New Book Published by English Professor

Dr. Patricia’s publication will be available for purchase on November 17.
Image Courtesy of Bloomsbury Publishing

A new book will be released soon, and it will be an interesting one for Concord students, faculty and staff. The book has been written by one of Concord University’s own English professors and is a real accomplishment. 

    Dr. Anthony Guy Patricia’s new book, Queering the Shakespeare Film Gender Trouble, Gay Spectatorship, and Male Homoeroticism will be released on November 17. Patricia has been working on the book since 2008 when he was working on his graduate program. The book will focus on Shakespeare films. “I knew when I started it that there was not a book out there like this, meaning that there are a lot of books that deal with Shakespeare and film versions of Shakespeare, but there were not any that dealt with issues of queerness, sexuality, and gender; at least not what I have envisioned it,” said Patricia. 

    The book will make a new contribution to all who study English literature and Shakespeare. For those who do not know, queering is a term that comes from a theoretical school of thought called queer theory which came around in the 1990s, around the time of the AIDS crisis. Queer theory studies the various sexual experiences and identity experiences in works of literature. This is an interesting field in literature since it is still new, and it shows a new way to see the world. 

    The book has caught the attention of many people on campus, especially English majors. Jeremy Wood first learned about the book from seeing the cover on a poster. “I am excited to read the book. Reading something that one of my professors has written helps open my eyes to new interpretations and helps inspire me to be a better writer,” says Wood.

    The book will focus on Shakespeare films such as “Twelfth Night” and “A Midsummer’s Night Dream.” These movies have been studied in a queer context since queer theory came about, and they correspond to the Shakespeare. Other films studied in the book are “Romeo and Juliet,” “Othello,” and “The Merchant of Venice.”

    While working on a book focusing on a specific type of criticism, it is always possible to learn new things. One thing Patricia mentions is that, in the past, there were certain things that could not be published, but now things have changed. “I think one of the nice things to see in the evolution of the Shakespeare film is that, and I think the evolution of film in general, is that audiences, filmmakers, directors have become more comfortable and more open with this kind of stuff that I find hearting,” says Patricia. 

    Other faculty members have helped Patricia with his new book, and all are thrilled for their colleague. Dr. Amberyl Malkovich helped Patricia by reading and providing feedback. Another professor who helped Patricia with the book is Dr. Gabriel Rieger, Associate Professor of English, who consulted with Patricia and believes that this will be very interesting for English students to study. “I think the students will be interested in seeing a different perspective on Shakespeare film. Beyond that I think it is an insightful reading and will offer the students quite a bit in terms of how they read film generally and the Shakespeare films specifically,” says Rieger.

    Patricia will be giving talks about the book at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas on November 22. The book will be published by Bloomsbury Publishing, one of the top publishers of Shakespeare. The official publication date is November 17, but the book has been available for pre-order, and there will be a copy available in the Marsh Library. The book will also be available as an eBook, and those interested in getting a copy can email Patricia at his Concord email agpatricia@concord.edu.