The Renaissance monarch’s manner of being viewed, as well as, female images constitute perhaps the largest body of work subject to a male gaze. Physically, per Laura Mulvey in Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema, women face three forms of posture in most images – and John Berge in Ways of Seeing relates this to the Renaissance: to feed voyeurism, narcissism, or scopophilia. These terms especially find truism in later works of mistresses and Queens as sexualization of noblewomen increases in the public eye. However, the rather austere portraits of Henry VIII’s wives face just as much of a consciousness of being watched as does Titian’s Venus of Urbino or the romanticized images of the captive Rosamund Clifford. Henry’s wives portraits, however, …show more content…
Though their contribution number greatly into the argument of women’s use of image as power, none contrast as greatly as the shift from Henry’s dalliance with Mary Boleyn to his romance with Anne Boleyn. Anne’s life largely comes from hearsay reported by an extremely biased Spanish ambassador, Eustace Chapuys, with supplements by her English peers, Venetian diplomats, and French courtiers. With the exception of Chapuys, who forged a polemical career against ‘the Lady’ , little to none of the reports show Anne in such a negative light. Most historians currently now distrust his writings, reading with a wary eye and watch for his bias in his massive extant documents. Despite arguments presented by Lauren Mackay who attempts to weaken the current trend of mistrusting Chapuys , the search for a moderated Anne remains the most popular avenue of study for researchers of her …show more content…
The chivalric tradition and patterns of relationships previous to their affair appear stiff, and those after lecherous. Even while the images best known of Anne feature her looking coyly at the viewer and smirking, indicative of flirtatious fun, she equally receives merit for her religiosity and prudence as Queen. This double entendre offers a complex woman adept at playing to Henry’s narcissism, redoubled in the second traditional painting of as she plucks a Tudor rose with two fingers to hold against her breast. Furthermore, her time as Queen echoes a later era in England history reliant even further on imagery, majesty, and divine right as England, now Britain, desperately held onto its Empire. The pageantry of her coronation and various acts surrounding her combined artifacts and references to antiquity and her contemporaries, combining all to hail Anna
Although the ‘Legend’ of the Wicked Italian Queen is limited by its personal malicious nature, it is credible in its demonstration of Catherine’s ambition f...
“‘La magnificence et la galanterie n’ont jamais paru en France avec tant d’éclat que dans les dernières annèes du règne de Henri second.’ (p. 35)... However, this image of classical perfection is quickly fractured by the mention of the event that guides the life of the court-the passion of Henry II for the Duchesse de Valentinois Later in the narrative, the heroine, like the reader, asks for further explanation for this unusual passion between a woman not only much older than the king, but one who, in addition to having been Henry’s father’s mistress, also has several other lovers..” (Judovitz, 1038-1039)
In Shakespeare’s “The Life of King Henry V,” set in England in the early fifteenth century, with the famous and heroic English King, Henry V, claiming his “rights” to the French throne. This claim caused complications and the declaration of war on both English and French soil. This political war, then turn into a route of complicated negotiations, after King Henry’s terrifying forces had successfully defeated French forces. As the result of the war, a peace treaty was made, and part of that agreement was the marriage between King Henry V and the daughter of the King of France, Katherine of Valois. An analysis of the both King Henry’s and Katherine’s relationship reveals that both had conflicting perspectives of one another, which resulted as a marriage in political unions of two powerful nations rather than a union of two lovers.
Catherine has an extremely naive, novel-like view of love. “[Henry’s] name was not in the Pump-room book, and curiosity could do no more. He must be gone from Bath.yet he had not mentioned that his stay would be so short! This sort of mysteriousness, which is always so becoming in a hero, threw a fresh grace in Catherine's imagination around his persona and manners, and increased her anxiety to know more of him,” (34-35). She is obsessed with Henry’s “mysteriousness”, not so dissimilar to the heroines in her novels, who were all in love with tall, dark and mysterious men. Although her naivete and imagination almost get her in trouble with Henry when she thinks his father has killed his mother, her naive obsession with him is the only reason their relationship ever
This essay, written by Ann of France, entitled "Lessons for my Daughter" explores the pains of being a woman in her society. Anne was the daughter of King Louis XI of France and was profoundly influential in French politics and policy throughout her life. The author composed this essay to be utilized as a handbook to guide her daughter through the patriarchal, aristocratic environment of French politics. Anne began her guide by urging her daughter to be the manifestation of complete virtue, to not show weakness, and to be worthy of having a reputation worth perpetual remembrance. She told her daughter to be humble, be honest, and above all be true. Anne urged her daughter to be magnificent, to show honor and to be brave. She insisted that the moment a woman makes a mistake her voice and her reputation are squandered. She insisted that she had to be refined, and she had to be excellent in order to be heard. Anne of France knew how treacherous the road was to be a woman in politics at this time. The essay is a beautiful distillation of her understanding and experiences within influential French society. Having been a successful and authoritative figure, Anne 's caution and judgment proved to be a great path of preparation for her
The “domestic” scenes of Shakespeare’s Henry IV Part I ground the battles, plots, and displays of knavery. The women—Lady Percy and Lady Mortimer—give the actions of territorial, cockfighting men consequence. In II.iv, we see Hotspur at home with his playful wife, and we can for a moment forget his arrogance and excessive language as he assumes the mantle of husband and even shows a slight bent toward uxoriousness. Kate leads the activity in the scene, however, and she is the one who closes it; by an examination of the play between the Percys, we see that Kate is a reflection of her husband and that she likewise reflects—but does not mimic or represent—his fate at the play’s end.
