Male Identity in Sam Shepardʼs Eyes for Consuela
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31185/eduj.Vol48.Iss1.2907Keywords:
Eyes for Consuela, identity, struggle, masculine, Sam ShepardAbstract
ABSTRACT
The focus of this study is Sam Shepard's Eyes for Consuela, a play which scrutinizes the functions and dysfunctions of human relationships in terms of societal and family structures. In this paper we examine Eyes for Consuela as a play conveying men's struggle for identity. Moreover, it depicts how the struggle between the two leading male characters is resolved by the primary female character in the play. As such, the play dramatizes how male characters' struggle for identity is preoccupied by their relation to female characters. Shepard's play presents the journey of an American man in a Mexican remote jungle. Hence, it shows two parallel and opposing worlds, American and Mexican, which sheds the light on two different settings and identities. This also represents a struggle in the creation of male identity for the male characters. Relying on Connell's hegemonic masculinity theory, we argue that Eyes for Consuela portrays how the discrepancies in the two male identities are influenced by their different cultures. Further, we suggest that it follows Kimmel's Guyland model, by revealing how the fear of being dominated might initiate manly attitudes and encourage identity evolution.
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Copyright (c) 2022 Ziyad Shakir Loaybi Al-Zayadi, Asst. Prof. Thamir R. S. Az-Zubaidy (Ph.D.)
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