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presentation of love and marriage in As you like it by Shakespeare
gender and attraction in Shakespeare's As You Like It
gender and attraction in Shakespeare's As You Like It
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It is present from the beginning of William Shakespeare's play As You Like It, that the qualities within male and female relationships are vastly different. Some of the most vital elements within the play are these bonds between the same-sex relationships and the strength of them to endure hardships. Oliver and Orlando’s strained fraternal relationship is consumed by brotherly resentment, disloyalty and blunt abusive behaviour evident from the outbreak of disagreements that occur between the two men. In distinct contrast, the relationship between Celia and Rosalind is portrayed by Shakespeare to be filled with undeniable devotion, concern and respect between the two women throughout the duration of the play. It is from these relations that we can infer that Shakespeare is intentionally portraying relations between female as the healthier, more productive relationship when compared to the male ones in the play. The polarity between gender relationships is a stark contrast; one that is emphasized and enforced by the decisions and actions undertaken by characters in the play, especially within scenes found in Act One.
In Shakespeare's play, the death of a male figurehead in a noble family traditionally requires the eldest male heir to take his younger siblings under his care and provide for them. Despite the ‘noblesse oblige’ expectation in the society of the play, Oliver continues to disregard his youngest brother’s needs, leaving Orlando to fend for himself. Oliver does not realize the potential harm his negligence is causing Orlando from an intellectually and social standpoint. Orlando’s lack of education will preventing him from integrating into society. The young Orlando becomes resentful of his older brother because Oliver is ...
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...enders as they were in Elizabethan society through common relationship stereotypes; the docile nature of women in relationship versus the aggressive, territorial nature of men. However, with the textual evidence provided in various encounters between individuals of the same-sex, males relationships, especially between brothers, are shown by Shakespeare to be filled with resentment and disloyalty, whereas female relationships are filled with love and honesty.
Works Cited
Shakespeare, William. As You Like It. Ed. Leah S. Marcus. New York: Norton & Company, 2012. Print.
Bevington, David. “As You Like It: Critical Reception.” Internet Shakespeare Editions, University of Victoria, 2010. http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Library/Texts/AYL/intro/ CriticalSurvey/work/
William Shakespeare, As You Like It, dir. Kenneth Branagh (HBO and BBC Films, 2006), YouTube.
In Shakespearean time and even up to the turn of the 20th Century men were expected to be the sole provider of the family, entailing them to be either well educated or hard working. They were also expected to be good with the handling of finances and property. It was also acceptable for them to be barbaric, boisterous and socially well connected. This has given the men of this time an overwhelming sense of power, respect and freedom; rights which were not given to women at this time. Far from what was socially acceptable in regards to men, the gender identity of women was of a somewhat weaker nature. Women during Shakespearean time were regarded as docile, quiet and non-opinionated. Their socially acceptable role in many cases was to be domestic, entailing them to spend countless hours in the home, tending to basic familial needs, such as cooking and cleaning. This position prevented many women to receive an education or to socialize outside of the home. As a result of their inferior social status, they were expected to be submissive and to cater to her husband’s needs at all times. Women in Shakespearean time were also treated as property, either by their husbands or fathers, which diminished any sense of self-worth they may have possessed. This gender ideology ultimately paralyzed women, as the majority were helpless to alter their social standing or designated familial role.
Novy, Marianne L. Love’s Argument: Gender Relations in Shakespeare. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1984.
Shakespeare, William. As You Like It. The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. New York: W.W. Norton Company, 1997.
Neely, Carol Thomas. “Shakespeare’s Women: Historical Facts and Dramatic Representations.” Shakespeare’s Personality. Ed. Norman N. Holland, Sidney Homan, and Bernard J. Paris. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1989. 116-134.
Imagine being a woman in sixteenth century Europe. Females were raised to believe that they were subservient and that men knew better on any subject. Basically, women had no rights. They were considered property, first “owned” by their fathers and then control was “transferred” to the husband chosen for them. Marriage was not about love, but in most cases, it was a business deal that was mutually beneficial to both families – an interesting fact is that like young women, most young men had no choice in the selection of their future betrothed. These traditions and the gender roles assumed by men and women at that time had an impact on Shakespeare’s writing and performances and a great example of this is evident in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Scott, Mark W., ed. "As You Like It." Shakespeare Criticism. Vol. V. Detroit, Michigan: Gale Research Co., 1987.
Shakespeare, William. The Norton Shakespeare. Edited Stephen Greenblatt et al. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1997.
Orgel, Stephen, and Sean Keilen. Shakespeare and Gender. New York: Garland Pub., 1999. Online text.
The theme for honour and fidelity apply for both men and women in Shakespeare’s play ‘much ado about nothing’. Honour and fidelity is represented very differently for men and women as it would have been for the people in Elizabethan times. In this first section of the essay, I will be exploring double standards and Shakespeare’s awareness of the double standards between sexes and his feminist approach, the differences of honour and fidelity for men and women and upper class and lower class comparisons.
Wadsworth, Frank W. "Shakespeare, William." World Book Online American Edition. Online Edition. Online. Netzero. 26 Mar 2002.
It is well known that Shakespeare’s comedies contain many marriages, some arranged, some spontaneous. During Queen Elizabeth's time, it was considered foolish to marry for love. However, in Shakespeare’s plays, people often marry for love. With a closer look into two of his most famous plays As You Like It and Twelfth Night or What You Will, I found that while marriages are defined and approached differently in these two plays, Shakespeare’s attitudes toward love in both plays share similarities. The marriages in As You Like It’s conform to social expectation, while the marriages are more rebellious in Twelfth Night. Love, in both plays, was defined as
Shakespeare, William. The Norton Shakespeare. Edited Stephen Greenblatt et al. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1997.
Shakespeare, William. As You Like It. Trans. Gayle Holste. Hauppauge, NY: Barron's Educational Series, 2009. Print.
Novy, Marianne. Love's Argument: Gender Relations in Shakespeare. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1984
Shakespeare, William. 'As You Like It.' The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt et al. New York: W. W. Norton & Co., Inc., 1997. 1600-1656.