Oppression and injustice of all different types have impacted the world for centuries. Throughout history, "the inequitable use of authority, law, or physical force to prevent others from being free or equal" (Woman's History), has been embedded into every society whether it was intended or not. " Women's oppression is the oldest oppression and will be the most difficult to overcome"(Mcgregor, 1). Efforts to overcome such an oppression have been worked at tirelessly through persuasive literature. Writers often reflected upon the problems in their societies and the time period in which they wrote. Certain values appeared during both, the Spanish Golden Age and the English Renaissance, that supported the systematic oppression of women, which
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They were usually a part of religious dramas, but church officials, who were against the theatre, to begin with, were particularly against women performers. During the 1500s laws were created that could keep women from building a career in theatre performances. In 1587, women were legally allowed to become actresses but this caused a lot of controversies. The church was particularly angry and tried to ban women from acting. After years of back and forth women were finally allowed to perform (Wilson, 242). Since the origins of theatre, prepubescent boys would play the role of females. They wore masks and dresses in order to play the roles of female characters (Bulman, 25). Although countries such as Italy had accepted women into their troupes, England was stuck in traditional ways. If a woman was to perform then they would be considered a whore. That became a hard stigma to shake for actresses at that time (Wilson, 214). The theatre was supposed to be considered a safe place full of art and expression, yet they were constantly tearing women down when they were trying to be apart of the world of theatre. "They would rather exclude and marginalize women from theatre instead of champion them" (Bulman, …show more content…
Reflecting upon these issues, Shakespeare wrote As You Like It. The play takes an interesting twist when the leading lady Rosalind dresses in disguise as a man. While she's dressed as a man she is seen as an intelligent individual who is full of confidence. Her characteristics oppose those of Orlando, her love interest, who is viewed as a very timid and sensitive man. "Shakespeare assigns the traditional Renaissance gender roles to opposing sexes in the play" (Zuber). Catching the audience off guard by doing this, he draws attention to the way his society views women and how they were treated regularly. In Elizabethan society, " all forms of public and domestic authority were vested in men: in fathers, husbands, masters, teachers, preachers, magistrates, and lords" (Montrose 68). This left women with little to no control over their
They were usually a part of religious dramas, but church officials, who were against the theatre, to begin with, were particularly against women performers. During the 1500s laws were created that could keep women from building a career in theatre performances. In 1587, women were legally allowed to become actresses but this caused a lot of controversies. The church was particularly angry and tried to ban women from acting. After years of back and forth women were finally allowed to perform (Wilson, 242). Since the origins of theatre, prepubescent boys would play the role of females. They wore masks and dresses in order to play the roles of female characters (Bulman, 25). Although countries such as Italy had accepted women into their troupes, England was stuck in traditional ways. If a woman was to perform then they would be considered a whore. That became a hard stigma to shake for actresses at that time (Wilson, 214). The theatre was supposed to be considered a safe place full of art and expression, yet they were constantly tearing women down when they were trying to be apart of the world of theatre. "They would rather exclude and marginalize women from theatre instead of champion them" (Bulman, …show more content…
Reflecting upon these issues, Shakespeare wrote As You Like It. The play takes an interesting twist when the leading lady Rosalind dresses in disguise as a man. While she's dressed as a man she is seen as an intelligent individual who is full of confidence. Her characteristics oppose those of Orlando, her love interest, who is viewed as a very timid and sensitive man. "Shakespeare assigns the traditional Renaissance gender roles to opposing sexes in the play" (Zuber). Catching the audience off guard by doing this, he draws attention to the way his society views women and how they were treated regularly. In Elizabethan society, " all forms of public and domestic authority were vested in men: in fathers, husbands, masters, teachers, preachers, magistrates, and lords" (Montrose 68). This left women with little to no control over their