Literature is clearly seen to be the voice of the oppressed in both Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’ and Ibsen’s ‘Hedda Gabler’.
Literature has its own voice; words are not spoken physically but are read and processed in the natural way. The author has the ability to convey any chosen message, whether simply a story line or more seriously to highlight subtly or forcefully the position or plight of an oppressed group.
In Othello written around 1603 and set against scenes in Venice in the seventeenth century, Shakespeare highlights the oppression suffered by the main character of the play, Othello referred to as the Moor, as well as the female characters of Desdemona and Emilia by their husbands and other male characters through sexism, violence and …show more content…
‘O heaven! How got she out? O treason of the blood!’ As punishment he disowns her. Brabantio is repulsed at the fact that his daughter’s husband is black and not white.
Even though Othello is a highly respected man in Venice and has gained the position of a General of the Venetian armies, he is still subject to immense oppression due to his race. Shakespeare provokes this concept by referring to Othello using animal imagery. For example, Act 1 Scene 1, Roderigo: “What a full fortune does the thick-lips owe...”, Iago: “..you’ll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse, you’ll have your nephews neigh to you” and Iago: “I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two …show more content…
Hedda’s character contrasts starkly from the female characters in Othello. She has an immensely opinionated character, not only marrying to achieve position and status but also seen in her domineering treatment of other characters in the play. She is described by Ibsen as having ‘ steel grey eyes’ and a ‘cold expression’ as she enters the stage for the first time in Act one.
She is prevented from freely expressing herself due to the confines of marriage and social acceptability. The play voices indirectly the oppression of women by the limitations imposed on them. Her marriage to George Tesman is a loveless one, perhaps typical of many marriages at that time. In the final Act of the play, Hedda is in discussion with Brack and says ‘Nevertheless, I’m in your power. Dependant on your will, and your demands. Not free. Still not free. No. I couldn’t bear that. No.’ Here literature cries loudly as a voice of the oppressed, that of the powerless Hedda before she chooses suicide as her only way to be free. Suicide was Hedda’s solution but for most women the gradual advancements toward equality have brought about their
Literature has its own voice; words are not spoken physically but are read and processed in the natural way. The author has the ability to convey any chosen message, whether simply a story line or more seriously to highlight subtly or forcefully the position or plight of an oppressed group.
In Othello written around 1603 and set against scenes in Venice in the seventeenth century, Shakespeare highlights the oppression suffered by the main character of the play, Othello referred to as the Moor, as well as the female characters of Desdemona and Emilia by their husbands and other male characters through sexism, violence and …show more content…
‘O heaven! How got she out? O treason of the blood!’ As punishment he disowns her. Brabantio is repulsed at the fact that his daughter’s husband is black and not white.
Even though Othello is a highly respected man in Venice and has gained the position of a General of the Venetian armies, he is still subject to immense oppression due to his race. Shakespeare provokes this concept by referring to Othello using animal imagery. For example, Act 1 Scene 1, Roderigo: “What a full fortune does the thick-lips owe...”, Iago: “..you’ll have your daughter covered with a Barbary horse, you’ll have your nephews neigh to you” and Iago: “I am one, sir, that comes to tell you your daughter and the Moor are now making the beast with two …show more content…
Hedda’s character contrasts starkly from the female characters in Othello. She has an immensely opinionated character, not only marrying to achieve position and status but also seen in her domineering treatment of other characters in the play. She is described by Ibsen as having ‘ steel grey eyes’ and a ‘cold expression’ as she enters the stage for the first time in Act one.
She is prevented from freely expressing herself due to the confines of marriage and social acceptability. The play voices indirectly the oppression of women by the limitations imposed on them. Her marriage to George Tesman is a loveless one, perhaps typical of many marriages at that time. In the final Act of the play, Hedda is in discussion with Brack and says ‘Nevertheless, I’m in your power. Dependant on your will, and your demands. Not free. Still not free. No. I couldn’t bear that. No.’ Here literature cries loudly as a voice of the oppressed, that of the powerless Hedda before she chooses suicide as her only way to be free. Suicide was Hedda’s solution but for most women the gradual advancements toward equality have brought about their