ABSTRACT
Women in Shakespeare works: A case study of Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra
Early critism of female characters in Shakespeare’s drama focused on the positive attributes the play Wright bestows on them and often claimed that Shakespeare realistically captured the “essence” of feminity Helen Zimmeru in the preface to English translation of Louis Lewes’s study; The Women Of Shakespeare argued in 1985 that of Shakespeare dramatis personae, “his women are perhaps the most attractive and also in a sense his most original creation so different are they as a whole, from the ideals of the feminine’s type prevalent in the literature of his days”.
Lewes himself strikes a similar tone of praise in his conclusion. “The poet magic wand has laid open the depths of women nature where in beside lovely and exquisite emotion terrible passion play their dangerous and fatal-part: in the early period of Shakespeare the uses of women is characterized by a very conventional tone and treatment and the confirmation of females submission . the editor of a 1983 collection called the woman’s part, referencing three books by women authors from the 19th century (an authoritative book Shakespeare Heroines by Anna Jameson originally publisher 1832, and two fictional biographies in novel from two of Shakespeare heroines from 1885) conclude that these early critics are “uneasy” when Shakespeare’s heroines behave “unwomanly” and that adoptions of their stories “praise girlish sweetness and modestly in a style that today appears effusive”.
Lady Macbeth in Macbeth is a female character even more obsessed with power she is a “sexless” character who seems to have forgotten that she was born a women. Together with her husband, she seems to have been built after a devilish pattern. Evil and ambition gradually take over her soul and deeds, worsening her consciousness’ she therefore, used to think that consciousness is only for the coward ones, by the sentiment of guilt and her only salvation is death but the one who dies is not as much the females as it is a person dominated by the distorted sense of power.
In other hand, ‘Queen of love’ Cleopatra. The character is one dominated by love she’s forever waiting for the man, and even though she’s a queen. The kingdom is limited to her love. She embodies the feminine eternity. The wars outside are but children’s play as compared to the war inside her soul.
The project therefore examines how Shakespeare handle women in his plays. This will be divided into five(5) chapters, as shown bellow for purpose of cleanly;
CHAPTER ONE
1.1 THE BACKGROUND OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
William Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford, England. His baptism was recorded on April, 23, 1564. He had a total of seven brothers and sisters, and he was the oldest surviving son. Due to culture and ways of his time, scholars presume that Shakespeare stopped attending school at the age of 15. His education on included intense emphasis on Latin grammar and classic literature. (http://www.shakespeare-literature.com).
The Elizabethan Era signified the high point of Shakespeare’s career. Through no one knows exactly how much work Shakespeare published he is believed to have written approximately 38 plays, 154 sonnets.
On November 27, 1582, Shakespeare married 26 year old Anne Hathaway who was six month pregnant at the time. Together, they had three children Susanna and twins Ham net and Judith. After the birth of the children, there is a period of time considered the “lost year” because little is known about Shakespeare’s life. However it is estimated that he started writing in 1585 and his plays were on stage by 1592. Shakespeare was fortunately professional theatre. Even until the early 1960’s the theatre was frowned upon, theatre consisted of open field and actors who were often compared to beggars and made very little income.
Shakespeare was an important proponents of a movement to advance the status of professional theatre. Shakespeare and his crew the kings men built the famous globe theatre and helped advance threaten to unforeseen heights.
By the year 1598, Shakespeare was well known around England for his comedies, tragedies and problem plays. Through Shakespeare was a prominent artist during his day. The popularity of his works did not explode until the 19th century. Shakespeare made his will on the 25th of march 1616, apparently in some haste as the executed deed in a draft with many erasure and interlineations. There were legacies to his daughter Judith, Quinecy and his sister Joan Hart, and remembrances to friends both in Warwickshire and in London.
The following list gives the date of the first Quarto of each such play and also that of any later Quarto which differs materially from the first.
The Quarto editions:
Titus Andronicus (1954). A midsummer Night’s Dream. Henry vi (1595). The Merchant of Venice (1600). Richard ii (1597). Much Ado about nothing (1600). Romeo and Juliet (1599); (1602). Love’s labours lost (1598). Henry iv (1598). King Lear (1608).
18th century antiquaries, William Oldys and Joseph Greene, gave it as April 23, but without quoting authority for their statement and the fact that, April 23 was the day of Shakespeare’s death in 1616 suggests a possible source of error.
1.2 INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Women in Shakespeare is a topic within the general discussion of Shakespeare’s dramatic and poetic works. Women appear as supporting central characters in Shakespeare’s plays, and these characters, as well as the so called “Dark lady” of the sonnets, have elicitied a substantial amount of critism, which received added impetus during the second wave feminism of the 1960’s
Recent critics take a variety of approaches to the topic for feminist critics influenced by French feminism, the analysis of the female body in Shakespeare’s plays has proven fruitful. Women and representation on Shakespeare’s stage (2001), focuses for instance on the body of Cordelia, as her father, king lear, carries her on the stage on the body of Ophelia in the grave, and on the bodies of the two women on the bed at the end of Othello, “a play that destroy women”.
Some notable female characters in Shakespeare’s works are as follow;
Baatrice, in Much ado about nothing; Cleopatra in Antony and Cleopatra; Cordeliar, in king lear Cressida, in Troilus and Cresside. Desdemona, in Othello. Goneril, in king lear. Hermia, in A Midsummer night’s dream. Hero, in Much Ado About nothing. Hermione, in A winter’s tale. Imonen in Cymbeline. Isabella, in Measure for measure Julia, in The two gentlemen of Verona. Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. Ketherina in, the taming of the shew. Lady Macbeth in Macbeth.Lavinia Andtonicus in Titus Andronicus. Mirando in The Tem pest. Olivia, in Twelth Night. Volumia in Coriolanns. Ophelie in Hamlet. Portia in The merchant of Venice. The princess of France in Love’s Labour’s lost. Rosalind, in As you like it.
Building on the assumption that differences between the sexes in tragedy and defined through competion representations of heroism, this aspect shall take a closer look at the representation of gender in two pre-modern tragedies in Shakespeare’s Machbeth and Antony and Cleopatra.
1.3 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Generally the roles ascribed to women in literacy circle are often very limited. Most early literacy writers are men and of course more often than not assigned stereotyped roles to the their female characters. Critics have even observed Shakespeare to be a major part of this type of men as many of his female characters are mere supporters of their husband and emmeshed with domestic.
However, a clearer study and analysis of Shakespeare’s Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra will reveal that this allegation is unfounded. The women in both plays take part and also play dominant roles.
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This study is significant as it aims at examine the role of women in Shakespearian works; especially as it effects them as women and their place in a patriarchal society. It is therefore going to be useful to all literature students, researchers on women issues, and also serve as reference material in school libraries.
1.5 SCOPE OF STUDY
The research covers just the role of women in Shakespeare’s works; Macbeth and Antony and cleoputra.
1.6 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
In order to do a through analysis and justice to the study, more Shakespearian texts that based on the roles of women need to be examined, But given financial constraint and limited time at the disposal of researcher, this project is limited to Macbeth and Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare.