SHAW: The Annual of Bernard Shaw Studies, vol. 25
320 pages | 6 x 9 | 2006
ISBN 978-0-271-02736-4 | cloth: $57.95 sh
Paperback edition is not available in the U.S.

SHAW 25 offers eighteen articles, thirteen initially presented at the International Shaw Society conference, 17-21 March 2004, Sarasota, Florida. Additional conference and Shaw Festival Symposia information is provided in the Introduction.
Stanley Weintraub's conference keynote, "Shaw for the Here and Now," considers modernizing Shaw's plays, validating Shaw's creative force for today and into the future. Dan H. Laurence's delightful "Shaw's Children" shows a warm, caring, playful Shaw--a giver of self. Howard Ira Einsohn's article on gifting brings together Shaw, Ricoeur, and Derrida to explore the ethics of giving "superabundantly" but not foolishly. Jay Tunney reflects on the ways in which his father, boxer Gene Tunney, fits the personal and professional shoes of Shaw's Cashel Byron, with life imitating art.
In "Machiavelli, the Shark, and the Tinpot Tragedienne," Bernard F. Dukore delivers a rereading of Major Barbara that highlights characters and traits, revealing an ensnarling web of beliefs, values, actions, and consequences. Sidney P. Albert's essay explores connections between Major Barbara and Plato's Republic. Using a current theoretical lens, Vicki R. Kennell sees Pygmalion as a narrative literary bridge that predicates postmodern critiques. L.W. Conolly's research on Phillipa Summers reveals a model for Vivie Warren and provides insights into women's lives and education at the turn of the century.
In "Who's Modern Now? Shaw, Joyce, and Ibsen's When We Dead Awaken," Kathleen Ochshorn looks at the interrelationships of the three dramatists. Miriam Chirico rewrites critical opinion of You Never Can Tell, arguing that the play is a serious social critique, particularly of marriage. Citing two well-documented instances of Shaw-bashing, John A. Bertolini explores Shaw's responses and reveals Shaw's fair-mindedness. Hannes Schweiger's detailed research substantiates Shaw's influential connection to Viennese culture and politics. Valerie Barnes Lipscomb analyzes Shaw's use of age differences to subvert romantic expectations, thereby drawing greater attention to serious sociocultural issues.
Part II continutes the legacy of Shaw scholarship with Charles A. Carpenter's must-read bibliographic piece, which reads like a mystery and gives a wealth of research information on Shaw. Focusing on the importance and difficulties of cycle plays, Julie Sparks looks at Man and Superman, Heartbreak House, Back to Methuselah, and current offerings such as Kushner's Angels in America. Kay Li, tracing the influence of Shaw on Chinese drama, argues that modern Chinese drama emerged from the failure of Mrs. Warren's Profession. Frank Duba's article analyzes the evolving role of the Preface in Shaw's works, focusing especially on Man and Superman. Coming full circle, the volume returns to Stanley Weintraub's presentation of Shaw and the fascinating story of Lady Colin Campbell--a story that asks us to consider what it means to be endowed with beauty, fame, and ambition, and what it means to finally lose them. Finally, Michael W. Pharand's addendum to SHAW 24 gives supplementary bibliography on Shavian matters related to love, sex, marriage, and women.
SHAW 25 also includes reviews as well as John R. Pfieffer's "Continuing Checklist of Shaviana."
MaryAnn K. Crawford is Associate Professor of English at Central Michigan University and co-general editor of the SHAW.
CONTENTS
NOTICES
INTERNATIONAL SHAW SOCIETY NEWS
INTRODUCTION: SHAW SCHOLARSHIP
"Here and Now" and at the 2004 International Shaw Society (ISS) Conference
By MaryAnne K. Crawford
PART I: ISS Conference Papers
SHAW FOR THE HERE AND NOW
By Stanley Weintraub
SHAW'S CHILDREN
By Dan H. Laurence
ECONOMICS OF THE GIFT
SHAW, RICOEUR, AND THE POETICS OF THE ETHICAL LIFE
By Howard Ira Einsohn
CASHEL BYRON'S PROFESSION
A CATALYST TO FRIENDSHIP-LIFE IMITATES ART
By Jay Tunney
MACHIAVELLI, THE SHARK, AND THE TINPOT TRAGEDIENNE
By Bernard F. Dukore
PYGMALION AS NARRATIVE BRIDGE BETWEEN THE CENTURIES
By Vicki R. Kennell
SHAW'S REPUBLIC
By Sidney P. Albert
WHO WAS PHILLIPA SUMMERS?
REFLECTIONS ON VIVIE WARREN'S CAMBRIDGE
By L.W. Conolly
WHO'S MODERN NOW? SHAW, JOYCE, AND IBSEN'S WHEN WE DEAD AWAKEN
By Kathleen Ochshorn
SOCIAL CRITIQUE AND COMEDIC RECONCILIATION IN SHAW'S YOU NEVER CAN TELL
By Miriam Chirico
SHAW RESPONDS TO SHAW-BASHING
By John A. Bertolini
BERNARD SHAW'S CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CULTURE
AND POLITICS OF FIN DE SIÉCLE VIENNA
By Hannes Schweiger
"OLD GENTLEMAN"
AGE DIFFERENCES AS PLOT SUBVERSION
Valerie Barnes Lipscomb
PART II: General Articles
TRACKING DOWN SHAW STUDIES
THE EFFECTIVE USE OF PRINTED AND ONLINE BIBLIOGRAPHICAL SOURCES
By Charles A. Carpenter
PLAYWRIGHTS' PROGRESS
THE EVOLUTION OF THE PLAY CYCLE, FROM SHAW'S "PENTATEUCH" TO ANGELS IN AMERICA
By Julie Sparks
MRS WARREN'S PROFESSION IN CHINA
FACTORS IN CROSS-CULTURAL ADAPTATIONS
By Kay Li
"THE GENUINE PULPIT ARTICLE"
SHAW'S PREFATORIAL PRACTICE AND THE PREFACE TO MAN AND SUPERMAN
By Frank Duba
SHAW'S GODDESS
LADY COLIN CAMPBELL
By Stanley Weintraub
SUPPLEMENT TO SHAW 24
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF WRITINGS BY AND ABOUT BERNARD SHAW CONCERNING LOVE, SEX, MARRIAGE, WOMEN, AND RELATED TOPICS
By Michel W. Pharand
A CONTINUING CHECKLIST OF SHAVIANA
By John R. Pfeiffer
REVIEWS
Blatant Heterosexuals
(Relations between the Sexes in the Plays of George Bernard Shaw, by Harold Pagliaro)
By Bernard F. Dukore
Poststructural Shaw
(Shaw Shadows: Rereading the Texts of Bernard Shaw, by Peter Gahan)
By Jean Reynolds
GBS and the Tornado
(Selected Correspondence of Bernard Shaw, Bernard Shaw and Nancy Astor, edited by J.P. Wearing)
By Michel W. Pharand
CONTRIBUTORS