Perpetual performance : selfhood and representation in Byron's writing

Abstract

In Byronic texts readers are frequently confronted with questions concerning selfhood and self-representation. Drawing on performance theories, this study reveals that in Byron’s texts Platonic notions of the self are increasingly replaced by concepts of selfhood defined in terms of constant, playful transformation – concepts which anticipate postmodernist ideas of identity. Going beyond previous studies, which have often taken an autobiographical approach, Perpetual Performance: Selfhood and Representation in Byron’s Writing explores the Byronic self through a prism of modern literary theory, aiming to cast light on the various conceptions of the self which lie beneath the surface of Byron’s texts. In addition, theoretical questions related to Postmodernism, matters of theatricality and staging, the notion of performance as a poetic principle, and definitions of identity are addressed.