECULATIONS ON THE RENAISSANCE WAY OF CONCEIVING THEATER
POETICS TODAY
1984; 5 (3): 549-561
View details for Web of Science ID A1984TX17100007
- Prospero's Wife Representations 1984; 8
- Shakespeare Imagines a Theater Shakespeare, Man of the Theater edited by Muir, K., et al 1983
- The Jonsonian Masque Morningside Edition,Columbia . 1982
- The Royal Theater and the Role of King Patronage in the Renaissance edited by Lytle, G. F., Orgel, S. Princeton. 1982
- Patronage in the Renaissance, A Collection of Essays Princeton. 1982
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MAKING GREATNESS FAMILIAR + ELIZABETHAN THEATER AND CHIVALRIC CODE
GENRE
1982; 15 (1-2): 41-48
View details for Web of Science ID A1982PQ69400003
- What is a Text? Research Opportunities in Renaissance Drama 1981; 24
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THE RENAISSANCE ARTIST AS PLAGIARIST
ELH-ENGLISH LITERARY HISTORY
1981; 48 (3): 476-495
View details for Web of Science ID A1981MG72000002
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SHAKESPEARE OBSERVED + 'SHAKESPEARE THE GLOBE AND THE WORLD', EXHIBITION
SHAKESPEARE QUARTERLY
1980; 31 (2): 133-141
View details for Web of Science ID A1980KL81100001
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SHAKESPEARE AND THE KINDS OF DRAMA
CRITICAL INQUIRY
1979; 6 (1): 107-123
View details for Web of Science ID A1979HR05300008
- The Philosophy of Images Garland. 1979
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JONES,INIGO - AN ALLEGORY RECOVERED
JOURNAL OF THE WARBURG AND COURTAULD INSTITUTES
1977; 40: 314-?
View details for Web of Science ID A1977XQ34100020
- The Renaissance and the Gods Garland. 1976
- The Renaissance Imagination: Lectures and Essays of D. J. Gordon 1975
- The Illusion of Power 1974
- Inigo Jones: The Theatre of the Stuart Court California/Parke Bernet . 1973
- The King's Arcadia The Arts Council of Great Britain. 1973
- Inigo Jones's Persian Entertainment AARP [Art & Archeology Research Papers 1972; 2
- Complete Poems and Translations edited by Orgel, S. Penguin. 1971
- Inigo Jones on Stonehenge Prose 1971; 3
- The Poetics of Spectacle New Literary History 1971; 2
- Florimene and the Ante-Masques Renaissance Drama 1971
- Affecting the Metaphysics Harvard English Studies 1971; 2
- Selected Masques edited by Orgel, S. Yale. 1970
- The Complete Masques, edited by Orgel, S. Yale. 1969
- To Make Boards to Speak: Inigo Jones's Stage and the Jonsonian Masque Renaissance Drama 1968
- The Jonsonian Masque 1967
- On Judging Faculty The Contemporary University: U.S.A. edited by Morison, R. S. Houghton Mifflin. 1966
- The Jonsonian Masque Harvard. 1965
- Sidney's Experiment in Pastoral Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes 1963; 26
- New Uses of Adversity: Tragic Experience in The Tempest In Defense of Reading edited by Brower, R. A., Poirier, R. Dutton. 1962