Winters Tale (Feminism)

Question 1

Antigto L, ostensibly in defense of H, threatens to desex his daughters if H turns out to be guilty:
If this prove true, they’ll pay for’t:by mine honour,I’ll geld ‘emall; fourteen they shall not see,To bring false generations.
(2.1.146-148 p.120)

Answer 1

•‘geld’ = neuter / visceral threat + suggestive of women’s role in society (biological function seen to be only purpose)•‘false generations’–ironic given contempt preoccupation w lineage •Shows pervasive+deleterious impact of misogyny as even those men who recognize injustice generalize women + work to uphold patriarchal control

Question 2

Paul to Emon her plan to defend H + make L see sense:
the office Becomes a woman best…I’ll…undertake to beHer advocate to the loud’st…
(2.2.31-38 p.125)

Answer 2

• ‘officebecomesawomanbest’→Paul recognizes L can only be “cured” of tox mascby strong, determined fem influ
• ‘advocatetotheloud’st’→femsolidarity+sisterhood

Question 3

L a/b Mam’s decline in health:Conceiving the dishonourof his mother,He straight declined, droop’d, took it deeply
(2.3.13-14 p.128)

Answer 3

• ‘dishonour’,‘declined’,‘droop’d’,‘deeply’ allitemphasizes Mam dramatic decline since being forcibly removed from mother
• L blinded by misogyny as blames this on H’s apparent ‘dishonour’ rather than on lack of fem nurturance →women’s roles undermined + underappreciated

Question 4

L to Paul as she challenges him:
A callat Of boundless tongue, who late hath beat her husband And now baits me!
(2.3.90-92 p.133-134)

Answer 4

•Allitof ‘b’ →contemptuous tone•
‘callet’, ‘boundless tongue’, ‘beat’, ‘bait’ position Paul as stereotypical shrewish woman →L relying on these tropes to try + silence women + reinforce his sense of mascpower as patriarchal ruler
•Another example of ‘outlaw fem principles’ being forced upon women rather than exhibited by them

Question 5

H’s response to L’s threat of death during trial scene:
…from his [Mamillius’] presenceI am barr’d, like one infectious …is from my breast,The innocent milk in its [Perdita’s] most innocent mouth,Haled out to murder
(3.2.95-99 p.147)

Answer 5

•‘like one infectious’ →H aware of patriarchal perceptions of women + seeks to expose them as unjust + unnatural •‘innocentmilk’+‘innocentmouth’maternal imagery highlights important role of women’s nurturance / rep of ‘innocent’ emphasizes H’s position is inline w that of oracle’s

Question 6

Antigrecounting his dream a/b H to baby Perdas he prepares to abandon her on seacoast of Bo:
…thy mother appear to me last night…in pure white robes like very sanctity…
(3.3.16-22 p.156)

Answer 6

• ‘pure white robes’, ‘sanctity’ connote H’s obvious innocencebut Antigignores this in favourof supporting L + is punished as a result
• New settingofBo/untamedcoast juxw confines of interior spaces of Sic (e.g.court) foreshadowing more oppotunitiesfor fem characters

Question 7

Clown recounting the sinking of the Sic ship which was:

…swallowed with yeast and froth…(3.3.85 p.160)

Answer 7

• Visceral descript of ship’s sinking positions goddess nature as revenge-seeking for treatment of women in first part of play
• Purgative storm=divineinterventiontocleanseworldofpatriarchalforces+allowfecundityofwomentoflourishinsecondpart

Question 8

Autolycus sings a raunchy song:

When daffodils begin to peer,With heigh, the doxy over the dale…(4.3.1-2 p.167)

Answer 8

• ‘daffodil’,‘doxy’+‘dale’allitassocsex (doxy = prostitute) w nature suggesting sex is natural + should not be seen as ‘sinful’ as was suggested in first part of play
• Foil to L →contrast w salacious lang earlier in play / Auto’s song appears to mock L’s sterile attittowards sex as / rather he sees sex as playful + fun
• h/w challenge to L X strong as Auto is a rogue + petty thief / contempaudX take him seriously compared w king

