gender Flashcards
Act 1 scene 1-brawl
Masculinity and male pride is heavily associated with destructive behaviour. By putting this scene at the beginning of the play, Shakespeare establishes how male conflict and violence pervades the play. Presents to the audience the calibre of the feud and lengths men will go to in order to defend their pride.
“Do you bite your thumb at me, sir?”
Men would rather fight than be perceived as cowards
“women being the weaker vessels, are ever thrust to the wall”-Sampson
Male dominance is established through the submission of women, as well as the excursion of their aggression
Violence paired with sexual imagery/crude language
Men believe they have the right to treat women how they like as they are ‘weaker vessels’
“Naked weapon”
sexual inuendo of phallic imagery
‘weapon’ reinforces male domination over women
Romeo not being masculine
“softened valor’s steel!”- exclamative
Shakespeare subverts masculinity as Romeo is described as having ‘tears’ etc.
Romeo struggles with masculinity and it develops throughout the play
His emotion of bravery should be strong but it has been softened.
Murder and revenge cause Romeo to defend his masculinity and as a result he kills Tybalt in a murderous rage.
R+J not fitting in society
Romeo and Juliet both don’t constrain to the patriarchy
perhaps Shakespeare is challenging the patriarchy as they both die.
They both try to alter their position in the great chain of being, therefore they are punished through their relationship with one another.
Juliet’s strong nature could also be seen to be a perversion of the Great chain of being, as in terms of the structure, she would have violated her role as a woman by not being submissive as she disobeyed her father’s orders to marry Paris
“O calm, dishonourable, vile submission.”- Mercutio act 3 scene 1
Mercutio wants to uphold the patriarchy and male code of honour. ‘submission’- compliment to women but an insult to men. Mercutio is horrified that Romeo wont fight.
