ABSTRACT
In early modern England, the whiteness of one’s shirts and briefs, or ‘invisible linens’, was considered a mark of innate virtue, whereas ‘visible linens’ like bands and cuffs became a fashionable way of demonstrating one’s wealth and respectability. This chapter discusses how Middleton discredits the relationship between clean linens and virtuousness through his depiction of visible and invisible linens in The Widow. The chapter explores how on-stage depictions of linen acted as visual indicators of a character’s virtue, honesty, and civility, and how Middleton used these indicators to mislead the audience. Middleton continually challenges the virtuousness of clean linen: the whiteness of Ansaldo’s linen shirt suggests purity and honesty, yet the player’s uncovered body hides the character’s gendered disguise from the audience. Where costume and props are normally visual signifiers of character, Middleton disregards that notion in The Widow to emphasise the duplicity of outward appearance. This chapter argues that Middleton not only wrote with an awareness of how costumes were understood by an audience, but was also focused on how the player’s body functioned as a prop. Through a close reading of The Widow, this chapter shows that reading Middleton through staged materials, like linen, is key to understanding his work as a playwright.
