The question is not whether Shakespeare studies needs feminism, but whether feminism needs Shakespeare. This is the explicitly political approach taken in the dynamic and newly updated edition of A Feminist Companion to Shakespeare. * Provides the definitive feminist statement on Shakespeare for the 21st century * Updates address some of the newest theatrical andcreative engagements with Shakespeare, offering fresh insights into Shakespeare s plays and poems, and gender dynamics in early modern England * Contributors come from across the feminist generations and from various stages in their careers to address what is new in the field in terms of historical and textual discovery * Explores issues vital to feminist inquiry, including race, sexuality, the body, queer politics, social economies, religion, and capitalism * In addition to highlighting changes, it draws attention to the strong continuities of scholarship in this field over the course of the history of feminist criticism of Shakespeare * The previous edition was a recipient of a Choice Outstanding Academic Title award; this second edition maintains its coverage and range, and bringsthe scholarship right up to the present day