Question 9

Florizelpraises Perdita ahead of the sheep shearing fest:

This your sheep-shearingIs as a meeting of the petty gods,And you the queen on’t.(4.4.2-5 p.174)

Answer 9

• F provides more credible foil to L as he uses his lang to elevate P’s status as opposed to degrade her
• Loves herforwho she is + sees her as ‘queen’ even when he thinks she is a lowly shepherdess →break from patriarchal convens

Question 10

Florizelassures Perdita that his father will not come b/w them:
Or I’ll be thine, my fair,Or not my father’s. For I cannot beMine own, nor any thing to any, ifI be not thine. To this I am most constant,Though destiny say no.(4.4.42-46 p.176)

Answer 10

•‘fair’+‘father’s’allitof ‘F’ intertwines F + P’s speech throughout their dialogue suggesting equality b/w them •F rejects patriarchal expec by putting his love for P above his duty as heir to throne of Bo

Question 11

Perd’sspeech on nature:

Proserpina,For the flowers now, that frighted thou let’stfallFrom Dis’swaggon! (4.4.116-118 p.180)

Answer 11

• ‘Prosperina’ = classical allusion to Goddess of Nature / symbiotic r’shipw mother Ceres who saved her from the underworld / presence on Earth = spring + summer / absence = autumn + winter
• PerdreturnstoSicduringspringafter ‘16 barren winters’ →indicates significance of women’s role in society

Question 12

Pol threatens to kill Perdif she comes near F again:
… And you, enchantment,—… if ever henceforth thouThese rural latches to his entrance open,…I will devise a death as cruel for theeAs thou art tender to’t.(4.4.415-421 p.197-198)

Answer 12

• ‘enchantment’ reminiscent of lang used by L to depict Paul as shrewish woman
• ‘rurallatches’sexualwordplayalsoreminiscentofL’searliersalacioussoliloquy→Pol“tarnishing”Perdw“outlawfemprinciples”•Againwomenreceive blame for actions of men + women / F positioned as passive + Perdas temptress
• UnlikeL,Pol’streatmentof Perdgoes unchallenged

Question 13

Dialogue b/wL+Pshemakeshimpromise X to remarry:
L:
My true Paulina,We shall not marry till thou bid’stus.
P:
ThatShall be when your first queen’s again in breath
(5.1.82-84 p.223)

Answer 13

• Royal ‘we’ despite contempanxieties around patriarchal lineage L promises X to remarry →has become subordto P during 16 yrspenance
• ‘mytrue’contrastwtreatmentofherinfirstpart→LhascometorespectPaul
• ‘whenyourfirstqueen’sagaininbreath’→PaulhastakenoverfromApollo in prophesisingfate / shift from male to fem deities in 2ndpar

Question 14

L to F on learning that he is Pol’s son:
Your mother was most true to wedlock, prince;For she did print your royal father off,Conceiving you
(5.1.123-125 p. 226)

Answer 14

• ‘print off’ implies women still play functional role in L’s mind
• Only mentionof F’s mother in whole play is to praise her for delivering legitimate heir
• Despite being“reformed”Lstillappearsfixated on idea of fem chastity + faithfulness

Question 15

Stage directions:
[Paulina draws back the curtain and reveals] Hermione like a statue
(5.3 p. 241)

Answer 15

• 2ndfem space in play (other is H’s chamber at beginning of 2.1) / play’s reconciliation takes place in fem space + orchestrated by fem characters
• Stage directionsindicativeofagencyoffemcharactersin2ndpartofplay
• H/w H as statue = problematic / classical allusion to myth of Pygmalion →has she been reformed to be L’s “ideal woman” or preserved by Paul in act of fem solidarity?

