Examples Of Patriarchy In Romeo And Juliet

In the Elizabethan period, women were subordinate to men. They were considered to be ‘inferior' beings who were controlled by their husbands, fathers or any other men in the family. Women were not allowed to hold their own opinions, views or lifestyles. Men had control of everything, some of these included money, politics, work, children, women and home.

One might think that masculinity is only a mental and ethical issue, yet throughout the tragic play of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, masculinity proves to be a two headed beast that not only is a mental but also physical problem. All the way from the beginning in scene 1.1 to the final scene of act 5, there was constant conflict occurring with short breaks of love and triumph collapsed by more ensuing conflict. Furthermore, a majority of this clash between the two families, Capulets and Montagues, was indirectly or directly evoked by the masculine behavior exerted by the men in the story. All things considered, the tragedy where two lovers upon many others meet their ultimate fate of death would have never been a tragedy without all of the masculinity that all of the men characters seem to exude. All throughout this essay, it will become more apparent that the idea of the internal and external need for masculinity in the men has consequently kindled the fire of conflict between the Montagues and Capulets in the tragedy because of the status quo, disrespect for women, and mindset of a masculine man.

In the play, Romeo and Juliet written by William Shakespeare , an important idea is sexism and the way men and women are treated differently. This is important because it was an issue in the play and is still an issue in some parts of society today. At the beginning of the play, we see Juliet behave well, follow instructions and do as her Father says. At first, when Juliet is told she must marry Paris, she tries to be gentle and quietly express her love for Romeo without causing trouble.

Throughout Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, there is an overlaying presence of the typical roles that men and women were supposed to play. During Elizabethan times there was a major difference between the way men and women were supposed to act. Men typically were supposed to be masculine and powerful, and defend the honor. Women, on the other hand, were supposed to be subservient to their men in their lives and do as ever they wished. In Romeo and Juliet the typical gender roles that men and women were supposed to play had an influence on the fate of their lives.

Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet in the 16th century, at a time when the role of the woman was to be subservient to men and act as a wife to their husband and a mother to their children. Women were expected to conform to the expectations of society, and were seen as possessions by their fathers and husbands. Fathers arranged their daughters’ marriages, usually for financial or social gain for the family. In Romeo and Juliet, the unfair treatment of women is conveyed through characters such as Juliet, a young girl who is growing up within the expectations of society, and Lady Capulet, who represents a traditional side of love, and values social position rather than men themselves.

In a patriarchal society, women are expected to conform to social restrictions by demonstrating reverence and obedience to the males in their lives. Shakespeare's tragic play, Romeo and Juliet, explores the effects of patriarchal authority exerted over women and how the patriarchal structure left no escape from it, save death. Through Juliet, Lady Capulet, and the Nurse, Shakespeare establishes a common understanding of this type of society, but illuminates three different reactions to the social oppression by portraying the responses of a passionate lover, an idyllic housewife, and an attendant.

William Shakespeare is the world’s pre-eminent dramatist whose plays range from tragedies to tragic comedies, etc. His general style of writing is often comparable to several of his contemporaries, like Romeo and Juliet is based on Arthur Brooke’s narrative poem, “The tragical history of Romeo and Juliet”. But Shakespeare’s works express a different range of human experience where his characters command the sympathy of audiences and also are complex as well as human in nature. Shakespeare makes the protagonist’s character development central to the plot.

Compare and contrast the presentation of gender in two films we have looked at on the course

In the emotional play, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, there are three characters that help the tragic plot ensue as dramatically as its supposed to. Two teens separated by bad blood between their families fall passionately in love with each other at first sight. When Juliet is faced with making the decision to either leave her family for good or agree to an arranged marriage where she might never see Romeo again, she makes some desperate decisions that cost the life of her and her lover. As stated before there are three main characters who play important roles in this ever so dramatic and tragic love story. Tybalt, Juliets nurse, and Lord Capulet all have unique traits that make them the main contributors to the main plot of this play.

During the time period of Shakespeare, gender roles were a huge part in every woman and man’s life and tell each individual how he or she should behave and exist. In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (1597), the portrayal of a working class woman is seen through the Nurse, in Verona. The Nurse is an older woman whom works as a trusted servant in the Capulet household, which includes Juliet. The gender roles were strict within the household during Shakespeare’s time and the females were taught to be disciplined and obey by being a lady in a patriarchal family system. The Nurse serves and shows this discipline by playing an important role as a messenger to Romeo to gather all the details to their secret marriage to make Juliet pleased.

Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet in the 16th century, at a time where the role of the woman was to be subservient to men and act as a wife to their husband and a mother to their children. Women were expected to conform to the expectations of society, and were seen as possessions by their fathers and husbands. Fathers arranged their daughters’ marriages, usually for financial or social gain for the family. In Romeo and Juliet, the unfair treatment of women is conveyed through characters such as Juliet, a young girl who is growing into the expectations of society, and Lady Capulet, who represents a traditional side of love and values social position rather than men themselves.

Genders are portrayed through the way people act or feel, females often times being dainty and weak while men are headstrong and determined. However, in "Romeo and Juliet", written by William Shakespeare, gender roles or conventions are broken by displaying a headstrong female and an emotionally weak male. There are many ways in which gender conventions are broke. For example, in act one, scene one, line 170, Romeo performs a monologue, "Oh brawling love, oh loving hate..." Generally seen as something a woman would do, he pities himself.

Representation of Women in Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet ” Women were finally allowed the right to vote in 192, back in Shakespeare’s time they were thought of as even less that they are now. Back in the 1500s women were thought of as property or objects that men own, it would make sense that Shakespeare thought this way as well. When reading “Romeo and Juliet” the reader can establish Shakespeare’s standpoint on how women were just objects and property of men.

Author and civil rights activist Maya Angelou once said, “How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!”. When one thinks of comic books, it is very likely that the subjects that come to mind are Marvel’s Spiderman or DC’s Batman. Although comic books are stereotypically thought to be mainly about super heroes, there are a wide variety of subject matter they could be written about, such as romance. In the 1950s – 1960s, it was common for these romance comics to exploit the social norms of that time and emphasized the subject of gender roles. While the men in comic books were usually illustrated in a brave heroic manner, the women would be portrayed to be what would now be considered a stereotypical “trophy wife”. As a young child reading these comics and taking in these images, they are slowly molding their ideals to believe that what they are reading and seeing is what is accepted and normal in their society. By coding gender norms into the texts, authors are helping mold the ideology of its readers to believe that it is acceptable for both genders to follow specific rules that accommodate to the believed social norms of the time.

I feel that the female gender makes a more dramatic impact on the play. Juliet’s independent personality and stubbornness with her parents isn’t something that normal girls would do at that time. The fact that the nurse decided to help Juliet shows just how determined the female gender can get, because if Juliet’s parents had found out they would have gotten rid of her immediately. Also, when Juliet goes to friar Lawrence’s to request help, he helps her. This could have caused him a lot of problems with the prince.