Essay On Women's Rights In Romeo And Juliet

Gender is a common thread that is woven through most major Shakespearean plays. An argument that follows the story lines of works such as Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet and a more dominant role in Othello. Written in 1603, Othello examines the contrast between female and male characters, and where their place is in society. As this was written in a time where women were seen as the lesser sex compared to their male counterparts. Males take on more power hungry roles, drowning out the roles of females by minimizing their thoughts and actions.

Throughout Act 2, Scenes 1 and 2 of Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, the dynamic female character, Juliet, defies patriarchy. While Juliet was talking to Romeo, she asked him, “Dost thou love me? I know thou wilt say “Ay” And I will take thy word. Yet, if thou swear’st, Thou mayst prove false” (Act 2 Scene 2 Lines 90-93).

In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Juliet has a number of distinctive features, one of which is evident through analysis of an important speech. Leading up to this speech, Juliet’s mother, Lady Capulet, enters Juliet’s room. She then proceeds to ask Juliet how she feels regarding the death of her cousin, Tybalt. Juliet does not give much of a response, so Lady Capulet asks, instead, how she feels towards the villain, Romeo, who murdered her cousin. This time, Juliet tells her mother about how she wishes to avenge the death of Tybalt.

All Juliet could think about was Romeo, his exile drove her to want to commit suicide rather than slow down and process her

Traditionally, the men would be generalized as caring mostly about the physical components of a relationship and women generalized as caring mostly about the emotional component. However, in this story the roles are switched. The friar cares about the spiritual aspect and the nurse cares about the physical aspect. Shakespeare is suggesting that gender roles that were previously consistent are now changing or obsolete. Juliet serves as a symbol for all young women and the movement of female individualism and breaking away from the norms of traditional society.

Here is a quote by Stevie Wonder, “If love is sweet as a flower, then my mother is that sweet flower of love.” This is what people would usually say when they talk about their moms. Motherly love is the greatest gift which guides you and always supports you by your side. However, sometimes there are some special cases, and not every mother can be such caring and kind. For example, in William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, there are two characters who both play roles as a mother to Juliet.

Juliet Capulet is a young, innocent girl who lives in Verona, Italy. She wanted to please everyone, especially her parents, but as time went on, Juliet matured into a strong, woman who needed to make her own decisions and find happiness. In the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Juliet matures from a child to a woman. Juliet used to obey the rules but now she follows her heart, she stayed loyal to the person she loved and she relied on everyone else, but now she makes her own decisions. First of all, Juliet matured into a woman throughout the play because she was scared to speak up for herself she soon learned that the best way to be happy was to make her own decisions.

In Juliets case societal rules effect her life and even who she marries.

Their tough archetypes were always present in many plays and reinforced the idea of male superiority. This fact held true, especially for a certain tragic classic by William Shakespeare. There was a misogynistic mentality towards women in Romeo and Juliet, evident through the way women were shown as objects, portrayed as weak, and made to seem unable to dictate their own lives. Men in Romeo and Juliet could be seen acting like owners towards women. Women were seen as nothing more than possessions, as illustrated when Romeo first described Juliet as, “My lady…/my love” (II.ii.10).

Romeo and Juliet is set during Elizabethan age when women had to acquiesce to men. This was known as patriarchal society. It was the time when fathers decided whom they are gonna marry to and whom to not. This period was an internal peace between the English Reformation and battles between Protestants and Catholics.

Yet Shakespeare displays an emancipatory access to woman kind, portrayed as Juliet, due to the reason that she stands up for her own created problems and in the long run matures as a self-confident woman. So, basically Shakespeare has laid out the grounding of emancipation coherent in Juliet’s character. Romeo on the other hand side is insecure that his love won’t be reciprocated. He compares her to the glorious rising sun that’s beauty will be envied on. Yet he struggles between talking to her or to stay hidden.

Each female character is treated by men as a possession. However, there are also moments when they are presented as confident and challenge a male authority. This would have been exiting for Shakespeare’s female Elizabethan audience as women

Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet shows a tragic love affair between a young woman, Juliet, and a young man, Romeo. They are forbidden to marry by their family members because of a long feud between the Montagues and the Capulets. Although many characters faced tragedy in Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet, the character whose life was most tragic was Juliet. One of the reasons Juliet has the most tragic life in the play is that she is forced to marry someone that she does not like at all while at the same time wanting to marry Romeo. Her mom has a party in the begging to meet Pairs.

In today’s world, gender expectations and roles of men and women are a highly debated topic. However, the reconsidering of these expectations is not a new phenomenon. Set in Verona, Italy, the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare explores the reversal and fluidity of characteristics usually assigned to a specific gender. In this play, two young people fall in love and end up tragically taking their lives as a result of their forbidden love. Shakespeare suggests that men are not necessarily masculine, women are not necessarily feminine, and that when people are forced by society to act the way their gender is “supposed” to, problems will arise.

One of the most interesting tings in Shakespeare is his presentation of strong women. Beatrice, Hero, and Juliet are strong women in their play. Beatrice with her strong opinion about not needing a husband, Hero for being strong she was falsely accused of, and Juliet for following her heart to be with Romeo. These women are brave for doing what they believe is right and having their mindset focused. From “Much Ado About Nothing”, Beatrice is a feisty, independent woman, seen by all those around her as such.