"Hippolyta and Titania are consorts who defy their Lords, but ultimately submit to their lordship". Examine how Shakespeare treats the female characters and explores the role of women in the play "A Midsummer Night's Dream".

"Hippolyta and Titania are consorts who defy their Lords, but ultimately submit to their lordship". Examine how Shakespeare treats the female characters and explores the role of women in the play "A Midsummer Night's Dream". 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' is said to be written between 1594 and 1596. It is also thought it was written around the period 'Romeo & Juliet'. Similarities between the two do occur between the plays, for example the play of 'Pyramus and Thisbe' which is performed by Peter Quince's men has the same tragic ending as 'Romeo & Juliet'. William Shakespeare at this time was the play writer for Elizabeth I .Shakespeare therefore gave the female characters in his plays, some sort of power. By doing this Shakespeare could not irritate the Queen by creating a play which was based on male characters. During the time of Queen Elizabeth I's reign, there were religious tensions between Catholics and Protestants. The Queen tried to treat the two religions equally and by encouraging them to live in peace. (1). Despite her attempts to bring about peace within the religious community, she was ruling a country torn apart by religious tensions. Also during the time of Queen Elizabeth's life was in danger, her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots wanted to have her killed. Fortunately for Queen Elizabeth, her cousins' plot was uncovered and she was tried and sentenced to death in

  • Word count: 1903
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"His nature is not remorseless, but to escape from a trap he has to act without pity." Consider Tennessee Williams' presentation of Tom in the light of this statement

"His nature is not remorseless, but to escape from a trap he has to act without pity." Consider Tennessee Williams' presentation of Tom in the light of this statement The character of Tom in Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie is perhaps the most interesting in the play, in that he is in some ways the most real character, even more so than Jim, in a world of memories. The main reason for this is that Tom is Williams' autobiographical character, which is especially evident in the narrative aspect. The early life of Williams was very much like that of Tom, with the same sort of domestic problems occurring, and so through Tom we have a window into Williams' life. Therefore Tom is going to be shown in a generally flattering life, as he is a reflection of Williams, and thus we see a character who is quiet, artistic, caring, tender and deeply regretful of having to abandon his mother and sister to their fate. Tom's actions throughout the play cement his quiet, caring nature, except for the odd argument, although even when he loses his temper completely he never strikes anyone, but does have some quite cutting things to say. However, at the end, he does the unexpected, leaving his mother and sister to fend for themselves. I do not believe this makes him remorseless, as he is within his rights to leave, and Laura isn't completely helpless - only in her mind (Jim's analysis

  • Word count: 939
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"How far do you agree that we are moved to sympathy, even to admiration, by Richard's journey to awareness?"

"How far do you agree that we are moved to sympathy, even to admiration, by Richard's journey to awareness?" Because King Richard is the eponymous character of this play, it is his emotional journey which readers follow in details. Through the play, numerous traits of his personality are clearly exposed, giving readers plenty of evidence on which to form opinions. In the opening scene of the play, Richard at first comes across as an authoritative ruler, with full control over the situation and an evident sense of fairness and justice. This gives readers scope to feel admiration for him, because he is apparently displaying vital qualities in a good monarch. However, it is not long before Richard slips up and allows his weakness to be exposed. After regally announcing, "We were not born to serve, but to command", he immediately falters and adds "Which since we cannot do..." This shows from the beginning that Richard is not a king capable of impressing us with authority and strength of mind, which I found to weaken the chance of me admiring him. "Richard II", as well as being a play about history, can also be seen as an exploration of psychological depth. Richard is a character who always makes his emotions known, through introspective, lyrical and highly metaphorical poetry. This allows us to trace his journey to awareness far more empathetically. Personally, I agree at

  • Word count: 871
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"How is Brutus portrayed as a tragic hero?"

