Consider the Attitudes To Women Demonstrated In the Vienna of Measure For Measure.

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Consider the attitudes to women demonstrated in the Vienna of Measure for Measure.

I think most men have fooled themselves into thinking that they are the seat of power---because women have allowed them that dream.   Women's subtle power is to make men think that the man is in charge.  

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Throughout the course of Measure for Measure, Shakespeare highlights subordination of the female characters by the males.  In the Vienna represented in the play women have to suffer exploitation and derogation as their individualism and independence are undermined.   Shakespeare uses this treatment of women to exemplify the corruption in the city of Vienna.

The two main female roles in Measure for Measure are Mariana and Isabella.   Both these women are victims of the corrupt motives of the men who so strongly influence their lives.   Isabella, the protagonist, is a nun.  Her name means “consecrated to God”.  Looking at the roles the other women in the play have adopted, as will be discussed in more depth during the course of this essay, it seems she is almost forced into the role by the bigoted society in Vienna.   It appears that the only fate for women, unless they wish to join a convent, be a prostitute or alone, is to become a housewife.   As a nun Isabella benefits from the education and relative independence (although whether this particular privilege can belong to a woman, in the Vienna Shakespeare writes about, is doubtful) she would not have if married.   There are still certain restraints, in that she is not able to have the sexual freedom of women who are not so divinely consecrated and, once she has taken her vows, she is not allowed to entertain the company of men:

Nun:         … When you have vowed, you must not speak with men

                But in the presence of the prioress;

                Then if you speak you must not show your face,

                Or if you show your face you must not speak…

However, this is a small sacrifice to make for the standard of life she can expect to live but in spite of the advantages of being a nun, there significant drawbacks.   Isabella is forced to abide by two laws: the chauvinistic law of the land and the androcentric dogma of the church.   When they collide Isabella is forced to make a choice, not only between man and God, but also between her brother’s life and her soul.   It is ultimately the social structure in Vienna that is responsible for her angst and consequent no-win situation.

Isabella:        Then Isobel live chaste and brother die:

                More than our brother is our chastity

 

Ultimately, for Isabella there is no escape.   Even her brother does not understand her reasoning behind the choice to sacrifice his life for control of her own: “What sin you do to save a brother’s life, / Nature dispenses with the deed so far / That it becomes a virtue.” The contrast between “sin” and “virtue” accentuates the contrast between his perception of the predicament and Isabella’s.  Claudio also overlooks that the church does not see nature as the overall decider of right and wrong.  He fails to see that this is not only Isabella clinging onto her ‘eternal life’ but also that this is her bid for independence.   The strength of her female character is indicated in Act II Scene iv where she delivers the only female soliloquy in the play:

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Isabella:        To whom should I complain? Did I tell this

                Who would believe me?…

                … had he twenty heads to tender down

                On twenty blocks he’d yield them up

                Before his sister should her body stoop

                To such abhorred pollution.

 Though she has just been offered a vicious ultimatum by Angelo, and seems at her wits end, she stands firm in the decision she has made.   Her steadfast attitude towards the values she upholds is a contrast to those displayed by the three most significant male characters in the play:

Angelo:                 Who will believe thee, Isabel?

                My ...

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