RachelWilliams

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16Nov2014
Drama40a
RoughDraft
HomoeroticisminTwelfthNight

Homoeroticism within Shakespeares Twelfth Night functions as a device to argue that

gender and sexuality are not directly linked. The play uses the idea of bisexuality amongst its
characters to question the construct of sexuality directly resulting because of onesgender.This
topic is not necessarily the overall purpose of Twelfth Night, but it is a theme that can be
explicitlyseenwithin.
By examining the play based on the Renaissance era in whichitwaswritten,genderand
sexuality didnotexistinthewaystheydotoday.Homosexualityisamodernconceptanddidnot
exist explicitly when Twelfth Night was written. In The Homoerotics of Early Modern Drama,
Mario DiGangi examines sexuality during this time and explains that homosexuality was not a
definitive idea. Before the emergence of malemale sexuality as an identifiable or condition of
deviation fromnormalgenderidentities,objectchoices,orsexualroleshomoeroticpractices
were normal aspects of even the most socially conventional relationships, (DiGangi, 2).
Basically, homosexual acts were not seen as homosexual during this time. There was no
constructofgenderorsexualorientationlikethereistoday.
Twelfth Night is filled with a variety of examples of homoeroticism. Casey Charles in
Gender Troubles in Twelfth Night, argues that the play is centrally concerned with

demonstrating the uncategorical temper of sexual attraction, (Charles, 121). This is the overall
theme throughout the homoerotic tendencies between characters. With the inclusion of
malemale, malecross dressed woman, and womancross dressed woman, the play covers a
spectrum of homoerotic tendencies. Homoeroticism within Twelfth Night can be read as a way
toquestionandreevaluatesexualitybasedongenderalone.
When Twelfth Night would have been performed during the Renaissance, male actors
would be playing every role withintheshow.Thiswasanormalpracticeofthetime.Withinthis
play in particular, a man would have played Violawhowasalsoplayingamanwithintheshow.
The inclusion of homoeroticism between characters under this pretense brings more light to the
argument that the plays use of homoerotic attraction was to display the variety of sexual
attraction unrelated to gender. Within Constructions of Female Homoerotics in Early Modern
Drama, Denise Walen describes how crossdressing was a tool used by playwrights to include
erotic attraction between two female characters. This allows the female characters to engage in
moments of homoerotics without the consequences because it can be dismissed as a mistaken
attraction.
The main homoerotic relationship within Twelfth Night is that of Olivia and Viola, who
she believes is a boy named Cesario. As mentioned before, the use of crossdressing Viola into
Cesario was a way to include female homoerotic attraction into the play. It isclearinalmostall
of Olivias encounters withCesario that sheis veryattractedtohim.Sheneverhidesherfeelings
towardsCesario.AlthoughViolaclearlytriestoimplysheisnotthemanOliviathinkssheis,I

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am now what I am, (Shakespeare, 136), Olivia does not stop her advances, O, what a deal of
scorn looks beautiful in the contemptandangerofhislip!(14041).Thehomoerotictendencies
of Olivia could be dismissed as an error because she was not aware Cesario was actually a
woman, but the fact that Viola made efforts to let her know makes the sexual tension between
them more interesting. Thecomplexityoftherelationshipgrowsmorewhenyouanalyzethefact
that men playedallrolesintheatreduringthistime.ThismeansamanwasplayingViola,whois
alsoplayingamanwithintheshow.Amanisalsoplayinghercounterpart,Olivia.
The mostintriguingpartofOlivias homoeroticrelationshipishermarriagetoSebastian.
She married him, thinking he was Cesario, yet even after she finds out her attraction to Cesario
was actually to another woman, she still remains wed to Violas twin. Walen talks about thisin
her criticism, arguing that Olivia was still more interested in Viola than in Sebastian during the
final scene of the play. She explains how OliviadoesnotspeakdirectlytoSebastian,evenwhen
he addresses her, So comesit,ladyyouhavebeenmistook(2589).Shelatereagerlyinvites
Viola and Orsino to wed at her house and is excited to become hersister.Oliviasoutburst,A
sister! You are she (5.1.326), demonstratesthatheremotionalinvestmentisinViolarather than
Sebastian,(Walen,122).
The most homoerotic relationship within Twelfth Night is that of Sebastian and his sea
captain, Antonio. The most interesting dynamic of their relationship is the unwavering loveand
devotion theyshowforeachother,although,Antonioismoreblatantinexpressingthislove.The
first true expression of love from Antonio in in Act II, Scene I, If you will not murder me for

my love, let me be your servant, (2.1.312). In his criticism, The Two Antonios and Same Sex
Love in Twelfth Night and the Merchant of Venice, Joseph Pequigney explains, that is,
accompanyyouasaservant,awordthatcanalsomeanloverandthelovethatascribesthe

