The Motives and Results of the Bully Husbands - Essay Example

?In Shakespeare’s England in the 16th century as in contemporary society, men and women clashed bitterly. Although standards and mores have changed, what remains consistent is the battle of the sexes. The definitions of womanhood and wifehood in Victorian England diverge from their current ones today. The image of the strong, independent modern woman runs contrary to societal expectations. The paragon of the Shakespearean woman is one who is pliant, principled, domestic, inclined to marry, faithful and obedient to her husband, child-loving, and refined. On the other hand, the image of masculinity has not altered much. Despite the waves of feminism and woman empowerment, men still occupy leadership roles at home and are expected to dominate the woman. What Western society classifies as male chauvinism in the 21st century was mainstream masculinity in the times of Shakespeare. Shakespeare’s plays, The Taming of the Shrew (1590) and The Winter’s Tale (1610) are two comedies in which the men had underlying motives for treating their wives the manner in which they did. The aftermath varies in both cases, yet the treatment is spawned from a sense of insecurity and constitutes an attempt to remain in control. In her society, there are the expectations and functions that every woman has to meet such as taking care of her husband and children.  If Bradstreet did not perform these duties as a family woman, her works would have been discredited. Her poetic works mainly relate her experience fulfilling the roles of wife, mother, and dedicated Christian. She lived in a conservative society where the woman is confined to the domestic sphere. Her poems focus on her life and more specifically her family life as her works are redolent with her love and devotion to her husband, and children and her God. The colonial puritan society embraced the sanctity of marriage and the oneness of both husband and wife, a relationship characterized by the prominence of the man and the subjectivity of the woman. The union between man and wife is consummated in the act of sexual intercourse and lasts in a faithful, monogamous marriage. Bradstreet incorporates Biblical doctrines relating to marriage into her works and consolidates conjugal love, oneness, harmony, unity, and chastity. The woman has to manifest stellar qualities as a virtuous Christian woman in the private sphere. She industriously sees after the home's needs maintaining her honor and integrity as a wife, mother and consummate homemaker. Shakespeare in The Taming of the Shrew and The Winter’s Tale involve two male protagonists, labeled as bullying husbands because of the way in which they treat their wives. Based on these plays, one observes that the bullying husband is typically one who demands the subjection of his wife. He generally employs techniques to systematically break down the woman’s assertiveness and he can also be physically and emotionally abusive. The Victorian perception of masculinity objectifies, belittles the woman, compelling childish submission of her and reinforced the power of the man. One facet of Petruchio is his mercenary character since his main motive was “to wive it wealthily” (Shakespeare, Act 1, Scene 2). In Shakespeare’s period as in modern times, money factored much in the forging of spousal relationships; therefore, love is not as important as a moneyed matrimony. In his determination to embark on a marriage of convenience, Petruchio’s preponderant concern was the economic status of his wife. Beauty or good character formation was never a qualification in Petruchio’s eyes. Similar to an economic transaction, among his first questions to his prospective father-in-law, Baptista, Petruchio posed a question on the sum of the dowry. Even Katerina’s initial conduct toward him does not turn him off from marrying her. From the play’s commencement, Petruchio asserts that nothing would deter him. He would wed a woman “as foul as Florentius’ love/ As old as Sibly and as curst and shrewd as Socrates’ Xanthiappe or worse” (Shakespeare, Act 1, Scene 2). Petruchio’s opening stance prepares him to meet Katerina who actually was the worse in her land. He does not have plans on molding a woman’s attitude, but in the end, he does so. Upon meeting the petulant and offensive Katerina, Petruchio comes to the belief that he was “born to tame Katerina” (Shakespeare, Act 2, Scene 1). Petruchio confidently asserts that he is Katerina’s match and since he intends to marry her, he has to tame her. Boldly comparing herself to a stinging wasp, Petruchio retorts that his “remedy would be to pluck out (the sting)” (Shakespeare, Act 2, Scene 1). From the onset, he already presumes success with Katerina and in due process, by his bullying attitude, he achieves his end to break down her pride and defenses, humbling and taming her as a faithful wife. As a result of Petruchio’s methodical taming of Katerina, in the long run, Katerina ends up a domesticated woman: docile, more loving, and more appreciative of her husband. Katerina admonishes Bianca and other women that the “husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper; thy head and thy sovereign” (Shakespeare, Act 5, Scene 2). This counsel from Katerina lies in stark contrast to the headstrong shrew that she was at the beginning of the play. Her last speech indicates Petruchio’s success in conforming her to the traditional values and roles of the woman and wife. Katerina agrees to submit willingly to the authority of her husband and urges other women to do so. The fundamental roles of the woman spur her “serve, love and obey” (Shakespeare, Act 5, Scene 2). The lordship of the man and the submission of the wife to him echo the standards of Shakespearean society. Further, Katerina has transformed into a more sweet-tempered woman-radically changed from the antagonistic, railing woman that she used to be. Her entire disposition altered as she realizes that her former ways were erroneous. In an almost repentant speech, Katerina confesses that an angry woman “is like a fountain troubled/ Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty” (Shakespeare, Act 5, Scene 2). She better understands that the ugly attitude, scornful temperament, aggressive behavior that she espoused would neither endear her to others nor do service to her husband. Katerina learns to defer to her husband when opinions conflicted. She becomes a woman who can stand to educate her sister and other women of the becoming personalities that would make them treasures to their husbands. Formerly, Katerina was uninterested