Shakespeare and Feminism- November 12, 2008

Does Shakespeare’s text sympathize or antagonize feminism? Lady Macbeth is a woman who wants power of her fate. We can conclude that Shakespeare’s text understood the woman’s need for control over her life, but the text seems to show that feminism went against the natural order of the day. Women were meant to be subservient to the man of the household. The text perceives that Lady Macbeth would have been perceived as evil according to the thought process of the time. This is unusual because a year before Macbeth was written Queen Elizabeth ruled England. During her reign, England prospered and grew in power. Now that a man had come to the throne, patriarchal ideals must be reinforced. At the time, Shakespeare had a great example of a powerful woman that succeeded. Instead, he created women as evil or frail characters and follows the lead of the patriarchal society.