Courtly Beauty In The 16th Century

“Beauty is power, and makeup is something that really enhances that; it’s a woman’s secret” - Charlotte Tilbury. Many women of the Elizabethan era had their own thought on makeup and beauty. Women with long hair and tan skin is the ideal beauty for women today, but this was not the case in this era. In the Elizabethan era, having pale skin was a sign of nobility, wealth, and (for women) delicacy, and was sought after by many. The Elizabethan view of pure beauty, and nobility was a woman with light hair and a snow white complexion complemented with red cheeks and red lips. The way people judge each other tend to make them into something they’re not.

The renaissance was a very nice era especially for the hair and jewelry for men and women. Many older women didn’t like showing their hair off, but on the other hand young ladies did. Men wore hair to their shoulder length and wore a lot of hats.

Reason is arguably the greatest ability a human has. Whether you are a man or a woman, you are born with this power. Not much separates men from women other than the obvious; physical differences. Though people believe this now, it was not always viewed this way. In 16th century Britain, men, as well as women, believed that women were inferior; their sole purpose in life was to marry and reproduce. The majority of women did not realize their own abilities because of misogynistic problems within society. Women did not have access to education which led to the underlying feeling of inferiority. Being provided with access to proper education and not being treated as men’s domestic assistants, women would have the opportunity to live life equally.

“ The belief that women were inherently inferior in intelligence, strength, and character was so persuasive that for men like Knox, a woman ruler was almost a contradiction in terms” (“Documents for Chapters 5&6”). In the 16th century, women were looked upon as a gender that should stay in the house and work, not have power and rule over a country. Discussing the govern of Queens during the 16th century, such as Mary Tudor, Lady Jane Grey, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Elizabeth I, allowed prejudices to be lessened but never completely be erased. No matter how these four notable ladies came into power, the accomplishments they overcame, achieved and wrote about proved to be great and substantial in making history as it is written today.

The history of the Middle Ages typically places women in one of two roles; they are either placed upon a pedestal of holiness or reviled as whores and allies of Satan. Historians, Marty Williams and Anne Echols, attempt to combat that idea with their text Between Pit and Pedestal: Women in the Middle Ages. Williams and Echols succeed in showing that the traditional female role did fall somewhere in between, but there was a lot of variety in what was in between. Women were wives, merchants, land owners, and doctors, but where does the "traditional" female fall in this picture? As scholars and historians, we are fortunate to have documents written by a woman in the Middle Ages: the letters of Heloise to her husband, renowned teacher and philosopher, Peter Abelard (referred to as Abelard).

In the Regency era, beauty was tied to what the rich could attain. Pale skin and plump figures were prized as they indicated a person did

During the 1500s, one woman prevailed in a society dominated by males. Queen Elizabeth I of England served for forty-four stable and prosperous years. She claimed the throne in 1558 and reigned until her death in 1603. Because of her strong leadership, this time period was known as England’s Golden Age or Elizabethan Era. Queen Elizabeth’s accomplishments were possible because of her educational background, Protestant upbringing, and unmarried status.

Marriage, Divorce, and Women’s Rights During the Elizabethan Society Era, the roles of women and society were very limited. Men were believed to be superior to women as when it came to marriage, they had little choice in whom they could marry. Divorce was not common at all during that time period. Marriages were arranged by the families of the man and woman, in order to benefit both sides with wealth. Sometimes even power.

So long as men can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and this gives life to three, quoted by the famous playwright William Shakespeare. Never has this been so true in the two films Taming of the shrew and 10 things I hate about you. Femininity has changed dramatically between the elizabethan era and today's era this change is displayed greatly in both tammy of the shrew and 10 things i hate about you. Today the women of the world are not known to up hold the man to be the lord of the house and to obey by his word but to show respect to the man of the house as the man is to show the same amount of respect or even more to the women of the house. In today's world both the man and women are both as equal in the way that they share the

White skin ruled as a beauty standard during Elizabethan era. Women apply deadly mixtures (white lead) on their skin to stay fair. And some even took the beauty trend to the next level by painting blue lines on their skin to make it appear more translucent because the veins underneath were showing. Possessing a pale skin was essential for Elizabethans because it demonstrated wealth and status. A woman with a “blue blood” was sought after by

"Beauty isn't about having a pretty face. It is about having a pretty mind, a pretty heart, and most importantly, a beautiful soul." (Unknown) Beauty is not just about being beautiful on the outside it is also on the inside. I feel that people have to be beautiful both on the inside and outside. Beauty is mostly on the inside because they are the people who are nicer and kinder. A person personality can make the person more beautiful because it is the way people act and talk. People are more beautiful on the inside because it is the way people talk and act.

The Elizabethan age is said to be the “Golden Age” in English history, the time where Queen Elizabeth I reigned. As no other queen in English history had such a huge impact on beauty, Queen Elizabeth I, with her fair complexion and curly red hair, was considered the definition of beauty at the time and had the majority of Elizabethan woman striving for the look that she popularized. During the Elizabethan era, a snow white complexion and light hair, complimented by red cheeks and lips could only be achieved by wealthy men and women of the upper class as those of the lower class were made to work outside and therefore developed a tan. A pale complexion was considered to be a sign of good health, nobility and, for women, delicacy.

Smith argues that the gendered domestic spaces, both the idealistic and realistic, of sixteenth century Verona shows the influence of women on the Renaissance material culture. Smith chose to focus on Verona and the sixteenth century because although they were behind in their palace building Verona has more documents pertaining to movable wealth. Women in this time were becoming wealthier because of large dowries and increasingly being named in wills of family members, contributing to the movable wealth. The growing wealth of women led to numerous treatises being written on domestic matters. These treatises contrasted two types of women, the house wife who was virtuous, modest, and quiet, versus the singing, dancing, and conversing expected

Europeans during the 16th century were facing a time where men were the head of the household as well as heads of government. As a result, when Elizabeth I became the queen of England, it was said that she was a queen in a world of kings. Prejudice against a female ruler began around Europe, most likely because this was the first occurence of this. The negative attitudes of religious and reforming leaders influenced Elizabeth to show her strength as well as gain power and respect for her entire country.

I have decided to do my collage based on appearance during the renaissance and modern time to show how the two time periods connect and how they differ. The image of Kim Kardashian in a waist trainer and the renaissance corset, both were/are used to shape a female's body so that it looks like an hourglass. An hourglass body was considered more appealing to men. The next images that I will like to point out are the eyebrow images. One shows an image with thin eyebrows and the other one has thicker eyebrows. During the Renaissance, thin eyebrows seem to be considered more attractive, but now thick eyebrows are considered more attractive. The next comparison that I will be making is the image of a woman's face during the Renaissance and a bottle