Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone

In this article I analyse how Shakespeare uses early modern paradigms of intellectual disability to construct the identity of Touchstone, the fool of As You Like It. Although Touchstone is no real fool but simply performs like one, his actions and mocking reflections on the characters he faces expos...

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Main Author:	Alice Equestri
Format:	Article
Language:	English
Published:	The Ohio State University Libraries 2020-12-01
Series:	Disability Studies Quarterly
Subjects:	intellectual disability fool early modern shakespeare touchstone natural wise fool
Online Access:	https://dsq-sds.org/article/view/6903

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spelling	doaj-aa493940f9724914beb2312dcd2c0c8e2020-12-14T19:53:20ZengThe Ohio State University LibrariesDisability Studies Quarterly1041-57182159-83712020-12-0140410.18061/dsq.v40i4.69034646Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of TouchstoneAlice Equestri0University of SussexIn this article I analyse how Shakespeare uses early modern paradigms of intellectual disability to construct the identity of Touchstone, the fool of As You Like It. Although Touchstone is no real fool but simply performs like one, his actions and mocking reflections on the characters he faces expose how Shakespeare was very well acquainted with socio-legal and even medical definitions of natural folly in his time. A reading of the character as a natural fool according to specific paradigms of the period further reveals how Touchstone enacts an expanded 'complex embodiment' of disability.https://dsq-sds.org/article/view/6903intellectual disabilityfoolearly modernshakespearetouchstonenaturalwise fool
collection	DOAJ
language	English
format	Article
sources	DOAJ
author	Alice Equestri
spellingShingle	Alice Equestri Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone Disability Studies Quarterly intellectual disability fool early modern shakespeare touchstone natural wise fool
author_facet	Alice Equestri
author_sort	Alice Equestri
title	Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone
title_short	Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone
title_full	Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone
title_fullStr	Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone
title_full_unstemmed	Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone
title_sort	shakespeare and the construction of intellectual disability: the case of touchstone
publisher	The Ohio State University Libraries
series	Disability Studies Quarterly
issn	1041-5718 2159-8371
publishDate	2020-12-01
description	In this article I analyse how Shakespeare uses early modern paradigms of intellectual disability to construct the identity of Touchstone, the fool of As You Like It. Although Touchstone is no real fool but simply performs like one, his actions and mocking reflections on the characters he faces expose how Shakespeare was very well acquainted with socio-legal and even medical definitions of natural folly in his time. A reading of the character as a natural fool according to specific paradigms of the period further reveals how Touchstone enacts an expanded 'complex embodiment' of disability.
topic	intellectual disability fool early modern shakespeare touchstone natural wise fool
url	https://dsq-sds.org/article/view/6903
work_keys_str_mv	AT aliceequestri shakespeareandtheconstructionofintellectualdisabilitythecaseoftouchstone
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Shakespeare and the Construction of Intellectual Disability: The Case of Touchstone

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