The, The Infernal Machine, And Ubu Roi By Alfred Jarry

In the play, the interactions between Jocasta and Oedipus depicts an egalitarian relationship. Throughout the play, Jocasta avoids many societal customs with her tendency to assert herself in the affairs of men.

One of the most noticeable notions in the plays was the power that men held over women. The gender roles in society of that time were well known. Men held the power and influence in society while women were there to obey. In Dulcitius, Hrotswitha displayed how Dulcitius attempted to “scare them with threats of dreadful punishment” in order to make the three sisters bend to his will (107). Although he continuously tried to do so, the sisters resisted, withstanding his coercion, another type of power. The men of the plays endeavored to make the women submit to their requests no matter the women’s feelings or thoughts. Women were also at a disadvantage because they had no control over what men did to them in their lives. This is present when Callimachus told Drusiana that he would trap her if she would not give into his desires. Callimachus’s exertion of power forced Drusiana to make a decision between shame and death, which pushed her towards God. Another example of coercion presented in

Throughout history, women have always struggled to hold power in American and religious societies. In Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, the author depicts women in early Puritan societies who struggle with the same issue. Women in The Crucible are incapable of successfully holding power over their society unless they are using fear against others. Characters such as Abigail and Elizabeth, although they may appear to hold some status or control over others, are ultimately powerless.

Often when women are placed in a leadership position it is immensely challenged by some part of the male society. It is not only the leadership role that are stereotyped through the play but also the stereotype of blaming women for another mans demise.

In the play, Macbeth, by William Shakespeare, there are a couple instances where power corrupts and can cause problems. For example, when Macbeth realizes all the power he could attain, he corrupts by killing King Duncan in order to own all the power. As Macbeth is on stage alone, he talks about how even though King Duncan was a great king, it's time for him to take over because his only desire is to be king. As he speaks he mentions “I have no spur to pick the prides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself and fails on one another”(1.7.25-28). By Macbeth following through with the killing of Duncan, we can conclude how much the death of Duncan affected his family more than anyone else. This being that he is no longer there for his family. Lady Macbeth corrupts by wanting to become queen for power, she convinced her own husband Macbeth to kill Duncan. This is where we see gender roles take action. As Macbeth is afraid to kill King Duncan, Lady Macbeth says, “Art thou afeard to be the same in thine own act and valor as thou art in desire? Wouldst thou have that Which thou esteem’st the ornament of life…” (1.7.45-47). Not only do we see the female portraying more of a masculine characteristic, but we also see that idea that power is viewed differently when Lady Macbeth says this. Macbeth and Lady Macbeth ultimately seem to not be able to live without higher power.

Although written long ago, Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Macbeth still has themes relevant for contemporary society.  Murderous ambition, political intrigue, crafty social alliances, the disintegration of marriage – these could be headlines from any daily news program.  It comes as no surprise, then, that we also find a significant number of moments in the play where gender seems to be an issue. More specifically, we might say that Shakespeare's dramatic investigation into proper uses of power consists, in part, of a rigorous critique of the disparities between the respective roles assigned to men and women. Shakespeare seems especially interested in the moral and ethical implications of such

In the late 17th century, women in puritan societies were viewed as subservient beings created for the sole purpose of obeying the men around them. They were powerless in most situations, and women who chose to claim some of their power back were viewed as witches who could only have had these ideas with the help of the devil. The women in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible are able to successfully take power from a male-driven society on a grand scale, within their family lives, and on a personal level.

Power craze occurs many times in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The female characters are excited to have power. Lady Macbeth for instance, has to seek power through Macbeth because women weren’t given strong leadership roles back then. The witches also helped with the plot by making Macbeth excited to murder Duncan and become king himself. Shakespeare uses Macbeth to show the audience his views on power with women.

Throughout many pays and novels, women have had important roles of helping form the main characters, in the way they think, move or change the story. Women have always been subordinate to men all through history, but in plays, novels, short stories, etc, they have been given large enforcing roles, showing the power within women. William Shakespeare and Sophocles use guilt, pride, and influence to demonstrate the importance of the women’s role to support the main characters in both the plays of Macbeth and Antigone.

In Oedipus the King, the only female character that plays a part in the play is Oedipus’s wife, Jocasta. Although Jocasta’s role in the play is a key component to how the story plays out, she doesn’t seem to have as many lines as the men in the play. This in itself can show that a woman’s opinion wasn’t believed to have much importance compared to the opinion of a man. Jocasta was simply expected to support her husband and his decisions. In the play, Jocasta’s role seem’s to simply be present for the sole purpose of helping push Oedipus into discovering the truth about his birth. She informs him that her former husband was told “that it was fate that he should die a victim at the hands of his own son, a son to be born of Laius” (Pg. 11, Ln 820) and herself. She then continues by telling Oedipus all of the details of Laius’ death, which helps brings him to the realization that he was the man who killed Laius. When they later discover that Oedipus is Jocasta’s son, she kills herself. This seems to be a predictable ending for a woman’s life to end in Greek tragedies and

All things considered, women are very underestimated when being compared to men. All women in this play were without power, a stay at home wife, without a clue and without the ability to stand on their own two feet. Whereas every male character in the play held all the power, were the bread winners, were rational and more than capable to think and be on their own. What this

When observing gender in our society, women and men are stereotyped with specific roles. Men have always been seen as the family’s main source of income whereas the women take care of their home and children. However, Shakespeare challenges these gender roles in his play with the three female characters Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia. While all three are independent, powerful women and even lead their armies into battle, the men seem to be foolish and weak such as King Lear and Albany. Furthermore, Mira cel Batran makes a point in her essay, “Feminist Reading of William Shakespeare’s King Lear”, that although women are regarded as dependent on men, Shakespeare explains that it can be the exact opposite. The men seem to depend on the women such as King Lear depending on Cordelia and Albany depending on Goneril. Shakespeare, in his play, King Lear, portrays women who are strong and intelligent and men who are weak or overpowered by female characters, challenging the societal belief that women are inherently less than or dependent on men.

All of the female characters are given power, whether it be over each other, men or their servants. The woman with the power over the greatest number of people is Olivia, she has numerous servants and doesn't hesitate to give them orders, which can be seen in (1.5.287) when she orders Malvolio to "run after that peevish messenger" and in (3.1.92-94) when she says: "let the garden door be shut and leave me to my hearing". The second female character with power obtains it in a very different way. Maria is Olivia's servant and must obey Olivia, but since she has been around Olivia

In the Middle Age literature, women are often presented or meant to come off as an unimportant character; which can also reflect on how the author wants the women character represent. Women are usually shunned, have no say or control in what they do; due to what men desire; like Ophelia and Gertrude did in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. But these female characters that I will discuss are women with power, control, and a voice. Majority of the female character’s appearances are made to represent wickedness, evil, or a seducer who challenges a man belief; and does not symbolize perfect women.

        In Elizabethan life “a dominant woman was unnatural, a symptom of disorder” (Order in the sexes 1).  Particularly in King Lear, we see the unnaturalness of dominant women and how they are evil.  Regan and Goneril, who begin the play with false declarations of love for their father, soon become dominant women who show little regard for the values of their society (Shakespeare I.ii.54-61, 69-76).  Regan, in particular, becomes a target.  “[Lear] notes that humanity is in danger because of people like her” (Peterson 22).  Even Albany, Regan’s husband, is appalled at what his wife has become through her thirst for power.  “The woman form she takes, Albany proclaims, disguises the fiend which exists beneath and if it were not for this cover, he would wish to destroy her”