William Shakespeare – Twelfth Night

Shakespeare Against Misogyny

Twelfth Night (1602) is a comedic play written by William Shakespeare at the beginning of the seventeenth century. At this period of time society was misogynistic affirming that women are inferior to men. Within Twelfth Night there is supporting evidence that William Shakespeare was against social norms exhibiting non-misogynistic sentiments. William Shakespeare expresses this viewpoint in Twelfth Night by giving women intellectual characteristics, placing a woman in a role of power, disguising a woman as a man, exhibiting that a woman has equal proclamation to a man, and preventing a woman from being prosecuted of criminal charges. William Shakespeare elevated women to equal or even superior roles to men within Twelfth Night.

In William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night he conveys that women are intelligent. During the seventeenth century women were seen to be inferior to men and hence less intelligent to men. Shakespeare denies this assertion by allowing a female character within Twelfth Night to fool a man. In this passage, between Maria and Sir Toby Belch, clever Maria boasts about her falsified letter that she wrote to scam Malvolio into believing Olivia was in love with him.

Maria: If you desire the spleen and will laugh yourself into stitches, follow me. Yond gull Malvolio is turned heathen, a very renegado, for there is no Christian that means to be saved by believing rightly can ever believe such impossible passages of grossness. He’s in yellow stockings!

Sir Toby Belch: And cross-gartered?

Maria: Most villainously, like a pedant that keeps a school i’ th’ church. I have dogged him like his murderer. He does obey every point of the letter that I dropped to betray him. …

(182 – 183)

Maria judiciously was able to make Malvolio have self-assurance about Olivia’s inaccurate opinion of him. This plot, developed throughout the play, provides evidence that Shakespeare was not a misogynist by having a women fool a man. Maria’s plot against Malvolio occurred because Shakespeare gave Maria, a woman, a significant amount of intelligence, possibly more than that of Malvolio, to successfully trick a man. If Shakespeare was a misogynist it is fairly feasible to espouse that Shakespeare would have had Malvolio deceptively counterfeit a letter to mislead Maria.

Shakespeare allows a woman to be placed in a role of higher power than that of man in Twelfth Night. This provides evidence that Shakespeare is not a misogynist because a misogynist believes that women are inferior to men and should obey the commands of men. In this passage Olivia expresses her role of power by commanding that a man be taken away from her presence.

Feste: … God bless thee, lady!

Olivia: Take the fool away.

Feste: Do you not hear, fellows? Take away the lady.

Olivia: Go to, you’re a dry fool. I’ll no more of you. Besides, you grow dishonest.

Feste: … The lady bade take away the fool; therefore, I say again, take her away.

Olivia: Sir, I bade them take away you.

(80 – 81)

In a misogynistic society a woman would not be allowed affront a man in this context. Olivia, given her status as a noble with power, is permitted to speak as she pleases and have disruptive people parted from her presence. Shakespeare gives indication that he is not a misogynist by allowing Olivia to have more power than a man and letting her decisions take precedence over that of a man.

Substantial evidence that Shakespeare is not a misogynist is provided within Twelfth Night by Shakespeare allowing Viola to deceive all the characters that she is a man. Shakespeare provides Viola with a high degree of talent to portray that she is a man. Viola’s deceptive role is so convincing that Orsino willing reveals information to Viola that he would only share with a trustworthy gentleman.

Orsino: There is no woman’s sides can bide the beating of so strong a passion as love doth give my heart; no woman’s hear so big to hold so much. They lack retention. Alas, their love may be called appetite, no motion of the liver, but the palate, That suffer surfeit, cloyment, and revolt; but mine is all as hungry as the sea and can digest as much. Make no compare between that love a woman can bear me and that I owe Olivia.

(139)

Orsino, convinced that Viola is a man, trusts Viola enough to express his viewpoints that he would not normally share with a woman. Shakespeare expresses his non-misogynistic beliefs by allowing a man to be fooled into believing a woman is indeed a man. Shakespeare later reveals how convincing Viola’s deception is when Viola and Sebastion are in the presence of each other.

This evidence is spoken by Orsino: “One face, one voice, one habit and two persons! / A natural perspective, that is and is not!” (268 – 269). Viola convinced all the characters within Twelfth Night that she was a boy named Cesario. This illusion was so convincing that the characters within the play were unable to determine a woman (Viola) from the person she was trying to represent (Sebastion). Shakespeare was able to indirectly express his non-misogynistic viewpoints into Twelfth Night by allowing a woman to fool men and have those men place Viola on equal standards to their fellow kin.

Shakespeare allows a woman to portray the concrete aspects of a man by permitting a man to equally evaluate what Viola is stating. Although Orsino believes that he is listening to a man, the words originate from feminine thought.

Viola: Ay, but I know-

Orsino: What dost thou know?

Viola: Too well what love women to men may owe. In faith, they are as true of heart as we. My father had a daughter loved a man as it might be, perhaps, were I a woman, I should your lordship.

(139)

Orsino takes the time to listen to a man’s words convinced that they are actually from a man. This passage also allows Viola (as a man) to express that women are on equal grounds of man stating that they (women) can love as much as any man. Shakespeare shows his non-misogynistic beliefs by allowing a “man” to state that women have equal qualities of men.

Shakespeare completes his evidence that he is not a misogynist by preventing Viola’s prosecution of her crime. In the seventeenth century it was a crime to cross dress and misrepresent your identity. A misogynist would inevitably prosecute a woman, especially over a man, but instead Shakespeare allows Viola to walk free with forgiveness.

Orsino: Your master quits you, and, for your service done him. So much against the mettle of your sex, so far beneath your soft and tender breeding, and since you called me “master” for so long, here is my hand. You shall from this time be your master’s mistress.

Shakespeare allows Malvolio to be abused but permits Viola to walk free of her wrongdoing. This shows that Shakespeare is not a misogynist because of his choice that a man should be abused over a woman. Malvolio did very little wrongdoing while Viola committed a crime. Shakespeare’s beliefs can be interpreted from his choice of who gets abused during the play.

In conclusion Shakespeare shows he is not a misogynist from his perceptions expressed within Twelfth Night. Shakespeare’s evidence that he is not a misogynist is derived from giving women intellectual characteristics, placing a woman in a role of power, disguising a woman as a man, exhibiting that a woman has equal proclamation to a man, and preventing a woman from being prosecuted of criminal charges. Shakespeare was living in an unstable era where he could have easily been prosecuted from expressing unacceptable views. Shakespeare denied the social norms by conveying his opinions within his plays.


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