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Culture in the Elizabethan age
The position of women in the 16th century
Culture in the Elizabethan age
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In the late 16th century England experienced poverty, starvation, increase in population, inequality amongst women and men, and lack of opportunity in the work force. During this time England was torn between two religions, Catholicism and Protestantism. England’s economy was primarily agricultural, workers were tied to their land. Due to the social inequality of the 16th century, women were limited to their rights and men were superior. Women worked in the clothing industry and men worked primarily on the farm. Due to the economic hardships in England, men and women migrated to London for a better life. The nation was under the rule of Queen Elizabeth, who surpassed the restrictions placed on women. This paper explores the shortcomings and hardships experienced in Elizabethan England. Living in England in the late sixteenth century, people were dependent on status and occupation; the rich lived luxuriously while the poor were subjected to low wages, scare resources, diseases, and famine. “The gap between the rich and the poor seems to have widened in the 1570s and 1580s; wealth and power are concentrated in the hands of the few, and many people can’t even find a job” (Papp and Kirkland 4). Agriculture was the most important industry in the Elizabethan economy. The majority of people in the 16th century lived in the country, and were dependent on harvest and farming. Men were farmers and women were subjected to household duties such as domestic work and spinning wool to make clothing. As a farmer men were responsible for the fieldwork, plowing, weeding, mowing, herding animals, and harvesting agricultural products. People were financially deprived despite their occupation in farming and spinning; income was at its lowest: You com... ... middle of paper ... ...izabethan times, the teachings of biology suggested that women’s bodies are cold and moist which suggest that they are passive, timid, and hesitating humans. Their bodies supported the concept that women were meant be dominated by men. “The supposed yielding softness and frailty of women’s bodies was all the proof anyone needed of women’s all-around weakness, for most Elizabethan firmly believed that the deposition of the mind is answerable to the temper of the body” (Papp and Kirkland 75). In Elizabethan England, women were controlled, restricted, and stereotyped. They played a role in which society forced upon them. Their existence was beneficial to the growth and development of man. Queen Elizabeth the ruler of England, surpassed the restrictions held on women. She is an exception to the rules, contradicting many of the gender roles of the sixteenth century.
During the 14th century, England was a very rural country where most of the population worked and lived in the countryside. London was one of the major cities that England had and stood in it’s own class. There were a total of 70,000 people who live...
When researching daily life in the Elizabethan Era, there were two prominent social classes throughout most of England. The upper or noble class families were akin to today’s upper class. However, the low-class families were much different from today’s low-class families. The gap between the two classes was so huge and a majority of England was impecunious. Most of the low class was orphans, abandoned wives, widows, the infirm, and the elderly. Each class, even the ones in the middle would despise anyone in a class lower than their own (Forgeng 21). Due to a lack of education, an overload of household responsibilities, and a lack of social acceptance, low-class Elizabethan English children were unable to flourish.
"We may say that the dominant ideas in most societies are the ideas of the dominant sex, associated and mingled with those of dominant class." (Chedgzoy, pg.50) During the Elizabethan time men dominated society. Historically speaking males have always held more power then females in most cultures. Although a few cultures were Matriarchal societies. Yet even in these cultures women were not the superior power but were valued as equal to men. Most of the matriarchal societies viewed women as the embodiment of the goddess. Women have never been the sole dominant sex in a society. The fall of the Matriarchal societies occurred mostly from the organization of Christianity. The Christian ideals taught that women were not intended to have influential roles in society. In the Elizabethan era women were in a weak social position. In addition when Shakespeare writes about women he encompasses the complex issues that socially surround females. Shakespeare allows the audience to observe issues that effect their own factual society acted out on stage. At this time the society was definitely patriarchal, where women were viewed as inferior. In addition women had little to no power over there own lives. Fathers viewed their daughters as their propriety. Which left daughters in a powerless position. The power that women did have was their personal sexuality, virginity was prized and seen as a jewel. Once daughters were married their husbands also valued them as propriety. "Marriages were still arranged, as they had been in the Middle Ages, to further the interests of land-owning families. On marriage all the girl's legal rights ceas...
Secondly, Elizabethan women were considered to be inferior to men. The life of Elizabethan women was certainly a tough - arranged marriages, subordination to men, short life expectancy, constant child bearing and no right to education, no voting, not political participation, etc. were crucial facts about Elizabethan women’s life. Elizabethan women were categorized class wise as: Upper Class, Royal Class, Lower Class Elizabethan women. Elizabethan women were considered subordinate to men and they were dependent on males. They were also used for alliance with powerful families through arranged marriages not only in the lower class, but also in the ...
Before we move to the main argument, there is a question to be answered: what did it mean to be masculine or feminine in the Elizabethan era? Russ McDonald's The Bedford Companion to Shakespeare is an excellent source in making this distinction. According to McDonald, women were expected to concern themselves with marriage and motherhood only, and to submit themselves to their fathers and then their husbands in all ways. Considered "weaker vessels," women were not held to have either "strength or constancy of mind." Subordination, submission, and skill in caregiving were valued in women, and they we...
