Phyllis Nagy's Fatal Women

Throughout her writing, which includes an adaptation of William Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter," playwright Phyllis Nagy challenges the preconception of woman as victim, complicating the stereotype with women who are more likely to kill than to be killed, to dominate than to yield, a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Modern drama 1999-03, Vol.42 (1), p.28-44
Main Author: Barnett, Claudia
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
African American literature
American literature
Cleage, Pearl
Criticism and interpretation
Drama
Feminism
Hart, Lynda
Hawthorne, Nathaniel
Hawthorne, Nathaniel (1804-1864)
History & criticism
Lesbianism
Literary criticism
Literature
Nagy, Phyllis
Portrayals
Sexuality
Stereotypes
Women
Women authors
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Summary:Throughout her writing, which includes an adaptation of William Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter," playwright Phyllis Nagy challenges the preconception of woman as victim, complicating the stereotype with women who are more likely to kill than to be killed, to dominate than to yield, and to feel culpable than to feel blameless. Nagy explores in her drama interdependent issues of crime, sexuality and social responsibility. Nagy's women in "Butterfly Kiss" and "Weldon Rising" are discussed.
ISSN:0026-7694
1712-5286
1712-5286
DOI:10.1353/mdr.1999.0020