Shakespeare and the Cultural Politics of Conversion: Professor Wittek’s Book Published by Palgrave Macmillan
By Maria Ferrato
In September 2022, Palgrave Macmillan published Shakespeare and the Cultural Politics of Conversion by Stephen Wittek, PhD.
In this book, Wittek looks at Shakespeare’s engagement with the controversy and activity surrounding the concept of conversion in post-Reformation England. To do so, he analyzes The Taming of the Shrew, Henry IV Part I, The Merchant of Venice, Othello, and The Tempest, ultimately arguing that Shakespearean drama intervened in public discourse surrounding conversion, and continues to contribute to this discourse in today’s society.
Wittek states that this book will be beneficial to students and scholars with an interest in theatrical history, performance theory, theology, cultural studies, race studies, and gender studies.
The book, available for purchase in either E-Book or hardcover format (purchasing options available here), is part of the Early Modern Literature in History series. This series contains nearly a hundred titles, all of which discuss works within the 1520–1740 period, utilizing a variety of theoretical frameworks to investigate topics like women’s writing, domestic politics, rhetoric, religious conversion, drama, and more. Cedric C. Brown and Andrew Hadfield edited the series.
Professor Stephen Wittek
Professor Wittek is an assistant professor of English for CMU’s Department of English. His work lies at the intersection between early modern drama and cultural studies. In addition to the newly published book featured in this article, Wittek has also authored The Media Players: Shakespeare, Middleton, Jonson, and the Idea of News (University of Michigan Press in 2015) and has work published in journals like Studies in English Literature, Digital Humanities Quarterly, and Journal of Cognitive History.
Wittek also serves as the director of CMU’s virtual reality education project, Shakespeare-VR, and is the co-director of the Center for Early Modern Print, Networks, and Performance.