During the Elizabethan era, men were more powerful and the more significant gender type, while women were more obedient and silent. This gender difference influenced how the society viewed women during this time. In “Women in the Renaissance and Reformation” the author discussed about how the women had different jobs then the men did. The men had to do the more work in the family, while the women were sitting at home watching the kids or doing something that was not very productive. The roles women played in their family included “a daughter, then a wife, mother, or widow.” On the contrary, men’s roles were “generally defined by social position or occupation, as in a merchant, knight, priest, peasant and more.” (Carnagie 541). Women were subservient to their men. They relied on their male relatives to support and take care of them while they could have been taking care of themselves. “Before the renaissance even occurred, men dominated European society and women lacked power to challenge them. After about 1400, however, women began to demand for som...
Upon the death of her sister--in November of 1558--Elizabeth ascended to the thrown of England. Until Mary’s rule, no woman--apart from the unrecognized rule of Matilda, daughter of Henry I--had ruled England of her own right1. Much like her sister, Elizabeth began her rule widely accepted and welcomed2. There were, however, still many who felt that women were unable to rule, being that women were said to be the weaker sex. John Knox argued that, “God by the order of his creation hath spoiled women of authority and dominion, [and] also that man hath seen, proved and pronounced just causes why that it so should be.”3 Women had always been no more then property, first to their fathers and then their husbands. If a women were to be the anointed queen of a realm of her own right and then marry, whom was beholden to whom? A woman was to do as instructed by her husband in all things, yet a sovereign was to be under the command of God only.
In conclusion, deprived and separated from royality and an illegitimate child, she transpired into a woman of great power. Queen Elizabeth managed to hold together a struggling country and became known as one of England’s most influential rulers. She reinstated its power throughout her solitary forty five year reign, and in doing so became widely respected, not only during her own lifetime but for generations to come.
Women were valued in the Middle Ages, but only as an economic commodity (Mundy 212). They served two main functions within medieval society: child bearer and manual laborer. Because women represented a large source of cheap labor, they quickly became the mainstay of the medieval economy. In many cases they would work along side men in the fields. However, women were paid less than children's wages for their work (Cipolla 234). The Church would not allow women to hold jobs that required literacy (Mundy 209). In fact, aside from hard labor the only occupation open to women was midwifery. "In hospital work women were almost as important as men" (Mundy 210). The textile industry was dominated by women, especially the woolen and silk industries (Cipolla 200). Though women enjoyed virtual domination in these crafts, they were still paid next to nothing. In addition to the intense labor, women had household duties to fulfill, especially if a woman was married (Cipolla 266)....
This book offers up an easy to follow explanation of women's lives in the Middle Ages including information on the different social levels and their lives at home.
Chesapeake society was unique in more ways than one. For example, for men and women to marry more than once in their lifetime was very common(Berkin, 5). This being said, women married at a very young age and usually pregnant every two years. Some men seemed to be lucky to have a wife because the male to women ratio was six to one. Most women 's lives consisted of bearing a child, working in the fields with the men, or often times both. The social norm in this time was that women did tasks similar to men in the fields while also tending to a child and taking care of the household. Tending to household tasks was especially hard due to the lack of basic household tools. This made kitchen duties much more time consuming. “The tasks of childbearing and household and fieldwork were the primary
Elizabeth led England during it’s greatest time of influence as a nation despite the prejudices against her gender. Many people believe that her life was like a fairy tale-“Beloved by the kingdom; dressed by servants in jewels and gold, silk and velvet; pampered and treasured by kings and married to princes”, but in reality her life did not come close to being a fairy tale. Many of her subjects hater her from the moment she was born. She experienced imprisonment, her sister threatened to kill her, and she was almost forced in marriages with men she hated. Some of her friends caused uprisings in her name. Her enemies tried to assassinate her. Her father had her mother beheaded and ignored her for most of her life. Although she had many suitors, she never loved any of them. She understood the common people and eventually gained the loyalty of those who hated her. She could also be ruthless. The city gates and London Bridge held the bodies of the people that she executed during her reign.
Understanding the way women both were controllers of and controlled by social, political and cultural forces in the medieval period is a complex matter. This is due to a number of factors- the lack of documentation of medieval women, high numbers of illiteracy amongst women, especially lower class, medieval sources being viewed through a contemporary lens and the actual limitations and expectations placed upon women during the period, to name a few. The primary sources: The Treasure of The City of Ladies by Catherine of Siena and Peter of Blois’ letter to Eleanor of Aquitaine concerning her rebellion, highlight the restrictions women were expected to adhere to, and the subsequent reprimanding that occurred when they didn’t. Women were not passive victims to the blatant patriarchal standards that existed within medieval society, even though ultimately they would be vilified for rebelling.
Queen Elizabeth I, also known as the “Iron Queen”, was a remarkable woman of her time, she ruled with great power and longevity. She was one of the greatest feminist of time. Coming to the throne in 1558, she took the place of her father, Henry VIII. She was given one of the most difficult jobs fit for a man or King, ruling England. At the time women were second class citizens, they could not vote nor own properties and such. Surprising England with her intelligence and fierce rulings, she changed herself to make better decisions. She proved through her rulings, to everyone that females were strong and could rule just as well as a king. She refused to marry, giving a feeling of “I don’t need a man for anything.” The Queen was responsible for giving females a voice in literature and it is shown through Shakespeare’s writings.
Lambert, Tim. "Daily Life in England in The Middle Ages." (2014): n. pag. Web. 29 May