Woe or Wonder: The Emotional Effect of Shakespearean Tragedy by J. V. Cunningham. University of Denver Press. $2.50
Mr. Cunningham’s book on Shakespearean tragedy is a valuable demonstration of critical intelligence. Those who agree with either the historical or the metaphysical premises will profit from an unusual example of scholarly criticism working within its terms—intending to be significant, but committed to modesty and scrupulousness; promoting a thesis, but committed to literary awareness and sensitivity. Those who disagree with his premises, as I do, will be indebted to a clear and intelligent application of critical method which makes disagreement an intellectual experience for the reader rather than a convenient device for self-congratulation.
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