English Essay "How is Brutus portrayed as a tragic hero?" Throughout the works of Shakespeare, tragedy has always been a vital foundation and a key to his immense successes. His fine mastery of the art became legendary amongst the audiences that watched his various plays. Romeo and Juliet is a prime example of the tragedy he could combine into a stage performance. An Irish poet named Oscar Wilde who was a novelist, dramatist and critic in the late eighteen hundreds once wrote, "There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it." This has an exact correlation to the play Julius Caesar where the tragedy lies in the greed of a man who wants too much. This particular play is based entirely upon dreadful choices leading to demise. The character Brutus in particular is a key personality to the structure of the play in his fall from honour. Being a man of utmost glory and loyalty becomes his biggest weakness. In Act 1 Scene 2 we are presented with the pressure that Cassius weighs upon Brutus' mind. In lines 79-80 the truth of Brutus' troubles become clear. In the heat of conversation he says "What means this shouting? I do fear the people choose Caesar for their king". This is the turning point in the play as the stepping stones begin to fall in place and Brutus reveals to the viewers his deep down uncertainty to the decision of

  • Word count: 1269
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"In 'Antony and Cleopatra', Shakespeare is particularly interested in the psychological burdens that those in positions of power must endure". Examine the different representations of leadership in the play.

"In 'Antony and Cleopatra', Shakespeare is particularly interested in the psychological burdens that those in positions of power must endure". Examine the different representations of leadership in the play. As is often true of the study of history in general, the people who dominate Shakespeare's historical plays are those in positions of power and authority. This is simply because such people will be the ones to effect history in the most significant way. In 'Antony and Cleopatra' we see several different leadership figures, who show all of the range of burdens, strains and qualities that those in positions of power can have (such as Antony himself, Cleopatra, Caesar, Lepidus and Pompey). In terms of leadership, Classical Renaissance ideas can be very helpful when trying to approach Antony and Cleopatra for the first time. The traditional idea of heroism and leadership was summed up in the quality known as 'virtus', which describes the characteristics of a virile nature, military strength, and old ideas of chivalry and honour. Renaissance artists such as Machiavelli in 'The Prince', modified this to emphasise calm ruthlessness and intellectual power. As we shall see, these two opposing views of what a leader should be (the traditional and renaissance ideals) are reflected in the struggle between Antony and Caesar. Antony, representing the old 'virus' values, is defeated and

  • Word count: 1948
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"In the play Hamlet, Ophelia and Gerturde are both victims" How far do you agree with this view?

"Ophelia and Gertrude are both victims" How far do you agree with this view? Ophelia and Gertrude are the most prominent female characters in "Hamlet" and as a result they do seem quite susceptible and vulnerable in the patriarchal society of Denmark that the play is set in. Many of the ideas and suggestions presented in the play are put forward by the dominant male characters. Since both women seem to have a loving attachment to Hamlet, when it comes to suggestions for establishing the cause of Hamlets madness, they are often used by the men as "bait" to lure him in. This in itself could testify for the idea that both Gertrude and Ophelia are collectively victimised. This is demonstrated in the scene just before Hamlet talks to Ophelia about his real feelings for her. Claudius declares he and Polonius will act as "lawful espials" and they then "may of their encounter frankly judge". Ophelia does not voice her opinion of their plans, although she is present for the entire discussion. Through this, she is shown to be passive with no strength to defy the orders of others. This could be due to a weak character or the fact that Ophelia is forced to conform to the ideals of the time and doesn't know any better. Through this repression, Ophelia is some what victimised as she feels and knows she must respect her elders wishes and obey her father. In one of the earlier scenes of

  • Word count: 1414
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"Hamlet is a character about whom we are told so much, yet we know little. Do you agree?"

"Hamlet is a character about whom we are told so much, yet we know little. Do you agree?" This essay will discuss the character of Hamlet and the ways he potrays himself across to the reader. It highlights his introspection, puns, and thoughts of death, thoughts of women and his "madness". These all help to find out more about Hamlets character. Hamlet first introduces us to his character through famous soliloquies however this is not the only way of finding out who or what he is. In his first scene Hamlet speaks to his mother, and mocks her lack of grief for his father, her dead husband. "I have that within which passeth show" and "These but the trappings and the suits of woe". At this point in the speech, Hamlet may merely mean that his grief for his father is genuine, but "passeth show" may also mean that he has some sort of feeling that can't be shown by "the trappings and suits of woe"--his black clothing and cloudy face. Hamlet says that the King is "My father's brother, but no more like my father, than I to Hercules". This comment, which appears in Hamlet's first soliloquy, makes it appear that Hamlet does not consider himself particularly strong or heroic. He uses extreme examples to show his "cowardliness". "O, what a rogue and peasant slave am I!" says Hamlet at the beginning of his second soliloquy. He blames himself for lack of passion and accuses himself of

  • Word count: 1319
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"Hamlets Character is contradictory". Discuss.