The Golden Age, also known as the Renaissance, was a time of change and development in Europe. The role of women decreased during this time as the rest of society grew and prospered. Women were treated as secondary citizens and their role was to stay within their sphere of influence.
Living conditions in the Middle Ages contributed to the rapid spread of the Bubonic Plague which led to people relying on religion as a source of comfort and security. However, it was also thought to be a punishment from God. As people died and more land became available, the Church was able to gain more power. This is a good example of how much people relied on religion and the Church during Medieval times. The art of the time period reflected this as artists designed and painted their artwork to worship and honor God and religion. An example of this devotion to the faith is shown in The Bull of Canonization of St. Francis of Assisi where Pope Gregory IX praises Francis for giving everything up to serve God and seeking “not his own interests,
While neither Machiavelli’s The Prince nor Shakespeare’s Henry V focus explicitly on gender roles, they both make assumptions and implications sufficient to illustrate their opinions about the nature and place of women in relation to men. In Machiavelli’s The Prince, men and women are depicted in traditional gender roles with women as tricky and unreliable, but ultimately yielding to men who are portrayed as tough and immovable. Shakespeare’s Henry V acknowledges these ideas, but also portrays women as able to influence events within the small domain they are given.
In the 15th century, King Henry VII became interested in a young lady named Anne Boleyn, despite being married to Katherine of Aragon. After Henry because the head of the church, he made his marriage to Katherine nonexistent by annulment and married the soon to be Queen Anne Boleyn. Anne Boleyn wasn’t the most favorable queen, since Katherine was the commoner’s all-time favorite. King Henry VIII was attracted to people who made it hard to get with. Anne gave King Henry many ultimatums to go through to finally get married to her.
The prelude is almost necessary as this work is for the introductory reader of the Tudor family and period. It begins with a briefing on Catherine of Aragon and King Henry VIII’s lives, marriage, and eventual annulment. The union of Catherine and Henry is downplayed rather quickly, as her inability to produce an heir is an apparent issue, as only one of her six children survives beyond infancy, Mary, the eventual Queen of England. The marriage must come to an end, as an heir is ultimately any royal’s goal, and so King Henry VIII sets his sights on Anne Boleyn, or as the author writes “Bolaine”, who is a lady of Queen Catherine at this point. Anne Boleyn is described in great
The Italian Renaissance included some of the greatest artists we have ever seen from Leonard Da Vinci, to Michelangelo, and Raphael. The Renaissance took place from the late thirteenth to sixteenth centuries and is know as the ‘rebirth’. The idea that the rebirth of the arts after being asleep for a thousand years is an amazing thing to grasp. This time brought back light to liberal arts, which were on the brink of being extinct. (Murray 2) What is also interesting about art during this time was that most of the art had Christian in its roots, for example, Botticelli’s The Allegory of Spring (Faure 1) is said to have had a Christian interpretation. (Murray) “Every Italian artist, willingly took the title of architect, sculptor, and painter” (Faure 2). At the beginning of the fifteenth century, the Italian painters had asked the Flemish painters for their secret techniques because the Italians felt like the language of painting was one that was always meant for them. (Faure 4) The sculptors claimed their inspiration from ancient works. Lastly the Renaissance introduced idea of individualism, which helped the Italians get away from everything that was going on during that time. Art during the Renaissance included painting, sculpting and architecture, all of which were an important part in expressing the idea of individualism and making art what is is today.
Art has gone through many significant developments throughout history. The most important turning point was the renaissance. Art took a huge turn before the 1500’s and even after. The Renaissance has assisted the world of art in breaking away from a classic structure and shaping it to what it is day. Prior to this cultural rebirth, artworks were mostly not made to scale. Paintings were unrealistic and disproportionate. Religious figures seemed to be the focus of many works. The Renaissance changed the old social context of art by introducing humanism, new themes and techniques.
The two adaptations after the controversial novel “The Other Boleyn Girl” by Philippa Gregory present a historical fictional story of the Boleyn sisters, Anne and Mary. This is a ravishing, emotionally intense story of love, loyalty and betrayal in the chase for power and social position, portraying the human desires and flaws in a beautifully described historical background at the English court. The private life of the historical figures from the XVIth century and the intrigues hidden behind the official documents is quite an ambiguous, curiously challenging segment of time, from the historical point of view. The book, and the two film adaptations after – “The Other Boleyn Girl” explore the uncertain times in the life of Henry the VIIIth, before deciding to divorce Katherine of Aragorn, remarry Anne Boleyn and start the Church of England.
Evaluate and respond to the presentations of women in the Romantic period. Feel free to discuss presentations of women, by women (such as Austen’s Persuasion) as well as presentations of women by men (such as the “she” in Byron’s “She Walks in Beauty”). Consider the following questions: are these presentations problematic? What do they tell us about the values and briefs of the Romantic Period? Do any of these presentations subvert (complicate, or call into questions) the time’s notions of femininity?