This book examines some of the readings that were available to Shakespeare. It exposes the reader to works not normally associated with this playwright and suggests ways on how philosophical ideas of the day may have influenced his writings. The works profiled include such renaissance philosophers as Ficino, Pico della Mirandola and Giordano Bruno. Shakespeare's incorporation of their ideas into his plays transforms the plays into much more subversive material and leads to profoundly different ways of interpreting his work. Anyone interested in finding new approaches to and new interpretations of Shakespeare's classic works will find intelligent entertainment in this collection of essays.