Essay on Challenging Gender Roles in English Society

Challenging Gender Roles in English Society The age of Shakespeare was characterized by an overwhelming tendency for women to be looked down upon as the inferior gender. Women of the time were expected to be submissive, dutiful, obedient, and predominantly silent. The idea of an independent, out-spoken woman would have challenged all of the societal values of the time. Shakespeare, however, challenged the traditional patriarchal values of his time by introducing powerful and highly influential female characters in some of his most memorable plays. Lady Macbeth and her earlier counterpart, Volumnia, both serve pivotal roles as dominant and commanding mother figures and also challenge the traditional role of the dutiful wife. Both†¦show more content†¦16-18). Lady Macbeth recognizes that her husband’s impressionable nature leaves him vulnerable. His inability to withstand the pressures of his conscience presents Lady Macbeth with the difficult and irritating task of convincing him to perform the actions which could provide him with lasting success. In her own mind, there is no question as to the necessity of carrying out such actions; the only difficulty lies in emboldening her hesitant spouse. Her own husband recognizes her overwhelming intensity as being more attributable to males saying, â€Å"Bring forth men-children only! / For thy undaunted mettle should compose / Nothing but males† (Macbeth 1.7. 73-75). In this instance, Macbeth is facing the realization of his wife’s strength as well as his own weakness. Lady Macbeth is effectively challenging his manhood by employing traditional male attributes better than he. Macbeth realizes that his wife’s nature is undesirable in terms of societal expectations for a female. The traits which his rambunctious wife possesses are, in reality, suitable only for males. As William Hazlitt suggests, â€Å"†¦obdurate strength of will and masculine firmness give her the ascendancy over her husband’s faltering virtue† (Hazlitt 14). Whereas Macbeth appears to be the more impressionable character who is easily swayed, Lady Macbeth is portrayed with the traits of a more traditional male character. She recognizes her own strength and power over herShow MoreRelatedReview of the Article Sex Stereotyping Managerial Positions859 Words   |  3 Pages Article review: Global leadership Exercising leadership can be challenging even in a uni-cultural context. Leadership needs vary from situation to situation, and organizational culture to organizational culture. This becomes even more sharply manifest in multicultural arenas. 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