Feminist Criticism and Shakespeare's Work

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Recommended: Representation of women in Shakespeare

Shakespeare’s works had few females because women were not allowed to act in London in the late 1500s and early 1600s. Disregarding the standards imposed on women of his time, Shakespeare created many female characters that were strong-willed, intelligent, and daring. Shakespeare resided in a world dominated by men, in which women were essentially the means of exchange in power relationships among those men. Feminist criticism is interested in marriage and, gender relations, and family structures (Shakespeare, William).

One issue that concerns feminist critics is how limited Shakespeare’s portraits of women are. During Shakespeare’s time period, there were no female actors and the female roles were played by males. In the meantime, Shakespeare’s more fully developed characters usually follow the harsh gender roles of the society. Women during this time were supposed to be obedient and were expected to listen to males. The refusal to obey male authority would be quite shocking to the Elizabethan society (Andrews 1: 121-122). Macbeth was a great war hero who defeated King Duncan’s enemy. When King Duncan came over to the Macbeth’s household to honor Macbeth for his heroism, Lady Macbeth makes all the preparations for King Duncan’s arrival. In the Elizabethan society, men were expected to engage in the public affairs, to be speakers, make decisions, and move events forward. Because Lady Macbeth decided to become an active partner in her husband’s deadly mischief shows that Shakespeare depicted her differently compared to how women normally behaved in the Elizabethan society (Gerlach, Almasy, and Daniel).

Mary Louise Prattnd the way they have shaped the modern ideas about women. Shakespeare has shown portraits of women and how t...

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...of English. Patricia Kelly, 1996. Web. 25 Jan. 2014.

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Lady Macbeth and Feminist Literature. Mary Ellen Snodgrass, n.d. Web. 10 Jan.

2014. < activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&WID=16205&SID=5&iPin=GEFL297&SingleRecord=True>.>. Shakespeare, William. "Macbeth." 2012. The British Tradition. Common Core ed.

Upper Saddle River: Pearson, 2012. 322-415. Print. Vol. 1 of Prentice Hall

Literature. 2 vols.

Shakespeare for All Time. Bard Publishing, 8 Dec. 2011. Web. 28 Jan. 2014.

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Shakespeare, William. Encyclopedia Britannica's Guide to Shakespeare.

Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2014. Web. 25 Jan. 2014.

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