ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book argues that Siddons's performance style, theories, and stage preparations offer a compelling new lens through which to view Mary Wollstonecraft and theatricality, and, as played by Bette Davis, Margo Channing's explorations of the blurred lines between performed and personal identity enrich that discussion. It argues that Wollstonecraft's persistent use of the trope reveals theatricality's transgressive potential for self-invention, instead of simply its negative connotations with regard to gender roles and the display of state power, thus representing both the limitations of and inherent potential in 'stage-effect'. Contributing to recent work on Romanticism and theaterespecially Pascoe. The book considers the influence on Wollstonecraft of the treason trials, using Pascoe's analysis of them as a foundation, and then explores the influence of the published transcripts of the very popular civil divorce trials for adultery.
