Natural Masques: Gender and Identity in Fielding's Plays and Novels - Paperback

by Jill Campbell (Author)

The author breaks with old critical commonplaces that contrast Fielding's "masculinity" with Samuel Richardson's "feminine" sensibilities. She argues that a preoccupation with the tenuousness of gendered identity appears throughout Fielding's writings, and that Fielding shared that preoccupation with his contemporaries.

Back Jacket

This excellent study of Fielding's works takes as its central metaphor the masque (or mask) used throughout his career to explore the often complicated relationships among biological sex, gender, sexuality, and identity. The author is impressive both in her scope . . . and in her incisiveness. . . . This is a major work.--Choice