hahaha wow I wrote the paper in microsoft now it wont let me transfer it over great!
Oh wait!! I can put it in the comments section!........Scroll down please if you would like to read my.....fantastical wonderful essay..... -_- right.......
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I want to know how sexism influenced the Elizabethan time period, including its society, acting, and writing. I will do this by examining writings of William Shakespeare. Women were not considered of equal rights to man. This reflects on writing, and acting.
ReplyDeleteIn most of Shakespeare’s plays sexist jokes are quite apparent throughout. Some of the plays that I have been able to read include Romeo and Juliet, A Mid Summer’s Night Dream, and currently Caesar. I have noticed sexism, whether it be a joke or just an offhand comment. Even women speak about it in the plays, and even some describe themselves as being the weaker sex, and act sexist towards themselves. Like in the play Caesar, when Portia is talking to her husband, Brutus, about what secrets he bears, and why he won’t tell her them, she says:
“If this were true, then should I know this secret. I grant I am a woman, but withal, a woman that Lord Brutus took to wife. I grant I am a woman, but withal a woman well-reputed, Cato’s daughter. Think you I am no stronger than my sex, being so fathered and so husbanded? Tell me your counsels. I will not disclose 'em. I have made strong proof of my constancy, giving myself a voluntary wound here in the thigh. Can I bear that with patience, and not my husband’s secrets?”
So basically what she is saying is that even though she is just a woman, he should trust her, after all he chose her for his wife so she must be worthy if he picked her, and the daughter of a great man, and even though her sex is weaker he should trust her. She fluffs his ego basically and claims that even though her sex, women, are weaker he should trust her and tell her his secrets because she is worthy of his secrets because she is married to him and has such a strong father. This is extremely sexist, and the sad thing is that it’s a woman who has to say this.
Another obvious sexist part of acting back in this time period is that all female parts were played by males. Women were not allowed to act or write at all, this was due to laws and society. So for the female parts in plays men, normally young men, cross dressed and played the roles of the women. Most women had very little freedom, and were most of the time controlled by a male, whether it was a husband, father, or employer, all women were under the power of men. So women, even if high in class, had very little often no freedom.
Even though there was a lot of sexism during this time Shakespeare made his female characters strong, even when put up against some pretty harsh sexism. It is believed that Shakespeare was one of the greatest feminists of his time. Even though he made his plays sexist towards women, his women always have a reason for using the sexism, or can defend themselves rather well in the presences of adverseness. This made his plays rounder and fuller, giving his strong male leads strong women leads to even them out.
So during this time in society sexism in writing was appropriate to include, and it was normal for women to be considered weaker. In a society where women could not act or write, young males had to take the places of women in plays. Shakespeare gave sexism and feminism a place in his plays, and much like his female and male parts, they balanced one another out, and provided the audience comedy.
“No Fear Shakespeare- Spark Notes- Julius Caesar” William Shakespeare by Spark Notes LLC. May 23, 2010 http://nfs.sparknotes.com/juliuscaesar/page_72.html
“Introducing Shakespeare's Women” By Lee Jamieson, About.com Guide May 23, 2010 http://shakespeare.about.com/od/criticalapproaches/a/intro_women.htm
(Interesting take on the writing) http://hubpages.com/hub/Shakespeare-Mixed-Signals-A-Place-for-Feminism-in-a-Sexist-Era
ha take that blogger!!! :P ugh thats annoying its all messed up...sigh well I was really stuck on what to write about this thing and this is all I could come up with and its kinda complete crap....but oh well :D
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