Facets of Female Agency in three of Shakespeare's Works

Shakespeare's Characters Juliet, Beatrice and Lady Macbeth as Examples of a New Female Agency in Shakespearian Times

Tesis (Bachelor) , 2017 , 40 Páginas , Calificación: 1,0

Filología inglesa - Literatura

In this Bachelor thesis I will analyse Juliet, Beatrice and Lady Macbeth's agency in relation to the plays' plots, the outer and inner processes of the plays and characters, their relationships to men and their own character traits. I will do so against the background of the usual image of women in Shakespearian times.

In order to do so, I will first outline the typical gender roles in Shakespearian times, focusing especially on activity and passivity. This will then be applied to Shakespeare's plays. First, Juliet will be the focus of this paper, followed by Beatrice and after that Lady Macbeth. I will look at their characters development following the chronological order of events in the plays. This will illustrate the development of agency in Shakespeare's plays and also its limits. In the sixth chapter, the similarities between the examined characters will be pointed out to illuminate Shakespeare's approach in more general terms and to make a final judgement about Juliet, Beatrice and Lady Macbeth as non-typical women in the 16th and 17th century.

All in all, the Bachelor thesis in hand aims at answering the following questions: What are the typical gender roles in Shakespearian times with special reference to agency? In how far does Shakespeare establish a new female agency in the exemplary plays Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing and Macbeth, and how is this agency represented individually by the characters Juliet, Beatrice and Lady Macbeth?

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Active and Passive Gender Roles in Shakespearian Times

3. Romeo and Juliet - Loving Juliet
3.1 Act One - Agency in Mind
3.2 Act Two - Prompting the Plot
3.3 Act Three - Keeping Up Agency Despite All Burdens
3.4 Act Four - Acting Out the Plan
3.5 Act Five - Suicidal Agency

4. Much Ado About Nothing - Witty Beatrice
4.1 Act One - Agency in Eloquence
4.2 Act Two - Agency in Refusing to Act
4.3 Act Three - A Changing Course of Action
4.4 ActFour-Demanding Agency
4.5 Act Five - Silenced Agency

5. Macbeth - Strategic Lady Macbeth
5.1 Act One - Manipulative Agency
5.2 Act Two - Acting Out the Regicide
5.3 Act Three - Fading Agency
5.4 ActFive-The Loss of Agency

6. Comparing the Three Women

7. Conclusion

8. Bibliography

• Universidad: University of Duisburg-Essen (Anglophone Studies)
• Calificación: 1,0
• Autor: Master of Education Marie Sophie Jendrusch (Autor)
• Año de publicación: 2017
• Páginas: 40
• No. de catálogo: V1236049
• ISBN (PDF): 9783346656841
• ISBN (Libro): 9783346656858
• Idioma: Inglés
• Etiqueta: William Shakespeare, Lady Macbeth, Macbeth, Beatrice, Much Ado About Nothing, Juliet, Romeo and Juliet, Women, Gender, Shakespearian Times