Tragicomedy, Bisexuality, and Byronism; or, Jokes and Their Relation to Sardanapalus.

Byron, George Gordon Byron, Baron, 1788-1824; English historical drama; Human sexuality in literature; English drama (Tragicomedy)

Argues that Lord Byron's 'Sardanapalus' reorients the typically conservative genre of historical drama by representing post-Waterloo British imperialism as debauched indulgence. Play's solecistic breaks with convention; Ways in which tragicomedy is a bastard form; Byron's central use of sex and gender in the writing of tragedy; Reception of the play's emphasis on sexuality as a commentary on Byron's own sexuality.