Misogyny within Macbeth
The generally accepted definition of misogyny is a hatred or loathing of females, which has been a widely used theme in literature. It is specifically apparent in early periods of literature, which is widely found in British Literature. During the time in which Shakespeare wrote the majority of his plays society as a whole had a misogynistic view of women. While some of his other plays such as Hamlet have a greater level of misogyny, there are elements in Macbeth which do suggest a level of hatred for women even though they are the strongest characters in the play. Misogyny can take various forms such as hatred against women who do not meet societal standards of behavior and physical beauty, or those who appear to be
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Naturally women are not expected to fall into the category of the victor, but in the case of Macbeth what should not happen, does indeed happen. One of the top reasons for misogyny is a resentment of women who represent what a man is unable to do for a variety of reasons. The main motivations for this sentiment with men are a lack of confidence in their own abilities and a desire to make themselves more assertive. This is specifically true during Shakespeare’s lifetime because men were expected to be the stronger sex, able to dominate their household and make sound decisions. Considering the entire plot of Macbeth, this is a hotbed for breeding a misogynistic relationship between Macbeth and his wife. What is interesting about this idea is that as Lady Macbeth calls upon the spirits to give her the strength and the mental ability to be sure that the plot to murder the king is carried through. Consider the following passage which outlines this speech from Lady …show more content…
With the evidence presented here, there is more than enough evidence to prove that there is a relationship that exists between husband and wife that meets the definition of misogyny. This type of attitude existed a lot amongst the males during Shakespeare’s lifetime and is still relevant to certain attitudes exhibited in today’s society. This play is an example of how a woman can force a man to develop a misogynistic relationship with her, whether that is the intention or
The untraditional marriage between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth. Lady Macbeth shows how a woman takes charge of her marriage, showing she is the woman of the house. She is manly and all powerful over her husband. Lady Macbeth proves to be the untraditional woman of Scotland, she differs from the role of a traditional woman because she is not feminine as a woman should be, in fact she wishes she was a man. She tells the spirits to, “ unsex me here”. ( Enotes… unsex me here). This pertains to the theme of gender roles because it demonstrates how Lady Macbeth wishes it was a man. She’s manlier than her husband, that show the untraditional woman. Lady Macbeth feels her husband is to nice, friendly, and full of milk “ worrying her is to full of the milk of human kindness to take Duncan’s throne” ( Gale. Par 3). She worries that Macbeth has cold feet. He’s afraid of the consequence that will follow the murder; She planed the murder herself, because she didn’t believe he could do with out her help. She worries he is to manly to snatch the crown. So Lady Macbeth is manly enough to plan the murder, but wants Macbeth to commit the murder. ...
Male characters sexualize the female characters to fulfill their own sexual desires and possessive and dominant members in society. They are constantly sexualized and degraded through speech and action, while denied rights to speak, act, and think for themselves. Men view women as nothing more than objects at their disposal, for their pleasure, and their success. According to Cixous, male writing, one such as Shakespeare’s, “has been run by libidinal and cultural - hence political, typically masculine-economy; that it is a locus where the repression of women has been perpetuated, over and over, more or less consciously, and in a manner that’s frightening since it’s often hidden and adorn” (T&C 1945). By this, she means male writers inaccurately portray women across their works because they cannot ever be inside the mind of a woman. Therefore, in order to accurately portray women in writing and more specifically theatre, female writers must produce an honest
In the Elizabethan era, the expectations for woman were limited to being a housewife and a mother. Women were expected to obey their husbands. These expectations, and the person Lady Macbeth actually was, are polar opposites. Lady Macbeth did rely on Macbeth, but she only relied on him because she could only obtain her power through him. The methods she used to obtain this power go against the stereotypical Elizabethan woman. She used deceit to convince her husband to commit the first murder, saying that she would “chastise [him] with the valour of [her] tongue.” (I,v, 26) What convinced him to go through with the murder, however, was when Lady Macbeth laid out the plan for him. (I,vii,60-72) After the murder occurred, it was Lady Macbeth who took control, while Macbeth was extremely shaken. She returned the daggers to the chamberlains, then again insulted Macbeth, saying she would be ashamed “[t]o wear a heart so white.” (II,ii,68) She then ordered him to wash his hands, telling him, “[a] little water clears us of this deed.” (II,ii, 70) Macbeth’s inability to stand up to Lady Macbeth showed that she had complete control over him. This was not expected of an Elizabethan wife.
After Macbeth discovers the Witches’ prophecy, he tells his wife, Lady Macbeth, about it. She reacts differently than one would expect a woman to do. She begins to mock Macbeth and ridicule his masculinity. By the conveyance of her speech, Lady Macbeth emphasizes that she is in charge and that Macbeth needs to follow her in order to achieve anything, as she states, “Yet do I fear thy nature;/ It is too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness/To catch nearest way” (1.5.16-18). Shakespeare employs the rhetorical device of a metaphor to describe Lady Macbeth’s view on Macbeth’s personality.
Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine comment in the Introduction to Shakespeare: Othello that sexism is a big factor in the play:
Throughout the length of Shakespeare’s tragedy Othello there is a steady undercurrent of sexism. It is originating from not one, but rather various male characters in the play, who manifest prejudicial, discriminatory attitudes toward women.
Lady Macbeth is one of the most compelling characters who challenges the concept of gender roles. Her relationship with Macbeth is atypical, particularly due to the standards of its time. Lady Macbeth becomes the psychologically controlling force over her husband, essentially assuming a masculine role, in order to inspire the aggression needed to fulfil his ambitions. Through her powerful taunts and persuasion, Lady Macbeth convinces her husband to murder the king and to take his throne. She emasculates over her husband repeatedly, knowing that in his desperation to prove his manhood, he will perform the acts she wishes. In Act 1, Scene 5
The Elizabethan society in which Shakespeare lived during his life held a misogynistic ideology in high esteem. ‘Much Ado about Nothing’ was written in 1598-9, during a time when women were second class citizens compared to males and were considered to be inferior to males in every way. As soon as she was born, a female was her father's property until she was married off by her family when she then became her husband's property. A woman was expected to be seen and not heard, she was to be chaste and submissive. Women were uneducated and undervalued, they were not their own person.
During the Elizabethan era women had a status of subordination towards men. They had a role to marry and oblige to their husband’s wishes. Shakespearean literature, especially illustrates how a woman is psychologically and physically lesser to their male counterpart. The play, Othello, uses that aspect in many different ways. From a Feminist lens others are able to vividly examine how women were subjected to blatant inferiority. Being displayed as tools for men to abuse, women were characterized as possessions and submissive; only during the last portion of the play did the power of women take heed.
“Gender hardly determines the nature of a character, in the plays of Shakespeare. It is for this very reason, that his plays are read, viewed and enjoyed by both the sexes equally, even after five hundred years of their composition” (Singh). Gender is not something that defines what a character is going to be like in Shakespeare’s plays. This quote illuminates that in Shakespeare’s writings females and males were on equal level playing fields when it came to their traits. Females during the time period were considered inferior to men.
Women have always been the backbone of human civilization, whether it be in ancient times or even in the modern era. However, they are oppressed and not given the same fundamental, human rights as men, like access to education, leaving this discrimination and sexism to span over prolonged periods of time. Specifically, sexism is seen during the Elizabethan Era of history when William Shakespeare writes his prominent dramatic piece, Macbeth. In Shakespeare’s tragedy, the prevalent theme of sexism is depicted in the play when Lady Macbeth, a character of strength and ambition, is shown as manipulative and inevitably weak when Shakespeare portrays her eventual downfall and suicide. Throughout the world today, the many different forms of sexism
In Shakespeare’s time, women had very limited rights. They were expected to be submissive to any man no matter the relationship. Women were supposed to do domestic services while the higher-class women were taken to nunneries to like. They were not allowed in any decision-making. If a husband said no, that was the end of the conversation. Women were required to respect their husband’s word and consider it law.
William Shakespeare’s The Tempest provides dialogue that portrays the social expectations and stereotypes imposed upon women in Elizabethan times. Even though the play has only one primary female character, Miranda, the play also includes another women; Sycorax, although she does not play as large a roll. During many scenes, the play illustrates the characteristics that represent the ideal woman within Elizabethan society. These characteristics support the fact that men considered women as a mere object that they had the luxury of owning and were nowhere near equal to them. Feminists can interpret the play as a depiction of the sexist treatment of women and would disagree with many of the characteristics and expectations that make Miranda the ideal woman. From this perspective, The Tempest can be used to objectify the common expectations and treatment of women within the 16th and 17th Centuries and compare and contrast to those of today.
Shakespeare, one of the most famous play writers in history, wrote Macbeth in 1606. Many women were not allowed to perform in plays during that time period; however, Shakespeare did have very few females act out roles in his play (Shakespeare: Sample). Shakespeare viewed his women as strong-willed individuals (“Macbeth.” 227 ) when in reality they were often gone unrecognized (Women in Anglo). The character, Lady Macbeth, was a frightening, ambitious woman. Lady Macbeth often wished to “unsex herself” to carry out the killing of King Duncan on her own as her husband showed no manly characteristics to do it. Women during the Anglo-Saxon time period however, were way different then the way Shakespeare viewed his women during his time period.
William Shakespeare was an English writer who was regarded as one of the best writer during the Elizabethan era. Shakespeare is known for many of his poems and plays that he wrote. Historically women weren’t regarded equally as men were. The education level that was offered during that time was different for men and woman. Woman weren’t getting further education unlike men were. Woman were homeschooled while men went to schools. During the Elizabethan era witches were being prosecuted and executed. William Shakespeare was influenced by the historical and cultural events that took place during the Elizabethan era and implemented it into his play called Macbeth. Major historical events that affected how the play Macbeth was written was witchcraft,