Shakespeare / Sex: Contemporary Readings in Gender and Sexuality

Shakespeare / Sex interrogates the relationship between Shakespeare and sex by challenging readers to consider Shakespeares texts in light of the most recent theoretical approaches to gender and sexuality studies. It takes as its premise that gender and sexuality studies are key to any interpretation of Shakespeare, be it his texts and their historical contexts, contemporary stage and cinematic productions, or adaptations from the Restoration to the present day. Approaching sex from four main perspectives heterosexuality, third-wave intersectional feminism, queer studies and trans studies this book tackles a range of key topics, such as medical science, rape culture, the environment, disability, religion, childhood sexuality, race, homoeroticism and trans bodies. The 12 essays range across Shakespeares poems and plays, including the Sonnets and The Rape of Lucrece, Coriolanus, A Midsummer Nights Dream, Measure for Measure, Richard III and The Two Noble Kinsmen. Encouraged to push the envelope, contributors to this essay collection open new avenues of inquiry for the study of gender and sexuality in Shakespeare. See more