gender (toxic masculinity and treatment of women) Flashcards
Women
stereotypes of Venetian women, this manifests in Othello when the male characters are quick to assume that their wives are unfaithful
Women were subordinates to men during the 16th and 17th centuries, and we see this manifested
in Othello. When they married, everything they owned became their husband’s possession;
wives themselves were even considered one of theirs. Fathers were expected to choose a
husband for their daughters
marriage
During the 16th century the rules of marriage reflected the patriarchal society. Men made all the decisions for the family, and women were expected to be
subservient and obedient. Assertive women were considered a threat to the social order.
As is made very clear in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, fathers would often choose a husband for their daughters from a similar or higher social and economic rank. Marriage was considered to be much more like a business transaction and a way of improving a family’s finances and status.
sexuality and setting
Many Jacobean plays set in Italy feature courtesans and adulteresses. Venice was renowned for its large number of courtesans.
Emilia’s description of adultery as “ a small vice” encapsulates the perceived immorality of Venetian women.
Iago tells Othello “In Venice they do let God see the pranks/ They dare not show their husbands…Is not to leave’t undone, but keep’t unknown”
Iago implies that Desdemona is sexually corrupt
Iago’s use of “land carrack”
double meaning
1. treasure ship
2.slang term for a prostitute
importance of masculine honour
Iago raises topic of “Good name in man and woman” before revealing suspicions about D and C. A wife’s chastity was part of her husband’s honour.
Bianca’s significance
Bianca- meaning white, thus signifying purity and decency, appears ironic, given her role as a courtesan. However, her love for Cassio is indeed genuine and honest
the word “whore” was the most common term of abuse used to insult women in seventeenth-century England
It could be used to refer to a professional courtesan or a dissolute and bad-natured woman. When Othello uses the word to abuse his wife, he is also degrading himself as a wife’s good reputation was an integral part of a man’s honour.
superiority of men over women with religious backup
During the Renaissance, many believed that men were intellectually and morally superior to women because of Christian teachings. A Protestant clergyman wrote a diatribe against female rulers and said “ a woman ought to serve her husband as unto God, affirming that in nothing has woman equal power with man.”
Inferior treatment of women
Women are thought to be incapable of rational thought, they rarely received an education. Assertive and argumentative women were seen as a social threat and were punished in forms of torture such as being publicly mocked.
stereotypes of women in courtly literature
