Cymbeline

Set in Ancient Britain, Cymbeline is a play of deceit, disguise, banishment, and fidelity against the backdrop of a Roman invasion. When the King of Britain Cymbeline discovers his daughters secret marriage, he banishes her husband to Rome, who then accuses Innogen of being unfaithful. Innogen must evade deadly plots and homicidal jealousy to restore her name. Long recognised as a response to James VI and Is project to unite England and Scotland, the play conjures ancient British history at a moment when that history was eroding, revealed as a medieval invention. This sense of historical endings is entangled with Cymbeline as a late play, and its numerous apparent callbacks across Shakespeares career.

The New Oxford Shakespeare offers authoritative editions of Shakespeares works with introductory materials designed to encourage new interpretations of the plays and poems. Using the text from the landmark The New Oxford Shakespeare Complete Works: Modern Critical Edition, these volumes offer readers the latest thinking on the authentic texts (collated from all surviving original versions of Shakespeares work) alongside innovative introductions from leading scholars. The texts are accompanied by a comprehensive set of critical apparatus to give readers the best resources to help understand and enjoy Shakespeares work.