Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night

1. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Introduction • As the dream-like setting Illyria, Twelfth Night is constructed by illusion and delusion. Through Viola’s disguise, Twelfth Night presents the blurred boundary of sexuality and gender. In the mirroring world of Illyria, characters as well as the audience is trapped in the illusion and delusion and the similarity that Shakespeare cunningly manipulates.

2. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Disguise and False Identity • Viola’s disguise enables her to switch between the girly-like pageboy and the proud Cesario. • Viola & Orsino: The external male look surpasses the reality of Viola’s female nature. • Viola & Olivia: With male disguise, Viola appears to be a more masculine valentine than the real man Orsino.

3. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Disguise enables Viola to win Orsino’s favor but also leads her to the danger of homosexuality when facing Olivia’s affection—thus, she guards herself with arrogance. • Viola’s lurking femininity: unlike Rosalind in As You Like It, whose femininity is erased while disguised as a man, Viola’s female consciousness is never ceased and keeps lurking under her male disguise.

4. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Illusion that Based on Delusion • Orsino & Olivia: similarly manipulated by illusions that are sprung from melancholy • Orsino, who spoils himself in imagination than engages with real people, chooses simultaneously which to believe regardless of the reality • Olivia indulges herself in the sad mourning for her dead brother.

5. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Malvolio & Viola: the desire to transgress social classes & Shakespeare • Malvolio: deceived by his own greed to obtain Olivia’s power and money regardless of his social class rather than being deluded by Sir Toby and Maria • Viola: determines to win Orsino’s love and shares his power despite the Duke’s affection for Olivia

6. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • The Dangerous and Unstable Sexuality • Since gender and identity can be constructed through disguise, sexuality is thus unstable and exchangeable. • While Cesario / Viola is defined in one sexuality, the other side of his / her sexuality is forced to be changed and is at risk as well. • Orsino’s anxious homophobic sexuality

7. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • The ambiguous sexuality • Orsino: effeminate and his undecided sexuality • Olivia: resolute / dominant attitude and her frail sexuality for Viola • Viola: male disguise and frail femininity • The illusive sexuality is bound to be broken on the Renaissance stage.

8. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • The sexual dilemma and the right mate • Does the sexual confusion really disappear after each one has chosen the right mate? • Orsino and Viola: the Duke insists to confirm Viola’s true identity before he promises to marry her. • Viola never really appears in her woman weeds again on the stage.

9. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Despite the seemingly harmonious ending, sexuality of Orsino, Viola, and Olivia is never determined but further fused into one another at the end of the play. • Viola’s mysterious identity • Stephen Greenblatt: “even at the end of the play Orsino seems betrothed to his effeminate boyfriend” (135).

10. Disguise, Illusion, and Sexuality in Twelfth Night • Conclusion • Viola, Orsino, Olivia, and Sebastian confirm the reality and solve their dilemmas at the end. • Malvolio: his rejection of the reality underlines the reflection of reality and illusion in this play. He is defined as being mad and thus silenced and alienated from the stage.