Question 16

Paul to L as she explains why H’s statue appears to show her more aged than when he last saw her:
So much the more our carver’s excellence;Which letsgo by some sixteen years and makes herAs she lived now.(5.3.30-32) p.242

Answer 16

• ‘carver’s excellence’ →art which was trad male dominated has been reclaimed + repurposed by fem character to explain unexplained (winter’s tale)
• ‘letsgoby’, ‘lived now’→ideal no longer seen in static space of male pastoral evoked by Pol but in beauty + apprecof present moment

Question 17

L lamenting the loss of the ‘warm life’ of the woman who not ‘coldly’ stands before him:
Does not the stone rebuke me for being more stone than it?(5.3.37-38) p.242

Answer 17

• L appears reformed as he wishes for H to return to ‘warm life’ where before he lambasted her as actions ‘too hot!’ / desires H to live even to ‘rebuke’ him
• ‘morestonethanit’Lrecognizes lackofempathy+respectheafforded to H in 1stpart

Question 18

Paul brings H’s statue to life:

Music, awake her; strike! Music

Answer 18

• Paul brings H to life through series of imperatives + through art (music)
• Previously castigated by L for being ‘a mankind witch’ he now wishes for her ‘magic’ to be ‘an art as lawful as eating’ suggesting he has come to appreciate women’s role in society
• Paul taken over as divine force in the play + refuses to explain her powers as she knows they would be ‘hooted at like an old tale’

Question 19

Paul + H in dialogue after H’s “resurrection”:
P:
OurPerditaisfound.
H:
You gods…pour your graces upon my daughter’s head!(5.3.120-122 p.248)

Answer 19

• Paul reveals oracle fulfilled•‘our’ possessive pnindicative of fem solidarity
• Helevatedtostatus of deity (statue = idol) + wishes to endow Perdw “inlawfem principles” perhaps before patriarchy can inflict “outlaw principles” upon her
• Honlyspeaks to gods + Perd→reinforces symbiotic r’shipb/w mother + daughter (Prosperina+ Ceres) but problematizes r’shipb/w L + H →does she forgive him?

Question 20

L to Paul:
Thou shouldsta husband take by my consent…
(5.3.135 p.249)

Answer 20

•‘shouldst’ modality indicates expecof women •‘bymyconsent’PauljustperformedmostpowerfulactofwholeplaybutitisquicklydismissedaspowertransfersbacktoL•Dissatisfying end for fem readers

Question 21

Pol to L (+H) as he begins his reasoning for needing to leave Sic + return to Bo:Nine changes of the watery star hath beenThe shepherd’s note since we have left our throne… (1.2.1-2 p.85)

Answer 21

• ‘nine changes’ = ref to period of human gestation / ‘watery star’ = moon (fem symbol) →pattern of dictserves to draw audience’s attento H’s pregnant body
• Pol uses this lang to begin his reasoning for needing to leave Sic →resentment from L to H b/c sees her as severing homosocbonds
• Maternal imagerypervadescharacter’slangyetroleofwomenundervalued b/c seen as burden

Question 22

H to Pol as she tries to convince him to stay in Sic:

Verily,You shall not go. A lady’s ‘Verily’ isAs potent as a lord’s. (1.2.48-49 p.88)

Answer 22

•Connotations of ‘potent →perception that H has “forgotten her place” in patriarchal order by implying men + women equal •Irony that this statement is true b/c Hable to convince Pol where L is not•Contrast w/ silence @ end of play•Patriarchal structures of courtly Sicilia inimical to fem self-actualization

Question 23

Pol to H reminiscing a/b idyllic childhood w/ L:

We were as twinn’dlambs that did frisk i’ the sun(1.2.66 p.89)

Answer 23

• Phonetic qualities e.g.clipped assonance + soft consonance →nostalgic tone
• Pastoral + biblical pattern of dictevokes imagery of prelapsEden before corrupting influof women

Question 24

Pol to H on how/why halcyon days ended:

O my most sacred lady!Temptations have since then been born to’s(1.2.75-79 p.90)

