The Recognition of Sakuntala: A Play in Seven Acts

by William Jones, Kālidāsa, Moreshwar Ramchandra Kale, et al.

Book Overview

Kalidasa's play about the love of King Dusyanta for Sakuntala, a monastic girl, is the supreme work of Sanskrit drama by its greatest poet and playwright (c.4th century CE). Overwhelmingly erotic in tone and in performance, The Recognition of Sakuntala aimed to produce an experience of aesthetic rapture in the audience, comparable to certain types of mystical experience. The pioneering English translation of Sakuntala in 1789 caused a sensation among European composers and writers (including Goethe), and it continues to be performed around the world. This vibrant new verse translation includes the famous version of the story from the Mahabharata, a poetic and dramatic text in its own right and a likely source for Kalidasa. The introduction discusses the play in the aesthetic and cultural context of ancient India.

About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0199540608
• ISBN13: 9780199540600
• Release Date: July 2008
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.34 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.0" x 7.5"
• Age Range: 14 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 9 and higher

Customer Reviews

The Recognition of Sakuntala (Thrift Edition) by kalidasa

His works never cease to astound me...

A Most Beautiful Play

Kalidasa is India's greatest Sanskrit poet and playwright. Many centuries later, his commitment has not flinched to remain India's most respected bard. When you've read world's greatest plays, you must then read him for the proverbial dessert. For most people, drama was invented in Greece, yet Kalidasa didn't know that, being apart by sea and time. So far as he is concerned, he was as much an inventor of this art. `Recognition of Sakuntala' is a beautiful love story of a married king with a country girl, his deserting her and eventually reclaiming back, by the aid of gods. I've several translations of this play, but Johnson's version is probably the best - at least in English. If Shakespeare or Tolstoy gratify you, Kalidasa will as much.