Books like The Spanish Tragedy

This strange, lumpy drama is oddly effective in its own discursive way, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves Elizabethan theatre in general or Hamlet in particular or who is fascinated by the theme of revenge. The exposition (political rivalry between Spain and Portugal, events leading up to Horatio's murder) is well executed, but after that Kyd's passion for powerful effect (particularly in Hieronimo's mad scenes) overshadows and occasionally confounds coherent plot development. Who in the court knows Horatio has been murdered and when do they know it? Clear answers to these questions might have clarified motivations and illuminated dialogue--both of which are occasionally baffling. Yet the individual scenes--Hieronimo discovering his son hanging in the garden, Hieronimo and the painter, Hieronomo with a book, Hieronimo surrounded by legal suitors, Hieronimo's direction of the play-within-a-play--are all very powerful and make reading the play worthwhile. In addition, the influences of "The Spanish Tragedy" on Hamlet are many, and it is fun to spot them as they arise.