"Hamlets Character is contradictory". Discuss Shakespeare gives Hamlet a very indecisive character in this play. This in turn leads to Hamlet becoming contradictive, more and more so throughout the play. His main problem is that he is more of a 'thinker' than a 'doer'. This causes him many problems throughout the whole play. The first example we get of this comes in Hamlets first soliloquy. Here we find out what Hamlet truly feels about the situation he finds himself in after his fathers death. After initially seeming to be willing to go along with Claudius's and his mother's marriage here we find out how he truly feels. He expresses his disgust at the hastiness from which his Mother has married to Claudius so soon after his fathers death. He also expresses how devastated he is at the death of his father and Claudius taking the crown, which Hamlet believes should rightfully be his. Hamlet once again shows this when he goes with his Fathers ghost. He comes back from this encounter determined to take revenge on Claudius but then passes up many chances to do so in order to make sure that the ghost is telling the truth. Hamlet continues this throughout the play and ironically this leads to him doing exactly the opposite of what the ghost wants by hurting his Mother and not taking revenge on Claudius when he has many chances to. Another appearance of Hamlets contradiction

  • Word count: 559
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"Lady Windermere's Fan is a moral play about immoral people". Explore Wilde's presentation of attitudes in Act One.

"Lady Windermere's Fan is a moral play about immoral people". Explore Wilde's presentation of attitudes in Act One. Oscar Wilde wrote Lady Windermere's Fan, it was first performed in 1892 for a Victorian audience. As it is a comedy of manners, his portrayal of different characters is satirical. When he wrote this play, his ideals were to criticize the attitudes that the upper social class attached to morality through the presentation of different characters within the play. Members of Victorian society could relate to at least one of the characters, which would allow them to self-reflect and maybe change their ways. Ian Gregor states the play is concerned with "the hazards of precipitate and inflexible moral judgement. The subtitle of the play; "A play about a good woman" immediately shows us that the play shall revolve itself around the theme of morality. This is evident in Act One where attitudes are being explored through Lady Windermere's conversations with Lord Darlington, the Duchess of Berwick and Lord Windermere each in turn. Wilde presents different interpretations to morality through these characters's varying social position and their particular social mores. He is challenging the principles that distinguish between right and wrong held by this social milieu. In Act One, Wilde exposes different issues concerning morality and how different characters view

  • Word count: 1389
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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"Linda: I don't say he's a great man... He's not the finest character that ever lived. But he's a human being... Attention, attention must be finally paid to such a person.

"Linda: I don't say he's a great man... He's not the finest character that ever lived. But he's a human being... Attention, attention must be finally paid to such a person. Using two or three critical views as a starting point, write an analytical response to the character of Willy Loman in the play. Towards the end of act one, Linda says that Willy is 'just' a common man, but that he still deserves sympathy when something terrible occurs in his life. Simultaneously Arthur Miller speaks through this character to persuade his audience that Willy's fate is vitally important, in spite of his humble status. The implication that Miller is making is that if a person doesn't receive the human dignity they deserve, they can be viewed as fundamentally tragic. Critics have asserted a range of interpretation's of Willy's character, from Gassner's positive assessment that Willy's "battle for self-respect... [,his] refusal to surrender... [and his] agony... gives him tragic status", to the more negative views of, say, Driver, who believes "It is in the lack of penetration that Miller fails us... we must settle for no more enlightenment... than pathetic Willy has." Miller clearly wanted the audience to feel sympathetic towards Willy. To achieve this he advances three main criteria for tragedy: That Willy is a common man, that he loses dignity and that society is to blame for his

  • Word count: 2486
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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