Unsex Me Here

By MD Abu Bakkar

What happens when Shakespeare's characters are forced to become the men and women their world expects them to be?Unsex Me Here: Gendered Psychology in Shakespeare's Major Tragedies and Comedy offers a comparative reading of Macbeth, Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Twelfth Night, exploring how gender shapes identity, desire, violence, grief, and selfhood. Drawing on Judith Butler's theory of gender performativity and R. W. Connell's concept of hegemonic masculinity, the study examines characters who perform, resist, or fail to sustain assigned gender roles-and their psychological costs.From Lady Macbeth's plea to "unsex" herself and Macbeth's transformation from hesitant warrior to ruthless killer, to Hamlet's troubled masculinity, Othello's demand for proof, Lear's crisis of authority, and Viola's disguise, the book traces tension between identity and expectation.This study argues that Shakespeare's psychological depth cannot be separated from gendered pressures. Ultimately, it reveals gender not simply as something characters possess, but as something they are compelled to perform, negotiate, resist, and sometimes lose.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 6630498038
• ISBN13: 9786630498035
• Release Date: September 2026
• Publisher: Scholars' Press
• Length: 68 Pages
• Weight: 0.23 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.2" x 6.0"