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cruel power toslaytothebelovedis romantic,(Pequigney,203).Thistypeofloveanddevotion
is constant throughout the playbetweenthetwo.Afterthetwoseparated,Antoniocomesbackto
Sebastian and explains how he could not live without him, I could not stay behind you. My
desire, more sharp than filed steel, did spur me forth, (3.3.5). Antonio mentions later in the
play, for three months before, no intrim, not a minutes vacancy, both day and night did we
keep company, (5.1.924). This line explains the relationship between Antonio and Sebastian
well. It is clear the two have not been separated at all since they met and Antonios love for
SebastiandrewhimintothelandofIllyriadespitehisenemiesthere.
AninterestingpointbroughtupbyPequigneyinhiscriticismisthejuxtapositionbetween
the attachment of Sebastian to his sea captain, Antonio, and Viola to her sea captain. Their
pending separation is depicted as casual and unemotional, over against the strong feelings the
corresponding separation elicits in Sebastian(2.I.39)andhisseacaptain,(Pequigney,204).The
pair of men were friends longer than Viola and her sea captain, but it is still interesting to note
the substantial difference between the two. Viola and Sebastians drastic differences in their
relationships with their sea captains, but also with all the characters in theshow,arecontrasting

of the other. They are written to similar, like their appearance, but yet different in thewaytheir
lovestoriesfunction.
The final couple that holds homoerotic moments is Orsino and Cesario/Viola. Although
the clearest moments are in the final scene, lines Orsino says to Cesario such as, Come hither,
boy, (2.4.14) imply a slight homoerotic attraction. The word choice of Orsino emitsdesireand
longing. The most questionably homoerotic moment of Orsino in Twelfth Night iswhenheasks
for Violas hand (5.1. 272). Orsino, who only knew Viola as his pageboyfortheentiretyofthe
play,isnowgoingtomarryherinthefinalscene.Althoughtheresolveofthecoupleisina

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herterosexual relationship, the homoerotic attraction that led up to him being willing to marrya
womanhebelievedwasamanchangesthebasisofsexualityintheirrelationship.
When looking at the theme of breaking gender and sexuality apart in a Renaissance
setting, there is little outward sexuality to base homoeroticism on. The inclusion of homoerotic
tension in plays was a way to begin separating the linesofgenderandsexualityasamechanism
that functionedasone.InamoremodernoutlookonthehomoeroticismwithinTwelfthNight,we
are able to readhomosexualityandthevastvarietyofsexualitiesandgenderswehavetodayinto
the play. From our modern world, we can place the characters into distinct sexualities, such as
gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc. This was not something that could be freely incorporated in the
sixteenthandseventeenthcenturies.

The idea that erotic attraction isnotspecifictogendersisanotionthatisevenrelevantin

todays society. With so many changes in how we view what gender is and how it is defined,
sexuality is something that can not be seen as directly connected to gender. The sexually
ambiguous characters in Twelfth Night can not only serve as an arguement against Renaissance
views of sexuality, but can still be used today to reconstruct our views of it aswell.Intheplay,
men and women alike fell in love with a woman crossdressed as a man. The raw sexual
attraction of Olivia to Cesario and the end result of a relationship between Orsino and Viola
shows how ambiguous sexuality can be. Despite Cesario truly having female attributes both
physical and behavioral such as a more feminine appearance and voice, Oliviastillwantedhim.
The play on gender and what makes someone attracted to another person within the play is far
morecomplexthansimplyhavingspecificbodilydifferences.
The idea that sexuality is only based on gender is fought through all the characters and
relationships throughout the play. Olivias attraction to Viola disguised as a man is a perfect
example of this. Olivia is attracted to Cesario, who is actually a woman. Even though her
disguise may hide her gender, there is no hiding the more feminine structure of a woman.
Woman look different than men no matter how masculine they appear. The femininity or
masculinity of Cesario was not what drew Olivia in. She just as easily went for Sebastian, who
was a man. Masculinity and femininity within the play are not to be tied with gender or
sexuality. The ambiguity of sexuality is displayed from this relationship into Sebastians with
Antonio. There is no cross dressing here, yet there is an innate desire between the two. The
various ways sexual desire can manifest between two people are displayed in every way within
thesecharacters.Sexualityhasnothingtodowithit.

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Twelfth Night uses a crossdressing female and other characters to display how
homoerotic attraction is not linked toagendernorm.Eroticattractioncanstemfromanyperson.
This is seen between Olivia and Viola, Antonio and Sebastian, and Orsino and Viola. The play
uses homoeroticisminunlikelycircumstancesto displaythebroadspectrumofsexualityandraw
attraction amongst humans. Written in a time when sexuality was solely based on gender, the
ideathateroticattractioncanstemfromanytwogendersisextremelycompelling.

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WorksCited

Shakespeare,William.TwelfthNightor,WhatYouWill.Text.
DiGangi,Mario.TheHomoeroticsofEarlyModernDrama.Cambridge:ThePressSyndicateof
theUniversityofCambridge.1997.Text.
Traub,Valerie.DesireandAnxiety:CirculationsofSexualityinShakespeareanDrama.London:
Routledge.1992.Text.
Charles,Casey.GenderTroublesinTwelfthNight.TheatreJournal49.2(1997):
121141.Text.
Walen,Denise.ConstructionsofFemaleHomoeroticsinEarlyModernDrama.Theatre
Journal54.3(2002):116130.Text.
Pequigney,Joseph.TheTwoAntoniosandSameSexLoveinTwelfthNightandThe
MerchantinVencie.EnglishLiteraryRenaissance22.2(2008):201221.text.