So, this play is about a guy named Timon who's from Athens. Pretty straightforward, right? We couldn't agree more. The one thing we want to point out is that the title begins with "The Life of" instead of "The Tragedy of," as the rest of Shakespeare's tragedies do. Timon of Athens actually the only Shakespearean tragedy that begins this way.
That should probably clue us in to the fact that this play isn't your average, standard tragedy. It's almost as if Timon's death isn't even that important; it's his life that matters here, and the events of his life are linked to a lot of big issues like money, justice, and the nature of friendship. The play may not even be about Timon as much as it's about these big issues.
Head on over to our "Genre" section for more on just what kind of play this is.