Women in The Duchess of Malfi and The Changeling Essay

How does time periods like Renaissance, Restoration, and the Eighteenth Century interact with masculinity? Renaissance, Restoration, and the Eighteenth Century shows us that masculinity can be portrayed as having power or they can be seen as getting overpowered by femininity. In these different time periods it is noticeable that men are not the only individuals that is considered to be smart and they are not the only ones who can maintain power. Also, within these time periods women do not always submit themselves to the men. By looking at the Renaissance, Restoration, and Eighteenth Century time periods masculinity roles shifts from men claiming their supremacy by being overbearing, dominant, and selfish to getting tricked and manipulated by women so that power can be seen as being equal within genders or completely taken by women.

Pride and Prejudice tells a story of a young girl in the midst of a very materialistic society. Jane Austen uses the setting to dramatize the restraints women had to endure in society. As the novel develops, we see how women have to act in a way according to their gender, social class, and family lineage. Elizabeth Bennet’s sisters represent the proper societal lady while Lizzy is the rebel. Through her characters Austen shows how a women’s happiness came second to the comfort of wealth. As the plot develops, events are laid out to illustrate how true love is unattainable when women marry for intentions of wealth. Women have very specific and limited roles in a society where men are the superior. In Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen

In a patriarchal society, women are expected to conform to social restrictions by demonstrating reverence and obedience to the males in their lives. Shakespeare's tragic play, Romeo and Juliet, explores the effects of patriarchal authority exerted over women and how the patriarchal structure left no escape from it, save death. Through Juliet, Lady Capulet, and the Nurse, Shakespeare establishes a common understanding of this type of society, but illuminates three different reactions to the social oppression by portraying the responses of a passionate lover, an idyllic housewife, and an attendant.

            Hero does not get a chance to mull over the idea of Claudio as a husband.  Even the audience knows little about her going into the now famous “shaming scene.”  Details about Hero’s virtues and personality are purposely left out, partially to satisfy the dominant male perspective in the play, but also to give more clout to the heinous claim that Claudio makes during the wedding.  The reactions of Hero’s father and others indicate that a woman’s virtues are only as good as a man says they are.

Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice examines and critiques a society built upon gender roles. Austen does this by examining the obstacles women experienced in the Regency Period. Austen expresses how women were controlled, and objectified by men through their need to get married to a man. Additionally, the novel ridicules how women who could not afford to live without men were shadowed by their partner. This commentary is seen through the portrayal of the Bennet sisters. The females of the family are forced to marry because they do not inherit any wealth. The family is forced to comply with the same boundaries Austen was governed by. Therefore, Austen focuses on how the Bennet sisters overcome a society that suppresses them. This allows the reader to comprehend the strength, perseverance, determination, and assertiveness of the women in this time. Overall, Jane Austen addresses gender issues throughout the story. This is seen in the progressive image of Elizabeth, as she combats the inequality women experience. Although it was not common for women to criticize the patriarchy, the overall depiction of females is progressive. Elizabeth represents Austen’s feminist views, and the depiction of women in the novel is seen through her feminist image as she deals with Mr. Collins and Mr. Darcy.

his description of his duchess, proves his own need to be in control. He initially asks his

The female protagonists in the plays “She stoops to Conquer” by Oliver Goldsmith and “Antigone” by Sophocles are successfully able to reach their goal by behaving according to their environment and behaving to the need of their situation. In the very well written play, “Antigone”, Antigone openly refuses to obey the king and buries the body of her brother, Polyneices. In the interesting play, “She Stoops to Conquer”, Kate Hardcastle makes it her goal to marry a man named Charles Marlow. It is her top priority since he feels relaxed in the company of lower class females. When Kate Hardcastle realized that Charles Marlow has a special preference for lower class females, Kate acts as if she is a lady belonging to a lower class and therefore

The theme for honour and fidelity apply for both men and women in Shakespeare’s play ‘much ado about nothing’. Honour and fidelity is represented very differently for men and women as it would have been for the people in Elizabethan times. In this first section of the essay, I will be exploring double standards and Shakespeare’s awareness of the double standards between sexes and his feminist approach, the differences of honour and fidelity for men and women and upper class and lower class comparisons.

Throughout history, gender roles have been an important barrier in society. Women are forced to satisfy expectations established by men and society. “My Last Duchess,” by Robert Browning, focuses on the powerful Duke establishing certain expectations of the Duchess, and attempting to control her. Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, concentrates on Laertes establishing certain expectations of Ophelia, and seeking to control her. A Room of One’s Own, by Virginia Woolf, centers on societal expectations of Judith, and her father trying to control her. In all three texts, men have the ability to control women and have the freedom to do as they please. Women must conform to the expectations of faithfulness, attentiveness, and chastity.

Lady Catherine’s reaction demonstrates the crucial importance of marriage in the society, but also for women.

Beatrice is very different than the common expectation of women by people looking back on Shakespeare’s period and of the public of Shakespeare’s time in many ways. As

Desire is explicitly a part of the human nature, it takes us beyond our bodily necessities to point out what we want for our own personal satisfaction. Ferdinand is afflicted with his desire to control his sister in preventing her from getting married. He explains to his sister, the widowed Duchess of Malfi that she should no longer have the desire to be married since she already knows “what man is and therefore, let not youth, high promotion, eloquence… (1578).” In addition, he explains that for a woman to wan to marry again would make her a lewd person. Ferdinand’s so strongly desires to stop his sister from marrying that he even goes as far as to threaten her with their father’s dagger, stating that he would “loath see’t loo rusty, ‘cause

It is true that the majority of women in the 17th century were housewives (Lambert). However, in Shakespeare’s eyes, this did not translate to inferiority of women. Instead, he believed that society’s flawed thinking was both unjust and dangerous. He saw women for what they were worth: humans capable of performing and becoming something everyone else could. Regardless of their genders, woman could be just as assiduous, shrewd, and vindictive as their male

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.

Equity between men and women is a deeply rooted battle. As the modern culture shifts further from patriarchal rule, it is interesting to question why females remained the submissive sex for so many centuries. When examining the play Twelfth Night, it becomes apparent that Shakespeare considered such an issue and used the character Viola and her interaction with Orsino as a vessel for gender equality.