In this podcast Dr Neema Parvini, Senior Lecturer in English at the University of Surrey, and author of several books, interviews various Shakespeare scholars and literary theorists from around the world in a bid to gain an understanding of the current state of play in Shakespeare studies and in literary criticism more generally. Through a series of candid talks, it will tackle the biggest theoretical and practical questions that have preoccupied scholars and readers of Shakespeare alike for generations: the idea that history is driven by human beings versus the idea that it is driven by forces beyond our control, the individual versus society, nature versus nurture, and freedom versus determinism.