Theories about Gender & Sex:
Applications
THROUGHOUT
THIS GUIDE TO
THEORY, I have tried,
when possible, to offer a certain consistency to the applications by
analyzing the same material from different theoretical perspectives.
As in the sections on Marxism, New Historicism, and Psychoanalysis,
I here offer a reading of two sonnets by Spenser. I chose the sonnet
form since its size makes it easy to reproduce on the web page and its
complexity exemplifies the extent to which even a small literary work
can be unpacked in interesting and multiple ways by using the theoretical
lenses at our disposal. When possible, I have also provided a second
application through a reading of the Dürer image associated with
the given section of this Guide to Theory. (The interpretation of the
image associated with this section can be found on the left.)