My book, Shakespeare and the Politics of Nostalgia (London; New York: Arden Shakespeare, 2019), is available worldwide. It can be found in major bookshops around the world, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Blackwell’s, Bloomsbury, Foyles, Waterstones and WHSmith. The paperback edition was released in 2020.
Short Biography
Dr. Yuichi Tsukada is Associate Professor of English Literature at Waseda University, Japan. He received his BA and MA from the University of Tokyo and his PhD from King’s College London. His journal articles on Shakespeare have won him fellowships and awards, including The University of Tokyo President's Grand Award and the Young Scholar Award of Special Merit from the English Literary Society of Japan. His monograph, Shakespeare and the Politics of Nostalgia (London; New York: Arden Shakespeare, 2019), has received international acclaim, earning positive reviews from major international journals.
Yuichi Tsukada, Shakespeare and the Politics of Nostalgia (London; New York: Arden Shakespeare, 2019)
Recently reviewed in Theatre Journal (Johns Hopkins University Press) and Anglican and Episcopal History (Historical Society of the Episcopal Church):
“The greatest strength of this study is Tsukada’s rich, nuanced rereadings of scenes from (and indeed critical interpretations of) Macbeth, Antony & Cleopatra, Coriolanus, and Cymbeline that would on the surface seem to be done to death. This book proves the contrary—that it is possible to find more complexity in Shakespeare’s engagement with both the monarch on the throne (James) and the looming shadow of his predecessor (Elizabeth) than has been previously assumed. In addition to discussing Shakespeare, Tsukada engages with other contemporary dramatists, poets, and essayists; James’s own official statements and policies; and the copious modern critical tradition. The result is a study that builds upon, rather than tearing down, those with whom it disagrees. Furthermore, the book’s conciseness, its careful engagement with critical conversations, and its clarity of style and argument make it especially useful for undergraduates approaching these thornier late plays, and for graduate students seeking models for how to productively engage with the enormous volume of Shakespeare criticism already available.”
From Theatre Journal, Volume 73, Number 2 (2021): 253–54 (253).
“In addition to Shakespeare’s words, Tsukada draws on a wide range of contemporary source material, including notable dramatists, James I’s political treatises, and the rarely-consulted writings of seventeenth-century audience members. The result is a nuanced portrait of the early Jacobean intellectual world in which Shakespeare wrote and a concise, richly sourced argument that Elizabeth’s memory cast a longer shadow through Shakespeare's dramatic works than was previously understood. . . . Scholars of Shakespearean literature will find this study illuminating, particularly in its readings of plays that have already been subject to centuries of deep analysis. But students of Jacobean politics also ought not overlook this work nor its prodigious source base. Tsukada crafts a compelling argument with implications for our understanding of how Shakespeare fit into the political conversations of his era.”
From Anglican and Episcopal History, Volume 94, Number 1 (2025): 218-20.
Also reviewed in:
Choice, Volume 57, Number 6 (2020).
Kritikon Litterarum, Volume 50, Issue 1-2 (2023): 163-66.
Renaissance Quarterly, Volume 74, Issue 1 (2021): 355-56.
Studies in English Literature 1500-1900, Volume 60, Number 2 (2020): 387-435.
The Year's Work in English Studies Advance Article, Volume 7 (2021): 60-61.
The latest review of Shakespeare and the Politics of Nostalgia in Japanese:
"Based on extensive historical discussion, meticulous analysis of literary texts of the time, including Shakespeare, and the fascination of solving mysteries, this book is a very rewarding research book to read. . . It has been reviewed in several international journals, where it has been recognised as an excellent work. This book, which wonderfully interprets Shakespeare's plays in their historical context, comes highly recommended not only for researchers but also for undergraduate and graduate students." (translated from Japanese)
Eibungaku Kenkyu (The English Literary Society of Japan), vol. 100 (2023): 59-63 (60-62)
