Text, Method, and Positionality: Layers of Analysis in Drama Studies

Abstract

The present paper examines a topic that engages multiple dimensions of identity, interpretation, and the role of the researcher in Drama Studies, particularly within the LGBTQ context. A methodological clarification is therefore necessary: the analytical priority of this study lies in the text itself rather than in the positionality of the researcher. Within this framework, homotextuality—here defined as the textual construction of same-sex desire—offers a sharper analytical lens than broader sociological concept of homosexuality. In this context, homotextuality refers to the ways in which homosexuality is represented, mediated, and structured within literary discourse. It encompasses the narrative, rhetorical, and performative strategies through which dramatic texts articulate, encode, and stage meanings associated with homoerotic desire. By focusing on textual production rather than identity politics, the dramaturgical mechanisms through which sexuality is constructed and signified, this study foregrounds the discursive processes that shape the representation of queer desire in modern drama.