COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE WOMEN REPRESENTATION IN SHAKESPEAREAN AND MODERN DRAMA

Abstract

This study explores the depiction of female characters in Shakespearean and modern drama, how woman are oppressed by men and they have no control to make decisions about their lives. Comparative study of female characters in Shakespearean and modern drama showed that women were victim of male domination society and as mark of male desire and envy. Female characters were considered weak and vulnerable in Shakespearean and modern Drama. Themes of treachery, revenge and devastating nature of Shakespeare were also showcasing in his plays such as Hamlet, King Lear, Macbeth and Othello. Ophelia, in Hamlet, challenged the conventional gender parts as she was presented as a tragic persona between the expectations towards her father, brother and lover. Ophelia portrayal was actually submissive and dutiful daughter but her madness exposed her suffocated nature that was imposed on her. Female characters also showed weak and dependent in modern drama. In “A Doll House” the weakness and vulnerability showed through the character of Nora. Nora’s position in “A Doll House” represented the condition of thousand women existed in real world. Ophelia, in Hamlet, challenged the conventional gender parts as she was presented as a tragic persona between the expectations towards her father, brother and lover. Ophelia portrayal was actually submissive and dutiful daughter but her madness exposed her suffocated nature that was imposed on her. The major problem of this study was the vulnerable, weak and powerlessness condition of women, they were under control by men, and men have the full power and authority. The women were submissive, kind and soft hearted in renaissance age, they cannot make their own decisions, the women were compelled into marriage in order to gain power, legacy and land. They have no individual identity.