This work investigates the intersection of psychoanalytic theory and racial identity, questioning how the performance of race is staged within the clinical and cultural imagination. Ann Pellegrini, a scholar in performance studies and religious studies, utilizes a framework that bridges the gap between traditional Freudian analysis and contemporary critical race theory. By examining how identity is constructed through public and private performance, the author argues that psychoanalysis must account for the racialized body to remain relevant in modern discourse.

Scholars in the field of performance studies frequently cite this text for its rigorous application of psychoanalytic theory to racial politics. Readers often note the academic density of the prose, which is intended for those familiar with critical theory and psychoanalytic terminology.