Kuiper, Kathleen

Provides an overview of the history, origins, culture, religion, art, literature, and people of Mesopotamia, covering the Sumerian civilization, the old Babylonian period, the Archaemenian period, and other important periods up to 620 AD.

Presents the lives of the painters and sculptors of the Renaissance, beginning with the Italian artists of the early period, to the later artists in western and northern Europe.

A survey of literary terms and concepts associated with prose, covering various genres, cultures, and time periods, with sidebars that highlight selected authors and works.

Introduces the literary formats of poetry and drama including their different characteristics, terms to identify them, and their power.

An exploration of Native American tribes that discusses linguistics, ethnicity, historical development, ethos, technology, family, socialization, religion, and other aspects of native culture and examines art, music, and dance.

Discusses the people, movements, and events behind the theories and ideas that changed the modern world, covering topics in the biological sciences, mathematics and the physical sciences, the arts, the social sciences, philosophy, religion, and politics and the law.

Shakespeare's ability to create epic tragic characters, think Hamlet, Lear, and the star-crossed Romeo and Juliet, and scenarios is virtually unrivalled. Readers examine the Bard's major tragedies and their significance, and touch upon the state of theatre and dramatic performance in Shakespeare's England for good measure.

Shakespeare was influenced by the events that took shape all around him. Sweeping changes to England's politics, language, and culture that took place during his lifetime were the fertile ground from which he drew inspiration. Shakespeare's life is surveyed and the social context in which he created his greatest drama and poetry is examined.

Two historical tetralogies, and his narrative poems, in addition to the particular form of sonnet that now bears his name are examined through engaging text. Also a brief treatise on the music within and accompanying productions of Shakespeare's plays rounds out the coverage.

In Shakespeare's time, the term "comedy" did not necessarily denote something funny or amusing. Shakespeare examines other defining characteristics of comedic drama, the social interactions of common folks and a focus on the contradictions inherent in everyday life. Readers explore the major themes of Shakespearean comedies.