Answer 24

• Dichotomy b/w ‘sacred’ + ‘temptations (inlaw+ outlaw fem principles) →Pol contradicting himself
• ‘temptations’ bib allusion to Eve as perpetrator for fall of Man
• ‘born to’s’ = passive voice (men abjuring responsibility) / verb choice ‘born’ shows maternal lang pervades character’s speech despite women’s position under patriarchy
• Pol suggests women resp for disrupting homosocbonds = long standing stereotype a/b women

Question 25

L observing H + Pol:

Too hot, too hot!…to be paddling palms and pinching fingers…(1.2.108-112 p.92)

Answer 25

• Plosive allit‘paddling’, ‘palms’, ‘pinching’ →contemptuous tone•‘too hot’ contrast w comment at the end ‘O she is warm’
• LintimidatedbyH’s“aliveness” which is ostensibly restored @ end

Question 26

L sexualizing H + generalizing women by suggesting many men ‘suffer’ from ‘revolted wives’:
And many a man there is…That little thinks she [his wife] has been sluiced in’s absenceAnd his pond fish’dby his next neighbour
(1.2.190-193 p.97-98)

Answer 26

• ‘manyaman’→generalizing perceived actions of one woman to all women + positioning men as victims
• ‘sluiced’+‘pondfish’d’ = salacious lang to describe women as sexual objects/facilitators
• Contrast wcamaraderie connotedby‘neighbour’ →women harbouringblame for men’s actions

Question 27

L lamenting difficulty in policing women’s bodies:
No barricadofor a belly; know’t;It will let in and out the enemyWith bag and baggage: many thousand on’sHave the disease, and feel’tnot. (1.2.185-205)

Answer 27

• ‘barricado’ + ‘belly’ allitemphasizes women as mere sexual vessels + sources of conflict as they need to be guarded from the ‘enemy’ [other men] like property or territory / unhealthy + destructive rivalry b/w men under patriarchy
• ‘inandout’+‘bag and baggage’ →graphic sexual imagery
• ‘disease’ = broader pattern of dictpositioning women as sources of corruption

Question 28

L to Cam as he tries to persuade L to see sense:
Is this nothing?
Why, then the world and all that’s in’tis nothing;The covering sky is nothing; Bohemia nothing;My wife is nothing; nor nothing have these nothings,If this be nothing.
(1.2.289-284 p.103)

Answer 28

• Reminiscent of King Lear’s positioning L on trajectory of tragic hero at this point in play
• Repetition ‘nothing’showsdisjointedincoherenceofL’s speech at this point
• Foreshadows tragic conclusion of first part of play as L left w‘nothing’(noheir+nowife)

Question 29

Cam trying to convince L to abandon his reckless diatribe against H + Pol:
be cured of this diseased opinion(1.2.293-294 p.103)

Answer 29

•Broader pattern of dicta/b disease + infection •Lhasusedthislanga/bH + women generally →Cam suggested women X problem but way they are perceived + treated under patriarchy

Question 30

Mam to H:

A sad tale’s best for winter(2.1.25-26 p.113)

Answer 30

• One of only 2 female, domestic spaces in the play (other is Paul’s gallery in A5)
• ‘winter’s tale’ i.e.fairy tale traditionally gendered female →Mam comfortable in this space
• Ref toseasonslinkstolaterclassical allusionto myth of Prosperina(Perdsent away during winter + returns during spring →only then is reconciliation possible) / women as child bearers assocw nature

Question 31

Seizing Mam from H:
Give me the boy. I am glad you did not nurse him. Though he does bear some signs of me, yet you have too much blood in him. (2.1.56-58 p.115)

Answer 31

• Mam forcibly removed from nurturing fem space / name connotes bond b/wmother+child →adumbrates Mam’s untimely death b/c X survive w/o maternal nurturance
• ‘not nurse him’ –placing H as source of corruption (broader pattern of d)
• ‘too much blood in him’ –L seeks to rid his world of “corrupting” fem influ→doomed to fail b/c integrole women play