The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, written by William Shakespeare between 1599 and 1601, is set in Denmark and recounts how Prince Hamlet exacts revenge on his uncle Claudius, who murdered the King, takes the throne and marries Hamlet's mother. Life of William Shakespeare is a biography of William Shakespeare by the eminent critic Sidney Lee. This book was one of the first major biographies of the Bard of Avon. It was published in 1898, based on the article contributed to the Dictionary of National Biography. William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616) was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon". His extant works, including some collaborations, consist of about 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and a few other verses, the authorship of some of which is uncertain. Sir Sidney Lee (1859 – 1926) was an English biographer and critic. He was a lifelong scholar and enthusiast of Shakespeare. His article on Shakespeare in the fifty-first volume of the Dictionary of National Biography formed the basis of his Life of William Shakespeare. This full-length life is often credited as the first modern biography of the poet.

シェイクスピアの最高傑作である本作は、単なる復讐劇の枠を超え、人間の内面に潜む終わりなき葛藤を鮮烈に描き出しています。若き王子ハムレットが直面する「生か死か」という問いは、四百年を経た今もなお、私たちの魂を揺さぶらずにはおきません。思索に耽るがゆえに立ち止まってしまう彼の脆さと気高さこそが、この物語に普遍的な美しさを与えているのです。 シドニー・リーの評伝が解き明かす通り、著者の卓越した洞察力は、言葉という魔法によって人間のあらゆる感情を紙上に定着させました。独白を通じて吐露される内省的なテキストは、読む者の鏡となり、隠された本質を映し出します。言葉の海に溺れながらも真実を追い求める劇的な緊張感は、文字で追ってこそ、その深淵を味わい尽くせる至高の体験となるでしょう。