in marriage and stood so self-willed that she had no marriage prospects. In the end, she fulfilled her roles as a good and dutiful wife to Petruchio. Stating the wifely conventions of the day, Katerina supports a masculine perspective of the woman, honoring the importance of being a good wife and mother in her home. As Katerina sublimates her own experience into her concluding monologue, she lauds the womanly responsibilities and supports the then popular definition of womanhood. Another fortuitous serendipity that comes out of Katerina’s wife-training is Petruchio’s won bet of about 20,000 ducats. At Bianca’s wedding, Petruchio and other young men make a wager on whose wife would be the most obedient. Petruchio is so assured of Katerina not disappointing and disgracing him in public compared to what she would have done before that he encourages a contest of the wives to prove that Katerina emerges a different person and is the best wife of the other women present at the wedding banquet. The Winter’s Tale (1610) contains another husband-bully, King Leontes, who has a very jealous disposition and ended up destroying his whole family. This play also reveals the effect of a husband-bully on his wife, family and friends. Unlike The Taming of the Shrew, The Winter’s Tale, portrays more negatively the outcomes of a domineering man who refuses to believe in the loyality of his wife. Leontes motives were incriminating and his methods were humiliating. On mere suspicions of his wife’s infidelity, Leontes publicly humiliated his wife by arresting and having a public investigation on her assumed sexual relationship with Polixenes. Without seeking to find the truth, Leontes defames his wife’s character calling her “a hobby-horse…as rank as any flax-wench...an adulteress … a traitor” (Shakespeare, Act 2, Scene 1). Arraigning his queen before the court of justice, Leontes ntinues to mercilessly heap insults and false accusations on his loyal wife. After having “blemish’d his gracious dam” (Shakespeare, Act 3, Scene 2), Leontes confines her to prison and for a while even denies Hermione the assistance of her lady attendants To wound and spite Hermione even more, Leontes chooses to disown his newborn daughter since he entertains doubt concerning paternity. Seeing his baby daughter for the first time does not soften the heart of the highly incensed Leonte, instead, he is even more ignited with fury than previously. Leonte maintains that he is not the father of the child. According to one of the attendants, Paulina, he “cast forth to crows (his) baby-daughter/ To be or none or little” (Shakespeare, Act 3 , Scene 2). As if abandonment were not sufficient, Leonte entrusts one of his courtiers and friends, Camillo, to exile and kill his daughter. This bullying husband would stop at nothing to prove his point. Because Leontes felt betrayed, he was treacherous toward others: his best friends and his wife. Leontes chooses to forego his friendship with Polixenes since he suspected that his friend was Hermiones’ paramour. Paulina pinpoints Leontes that he that “betray'dst Polixenes,'twas nothing/ (but) That did but show thee, of a fool, inconstant/ And damnable ingrateful” (Shakespeare, Act 3, Scene 2). As a consequence, he slanders and condemns his best childhood friend, Polixenes, to die by poisoning. Another friend on whom Leontes casts aspersions is Camillo in whom he trusted as a confidant. Because, Camillo refuses to side with Leontes in defaming his wife, Leontes see himself as betrayed by his dearest friends. Ironically, it is Leontes who betrays the people he loves and who love him. Leontes’ intimidation leads to the physical and eternal separation of his best friend of all, his wife. Another adverse effect of Leonte’s bullying the separation between him and his wife. He incarcerates her first of all, thus initiating a legal separation, disowns her as his wife, and then indirectly kills her. Thus, the consequences of Leontes’ bullying are much more detrimental and mortal. The damage done to his wife, the tensions, rift and resultant separations are so grievous that they precipitate the deaths of Hermione, his wife and his son, Mamillius. The ‘breaking in’ of Leontes actually grieved his son to death and this tragedy provoked the death of Hermione, the tidings being “mortal to the queen” (Shakespeare ,Act 3, Scene 2). If Leontes had tried to discover the truth and had been less hasty, the drastic outcomes would have been less severe and the unity of the couple would have been preserved. Leontes’ unfounded attack against Hermione does not destroy her directly since she bears her husband’s brawling and intimidating threats. She is confident that she would be justified and that the truth of the allegations would come to light, continually affirming her innocence. Leontes’ screams at his wife and grossly disrespects her; nevertheless, in the midst of the conjugal strife, she withstands his insults and cruelty, remaining good-natured. Her death announcement is lamented by Paulina who bemoans, “the queen, the queen / The sweet'st, dear'st creature's dead” (Shakespeare, Act e, Scene 2). Leontes’ brutality does not succeed in breaking his wife. Already refined and womanly, she needed no additional taming. In sum, Shakespeare’s both works The Taming of the Shrew and The Winter’s Tale perpetuate the code of wife subjugation to the husband. Therefore, when the protagonist husbands feel that their position is challenged in any way, stringent and even extreme measures are applied to the women. Although the ‘faults’ of the women differ from one another, both are treated with the same firm hand by the men. However, in the end, two distinct conclusions emerge. An unfaithful queen could be charged by the king/State with capital punishment or high treason as indicated in the novel and other historical sources. Men could also physically mistreat women without any danger to their position. The identity of both women is jeopardized within marriage and both are humiliated and undermined by their overbearing husbands. In the family structure in Victorian times facilitated monolithic, tyrannical control where unanimous subscription may be dictated by the men. In civic and domestic life, the married woman is powerless over her body. In the midst of her marriage, she can continue being subjected to minimal respect and she was expected to suffer in silence, yielding to what her husband desires. Works Cited: Shakespeare, W. FE. Pierce. The Winter’s Tale, Wildside Press LLC, Maryland, 2010. Shakespeare, W. MJ. Kidnie. The Taming of the Shrew, Penguin Group, New York, 2009. Read More