Shakespeare and Consciousness [Paperback]

This book examines how early modern and recently emerging theories of consciousness and cognitive science help us to re-imagine our engagements with Shakespeare in text and performance. Papers investigate the connections between states of mind, emotion, and sensation that constitute consciousness and the conditions of reception in our past and present encounters with Shakespeares works. Acknowledging previous work on inwardness, self, self-consciousness, embodied self, emotions, character, and the mind-body problem, contributors consider consciousness from multiple new perspectivesas a phenomenological process, a materially determined product, a neurologically mediated reaction, or an internally synthesized identityapproaching Shakespeares plays and associated cultural practices in surprising and innovative ways.
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction, Paul Budra and Clifford Werier
I: Consciousness, Cognitive Science, and Character
1. Consciousness and Cognition in Shakespeare and Beyond, Clifford Werier
2. Shakespeare Studies and Consciousness, Edward Pechter
3. Hamlet in the Bat Cave, Paul Budra
II: Consciousness and Theatrical Practice
4. King of Shadows: Early Modern Characters and Actors, Amy Cook
5. The Distributed Consciousness of Shakespeares Theatre, Laurie Johnson
6. Minds at work: writing, acting, watching, reading Hamlet, Ros King
III: Consciousness and the Body
7. Being Unseminared: Pleasure, Instruction, and Playing the Queen in Anthony and Cleopatra, Andrew Brown
8. Bodies and Selves: Autoscopy, Out-of-Body Experiences, Mind-Wandering and Early Modern 9. Consciousness, Jan Purnis
10. Hamlet and Time-Consciousness: A Neurophenomenological Reading, Matthew Kibbee
IV: Consciousness, Emotion, and Memory
11. Shylocks Shy Conscience: Consciousness, Power and Conversion in The Merchant of Venice, Tifl*