Gregory Barbosa

Study of Literature 0122-250-002

Professor Preston-Matto

March 7, 2017

The Feminine Vampire of Sodom

Gender is a social construct that is present in all literary works and other entertainment

forms. Whether deliberate and intentional or not, all characters have an assigned gender they

have to perform in a certain way to portray that gender. In a work of drama, gender has to be

physically represented as well as socially represented through dialogue and interactions with

other characters. Especially in todays societies, people of both genders are described as being

too feminine or too masculine. Society ascribe certain traits to femininity, such as

gentleness, empathy, and sensitivity, while defining masculinity as courage, independence, and

assertiveness. Everyone consistently hears about people acting feminine or masculine. Judith

Butler proposed a theory entitled Performative Acts and Gender Constitution where she relates

gender identity with gender performance. In Buschs (1985) play, the character Succubus, who

identifies as a female, performs her gender through her appearance, actions, and dialogue

proving some of Butlers gender performance theories to be true.

Succubus character supports many of Butlers theories about gender identity and gender

performance. One particular theory that Butler (2004) states is that the body is a set of

possibilities [which] signifies that its appearance in the world, for perception, is not

predetermined by some manner of interior essence (p. 902). Our first encounter with Succubus,

in the prologue, verifies this belief that choices in appearance can portray gender identity,

regardless of the physicality of the body itself. Busch (1986) introduces Succubus by stating that,
the SUCCUBUS enters in the form of a beautiful and very hardboiled dame. She is by turns

very grand and also a bit cheap but most importantly, she has a very big chip on her shoulder.

(Prologue, p. 9) Although it is hard to perceive through text, when performed live, you could

assume that the Succubus would be dressed up as with beautiful clothesperhaps a dress/gown

with nicely done hair and makeup. Every director each production of this play will have to

think to himself, How can I make Succubus look like a beautiful woman? Immediately, the

director will have to make costume choices and makeup choice that will capture the femininity

of Succubus character. Every time Succubus appears throughout the play she is still described as

The appearance of Succubus is a main factor among others in which her femininity is presented.

In addition to her appearance, Succubuss actions and social interactions define her

femininity. Butler (2004) states that gender is in no way a stable identity or locus of agency

from which various acts proceed; rather it is an identity tenuously constituted in time an

identity instituted through a stylized repetition of acts (p. 900). It is part of her character and not

even done on purpose. In scene two, during a fight with Madelaine Andrews, the Succubus (now

under the alias as La Condesa/Magda Legerdemaine) refers to herself and declares that I am a

great lady. I conduct myself with dignity and grandeur whilst you roll in the gutter I am the

queen of vampires (Sc. 2, p. 22). This entire fight is an interaction between these two women

that fit into societys stereotype about women and their constant fights over their love interests.

The two women have a long history of stealing each others love interest over and over again

resulting in this show down. It even occurs again in Scene 3 when Tracy, a perky singer comes

into the dressing room. The two ladies once again bicker with the usual name-calling and

hostility (e.g. hypocrite/smell like shit Busch, 1985, p. 32). The constant repetition of petty

disputes between these two characters throughout the course of history shows the audience how
much they embody their true feminine nature. The Succubus actions constantly reinforces her

feminine character. These frequent actions just happen to be a part of who she is. She is not

forcing any of this to pretend to be a female, but rather is actually labeled as a female because of

these actions.

The last example of the Succubus performing her gender occurs in prologue once again

when she is dealing the terrified virgin girl who eventually becomes the antagonist vampire for

the Succubus. Once Succubus appears to the virgin girl in the prologue, the girl becomes

confused and asks, How can pure evil be embodied by such beauty? (Bush, 1985, p. 10). This

highly reinforces that the appearance of the Succubus contributes to her gender identity. The

evilness of Succubuss character is a characteristic about her that seems odd because she is

beautiful. This brings up a dilemma for the virgin girl because the society back in those times

(the Old Testament era) has the belief that beautiful girls are not evil and are usually a part of a

wealthy family. To be beautiful and evil was not part of the societal norm. So, this further proves

that her identity is reinforced through her actions and character. She has a bad reputation for

being evil which could only have been made through previous, repetitive actions of evil, which

supports Butlers (2004) claim about stylized repetitions of acts (p. 900). Societal expectations

of gender performances also contribute to peoples gender identity and performance.

The Succubus is a complex character who, despite being evil, truly embodies societys

expectation of a female. Her beautiful appearance and her feminine actions within the context of

each time period contribute to her feminine performance. There are so many opinions out there

about what constitutes for femininity as well as masculinity. However, after all the debates

and theories, all that matters is how each person defines their own gender in their own terms.

References
Busch, C. (1985). Vampire Lesbians of Sodom. In Busch, C. (2004), The tale of the allergists

wife and other plays (pp. 1-36). New York, NY: Grove Press.

Butler, J. (2004). Performative Acts and Gender Constitution. In J. Rivkin & M. Ryan (Eds.),

Literary theory: an anthology (2nd ed., pp. 900-911). Malden, MA: Blackwell

Publishing.