The histrorian James Romm portrayed Agrippina as a woman who was simply trying to escape the restrictions imposed on her by society. To quote james Romm “she stands out as the sole Roman woman to attempt to break the ultimate glass ceiling: to wield the power of a princeps, not just behind the scenes but before the astonished eyes of the senate,” Romm takes into account both the ancient writers and his own interpretation of Agrippina. Romm believes that her determination not only furthered her power but ultimately caused her downfall. He observes that the majority of Claudius move show us that Agrippina was shown as a “political asset”. Romm concluded that even though Agrippina may have been manipulative and ambitious she was still able to achieve what women of the era could not.
On the page prior to the last page of the book, Alison refers to her life as an “inverted oedipal complex”. This refers to how she both estranges and identifies herself with her father through the concept of their shared tribulations brought on by their homosexuality. Though her father often seemed distant, he was an equally loving father some of the time. The most obvious reference to Greek mythology, and the most blatantly apparent in the final page of the story, is that of Daedalus and Icarus. In this myth, Daedalus invents a pair of wax and feather wings in order for he and his son, Icarus to escape from the labyrinth, another invention of Daedalus’s. Even after Daedalus warned Icarus not to, Icarus flew too
Though, when actually examined, the females portrayed in both literary works do show signs of bravery and rebellious spirit, which represents the actual mind of authors, they are still oppressed by the patriarchal society to a large extent. In Frankenstein, superficially, most female characters are portrayed as “heaven-sent” angels (Shelley, 34). The soul of them is like “a shrine-dedicated lamp” and they are “the living spirits of love to soften and attract” (38), which are fully consistent with the image of women in people’s minds in mainstream society in the 19th century (Sunstein, 4). Nonetheless, the weaknesses of them, which are used by the author to criticize the unfairness of the society, cannot be neglected. The two main female characters in Frankenstein: Caroline and Elizabeth are carefully analyzed in this essay, and from Frankenstein’s narration of them, we can see the author’s deep thinking and criticism about the unfairness of society.
One could even say her character develops through her depreciation. She becomes more realistic, more human of a character, as she loses herself to the lies and rumors. A more specific, obvious example from the text is when she reaches her final breaking point. She becomes certain that she would end her life after speaking to her teacher, Mr. Porter. It’s a crucial moment in the book, the deciding factor in a story we already knew the outcome of.
She is seen as the supreme model of a virtuous, self-sacrificing and obedient wife. She is also agreed as the absolute embodiment of femininity as much as womanhood. She is a true wife whose heart is devoted to her husband, Rama. She is the refreshment and solace of her husband scorched by mental grief or suffering under bodily pain. Truly, Sita symbolizes an ideal daughter, wife and queen.
This gives of the element of the exotic, mystery and the unknown. Shelly uses religious imagery in her first chapter of Frankenstein’s narration. ‘My more than sister, since till death she was to be mine only’ This quote implies Victor is very obsessive and it could also suggest that even though he loves her, he still thinks of as a object that he has. Therefore, both extreme obsession and sexual oppression are present in the first chapter. We soon learn from Mary Shelly that Victor is an obsessive character that focuses on over succeeding.
Pearl punishes me too! See ye not, she is my scarlet letter, only capable of being loved, and so endowed with a million-fold the power of retribution for my sin? Ye shall not take her! I will die first!” (673). This quote shows how much of a devoted mother Hester is.
"I know I have the body but of a weak and feeble woman; but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England too,” was said by a brave woman in 1588. As I honor my lady’s words, I have fostered myself into becoming the lionhearted woman that I am today. If I can spend a day talking with anyone in history, I would cull Queen Elizabeth the First. I have spent many of my days admiring her valiant actions, but I have come to realize, the Queen and I have many things in common. One in particular that has aggravated us the most, was our capabilities being greatly undermined.
Hedda Tesman in “Hedda Gabler” By Henrik Ibsen Hedda Tesman in “Hedda Gabler” by Henrik Iben is a central figure as well as a dynamic character, which means she changes throughout the play. She behaves atrociously to everyone with whom she comes in contact, and her moral sense is defective. After all, the play is a tragedy since Hedda turned out to be all pity and petty. Hedda is not simply evil and preserve. She born as General Gabler’s daughter so she feels for a better destiny and imbues with romantic vision of making one’s own life a work of art.
Despite the general opinion that “Hamlet” contains the weakest women in Shakespeare’s works, the unraveling of the main plot can only be attributed to them. The first case in which we see woman as the catalyst of the play is with Gertrude being one of the main motivations for Claudius murdering his brother. Once Hamlet died, Claudius and Gertrude quickly exchanged wedding vows, maintaining the stability of Denmark during the unexpected death of King Hamlet. Hamlet continuously alludes that he knows what Claudius has done, and seeks to make him feel remorseful for his actions. He achieves this goal through a reenactment of Hamlet’s death, and the exchange of everlasting love between ‘Hamlet’ and ‘Gertrude’, played by the actors at Elsinore.