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Abstract This study examines Paula Vogel’s portrayal of gender bias in three plays: The Baltimore Waltz, Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief, and Hot ’N’ Throbbing. Vogel’s plays explore gender inequality and sexuality through the development of female characters, highlighting how gender is the systematic repetition of certain acts. Vogel’s portrayal of women contrasts with other feminist theater from the 1970s and 1980s, as she often portrays neither the idealized woman defying patriarchal conventions nor the victimized, disillusioned, and helpless woman. The ”hot” social and cultural topics addressed in her plays, such as AIDS, pornography, rape, domestic abuse, and homosexuality, are closely tied to women’s position in society. Vogel uses Brecht’s Verfremdungseffek (alienation effect), social gestus, historicization, and episodic structure to redefine American theater and re-imagine gender, sexuality, and feminine desire. The study aims to conclude by examining how Vogel’s plays reveal how women are affected by traditional roles and whether gender is fixed or fluid. |