“Thou mightst have done this without thy beard and gown”: William Shakespeare and the Language of Disguise

• Authors: Dale James

Abstracts

EN

William Shakespeare’s use of theatrical disguise can be assessed through the discourses his disguised characters employ, having significant ramifications at a socio-political, linguistic and metatheatrical level. In illustrating this view, I will explore the role(s) of Edgar in King Lear, drawing on the views of Stephen Greenblatt, Mikhail Bahktin and Ludwig Wittgenstein. I will then examine my conclusions and align them to Autolycus in The Winter’s Tale and Feste in Twelfth Night, while determining whether any recurring socio-political, linguistic and metatheatrical patterns emerge. Finally, I will determine whether it is possible to formulate a strategy of a language of disguise as Shakespeare saw it.

Keywords

EN

William Shakespeare; King Lear; The Winter’s Tale; Twelfth Night; theatrical disguise

• Publisher: Institute of English Studies, University of Warsaw
• Journal: Anglica. An International Journal of English Studies
• Year: 2016
• Issue: 25/3
• Pages: 81-95

Contributors

author

Dale James

• University of Warsaw

References

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