Stereotypes In William Shakespeare's Works

I believe that famous writers represent the thoughts, values and beliefs of their times. The works of such writers are usually taken into a certain context, which is what makes their ideas and beliefs meaningful and impactful. The greatest writers however, can express more than a narrow representation of what context they live in. The great William Shakespeare has written numerous sonnets and plays still carry meaning, even if times have changed. Shakespeare is a writer that openly exposes the essence of human emotion through careful sentence structure, complex characters and interesting plotlines. Most of his plays are brilliant because they still exemplify this essence five hundred years after they were first performed. Shakespeare often

Women in this era were not expected to be independent. They often did not choose their husbands as they were expected to bring dowry to a marriage. Here lies Portia’s predicament at the start of the story. She is confined by her society’s conventions. Portia says, “So is the will of a living daughter curbed by a dead father. Is it not hard, Nerissa, that I cannot choose one, nor refuse none?” (1.2.25-26). Her dead father’s will symbolizes the restrictions and expectations for women in Shakespeare’s time. Women were also seen more as objects that were to be won. This is symbolized by the lottery, where Portia would be given to any man who wins. The Prince of Morocco decides that “Why, that’s the lady! All the world desires her. From the four corners they come to kiss this shrine…” (2.7.44-46). Portia finally breaks out of the mold after her Bassanio wins her love. In Elizabethan England, a woman was expected to stay at home and let the men do the real work. Portia challenges that by going to Venice and fighting in court for Antonio. Portia disguises herself as a lawyer, which was a solely a man’s job. Portia also gives an insightful speech about the quality of mercy. “The quality of mercy is not strained” she begins. “It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven upon the place beneath” (4.1.190-191). Portia’s argument is a challenge to the common role of a women in her era, instead of watching men control society with their ideas, she steps up and makes her voice heard. An ironic twist to this theme is that all the actors of any play in Shakespeare’s time were male. Despite this irony, I would still argue that Shakespeare is trying to challenge gender roles in his era. Even in today’s world, we are all influenced by certain gender roles; the fact that we can still connect to Shakespeare’s message makes Shakespeare’s