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Podcast: New Books in Literary Studies
Episode: Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" Part 1: The Story
Description: Twelfth Night, named for the celebration that is both the culmination and the close of the Christmas festivities, is a bittersweet romantic comedy at once melancholy and merry. Through its central plot, in which the female Viola takes on the guise of the male Cesario and becomes beloved of both men and women, this play is also one of Shakespeare’s most modern approaches to identity and sexuality. In this course, you’ll learn the story and context of Twelfth Night, explore the questions it raises around genre and gender, and hear the play’s key speeches performed and analyz...