Nepantla Identities: Gender, Sexuality, and Happy Ending in Two Comedies of Shakespeare and Wilde

Authors

Nashaly Melendez, Florida International UniversityFollow

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Major/Program

English

First Advisor's Name

James Sutton

First Advisor's Committee Title

Committee Chair

Second Advisor's Name

Jason Pearl

Second Advisor's Committee Title

Committee member

Third Advisor's Name

Maneck Daruwala

Third Advisor's Committee Title

Committee member

Keywords

Nepantla, Identity, Gender, Sexuality, Shakespeare, Wilde, Comedy, Comedy Plays

Date of Defense

6-30-2023

Abstract

By examining the similar depictions of fluid identities in Shakespeare and Wilde's comedies, Twelfth Night and The Importance of Being Earnest, this thesis seeks to bring Twelfth Night and The Importance of Being Earnest into close contact. It examines how identities are constructed and what traits they entail in each author's time period. I contend that each play presents identity as fluid in liberating desire and gender by incorporating ideas of gender performance and nepantla. I also discuss three other aspects of these comedies: how both plays challenge the notion of what constitutes a traditional comedy; why both authors give their plays two titles; and their unusual happy endings.

Identifier

FIDC011198

Recommended Citation

Melendez, Nashaly, "Nepantla Identities: Gender, Sexuality, and Happy Ending in Two Comedies of Shakespeare and Wilde" (2023). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 5368.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/5368