Seneviratne, S; (2016) Bodily Surfaces and Coverings in Shakespeare. Opticon1826 pp. 1-39.

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Abstract

Although the early modern body in Shakespeare has received a lot of critical attention, the significance of the skin envelope has not been the subject of much study. This research attempts to contribute to the larger discourse on early modern skin by exploring the role of bodily surfaces and coverings in Coriolanus, Julius Caesar and Macbeth in the textualisation of early modern bodies. It theorises a relationship between the legibility and the vulnerability of the skin envelope, arguing that both factors mutually reinforce each other. Being pierced and ‘read’ are both symptomatic of defencelessness, so characters attempt to protect their skin from both by using coverings. The early modern theory of the closed body posited that the skin was a definitive and defensive barrier between the body and its environment. The interior of the body thus became a place of mystery, so early modern anatomy theorised that this was the location of ‘truth’. However, in the three plays, the notion of ‘truth’ is completely destabilised due to the volatile surfaces of the body. Truths are not discovered, but are constructed, dissolved and reconstructed on the outermost layer of the body, instead of the bodily interior. Further, bodily surfaces and coverings are often conflated, creating complex ‘layered bodies’ that tell multiple, often paradoxical narratives, none of which are the objective truth. Disguises tell the narratives of inviolability that the character would have others believe. The inherent vulnerability of the skin also feeds into these narratives, creating the desire for a body that is armoured to protect the character from being pierced and/or read. However, the superficial nature of the skin envelope encourages engagement and interpretation, thus exposing the desired dermal inviolability and illegibility as a fantasy.

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