This book is devoted to the description of typical trends in development, formation and the present state of English Author Lexicography, the roots of which go back to concordances to the Bible and glossaries of the complete works of Chaucer (xvi c.). Part I, “Linguistic Dictionaries to English Writers,” presents lexicographic analysis of old and new concordances, indices, glossaries and lexicons of famous English writers with special reference to Chaucer, Milton, Shakespeare, and Dickens. It presents a modern scene of author glossaries for unfamiliar words, terms and other groups of writers’ vocabulary (e.g. Shakespeare’s insults and his erotic language). The reader is offered a detailed review of author concordances, glossaries and lexicons on the Internet, along with criticism of printed dictionaries. Part II, “Encyclopedic Reference Works to English Writers,” deals with English author encyclopedic reference books, i.e. encyclopedias, guides and companions; dictionaries of characters and place names; quotations and proverbs, and Internet encyclopedic resources. The book also provides a comprehensive list of references on author lexicography and an Index of Dictionaries to the English Writers (xvi–xxi cc.), including 300 titles of linguistic and encyclopedic dictionaries, which is a reliable user guide in the world of English author lexicography.

In Shakespeare’s Language, Keith Johnson offers an overview of the rich and dynamic history of the reception and study of Shakespeare’s language from his death right up to the present. Tracing a chronological history of Shakespeare’s language, Keith Johnson also picks up on classic and contemporary themes, such as: lexical and digital studies original pronunciation rhetoric grammar. The historical approach provides a comprehensive overview, plotting the attitudes towards Shakespeare’s language, as well as a history of its study. This approach reveals how different cultural and literary trends have moulded these attitudes and reflects changing linguistic climates; the book also includes a chapter that looks to the future. Shakespeare’s Language is therefore not only an essential guide to the language of Shakespeare, but it offers crucial insights to broader approaches to language as a whole.

This book is a lively account of how American culture has embraced the English playwright and poet from colonial times to the present. It ranges widely, following the story of Shakespeare's reception in America from the scholarly - criticism, editions of the plays, and curricula - to the light-hearted - burlesques, musical comedies, and kitsch.