M. Butterfly Summary
David Henry Hwang

In his monograph David Henry Hwang (1989) Douglas Street insists that Hwang is "clearly a writer of the American West," even though Hwang's Westis far removed from that traditionally brought to mind b... Read more

In the following essay, Hwang discusses the inspiration for M. Butterfly, explains the process the play underwent in production, and expresses his hope that people will look beyond stereotypes to unco... Read more

In the following essay, Pao evaluates the positive and negative criticism Hwang's M. Butterfly has received. Pao contends that many of the negative reviews came from critics who were not recept... Read more

In the following essay, Eng studies the homosexual relationship between Gallimard and Song in M. Butterfly. Eng equates Gallimard's cell with the metaphorical“closet” and analyzes... Read more

In the following excerpt, Shin argues that in M. Butterfly Hwang explores the restrictive nature of heterosexuality in both white and Asian cultures. It has been barely thirty years since the incep... Read more

In the following essay, Cooperman asserts that, while M. Butterfly highlights the disparities in East-West cultures, his earlier plays—FOB, The Dance and the Railroad, Family Devotions, The Hou... Read more

In the following essay, Moy compares representations of Asian characters in M. Butterfly to those in Yankee Dawg You Die, by Philip Kan Gotanda, arguing that while both playwrights attack stereotypica... Read more

In the following essay, Pao provides an introductory overview of M. Butterfly, including information about its critical reception, its historical context, and its major themes. Publication and Produ... Read more

In the following essay, Kerr compares the representation of Asian characters in M. Butterfly and Puccini's opera Madama Butterfly. Kerr argues that the opera aligns the audience's sympat... Read more

In the following essay, Garber examines the role of cross-dressing in Hwang's M. Butterfly as a deconstruction of dominant categories of gender. A former French diplomat and a Chinese opera ... Read more

In the following essay, Remen draws on Michel Foucault's theories of vision and power to examine the staging of the central characters and the discursive positioning of the audience in Hwang&#x... Read more

In the following essay, Morris argues that M. Butterfly ultimately reaffirms and reinstates the hierarchical power structures of gender and culture that it sets out to deconstruct. Settings When th... Read more

One of the most notable features of M. Butterfly is its interesting uses of tone, in particular Hwang's feelings about the main character (and the change these feelings seem to undergo), and Hwang's ... Read more