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Masculinity In Romeo And Juliet

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“What would it mean for a male not to be a man in the world of Romeo and Juliet, to be a male subject without being a captive of the masculinist regime?” (Applebaum 69) The men in Verona are stuck in a system they do not know exists and in turn, make terrible decisions they cannot be blamed for. In Romeo and Juliet the men and women live in a very contrasting manner. Women are constantly worried about love and are silenced when it comes real problems. The men on the other hand, “The world of men in Verona is founded upon violence, sexual domination, and conquest.”. (Romeo and Juliet: An Exploration of Gender Roles #) In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet the men of Verona are held to a extremely high standard of masculinity, and in turn learn …show more content…

“In the world of Romeo and Julie,t the regime of Romeo and Juliet the regime of masculinity is constituted as a system from which there is no escape, but in keeping with which there is no experience of masculine satisfaction either.” (Applebaum 69) The men have to have some satisfaction in their life somehow and most learn to turn to the satisfaction of sexual dominance over the females. Romeo tries this with Juliet when they talk in secret for the first time after the party; he pleads with Juliet, “O, wilt thou leave me so unsatisfied?” (Shakespeare 2.2.125 800). Before they part, Romeo expects Juliet to please him because he is male and she is female, so he must be preeminent. “On the one hand, the man wants to take up the position that is already waiting for him, the position of his own lack: he wants to stir and occupy it, displacing his rivals, abusing their women on the other hand, the man wants to wear the mask of having the position occupied; he wants to show himself not stirring toward it but already standing there in the possession of his masculinity,” (Applebaum 69). The position of preeminence is more difficult to achieve between other men, but when the men find it easier to subdue the opposite sex in turn finding a kind of satisfaction. This isn’t an ideal situation though because without the female influence, tragedy struck. “The main belief is that male domination itself and the suppression of the feminine influences are the root cause of tragedy both in theatre and in real life,” (Bernstein

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Mercutio’s role is to juxtapose Romeo and enables the audience to see the stark contrast between the two characters. Romeo and Juliet redefine the role of men and women as they establish that both genders can be submissive, masculine and emotional because ultimately, they are stereotypes and men and women are simply words rather than realities as we are simply all,

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Emily Fernandez Dr. Rachel Prusko English 387 Lecture B1: Youth Cultures February 4th, 2023 Romeo’s Rebellion: Creation and Refusal of the Masculine Identity in Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet shows how the young men of Verona are obligated to perform a certain type of masculinity associated with violence and sexuality. Romeo, however, provides a counter to this as he displays both feminine and masculine behaviours throughout the play. Ultimately, Romeo’s refusal to adhere to the standards of masculinity and his inclination to create an identity of his own are an enduring example of the young male experience.

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However, the male characters’ want for strength and control influences many of the actions and conversations that are had. The short play exposes how the male characters’ masculinity affects the way the women act, are treated, view situations, and view their worth. Firstly, the actions of the female characters are greatly influence by the male characters’ masculinity. Masculinity is revealed within the first piece of

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Romeo and Juliet are a different couple challenging the fact that each character displays a different gender trait that goes against what was the norm. When Mercutio dies, Romeo considers whether it is worth it to fight Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt. “O sweet Juliet, thy beauty hath made me effeminate and in my temper softened valor’s steel!” (Act III, Scene i, 75-78) Romeo feels like meeting Juliet has made him

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In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, we see people that either keep stereotypical gender roles or break those roles. A gender role is a set of societal norms dictating the types of behaviors which are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for people based on their sex. An example of a character who keeps the gender role is Capulet, who is arguably the character that keeps the strongest gender role by leading his household with a strong manner and wanting to protect his family, deciding what is best for his daughter without her input, and expecting everyone to be grateful for everything he does for them. We will also be looking at Juliet, who does not keep her gender role by rebelling against her family, expressing her own opinions, and standing up for herself and deciding what she thinks is best for herself. Finally, we will be looking at Romeo, who takes the submissive role multiple times throughout the play, down to drinking the poison to kill himself, which is viewed as a more feminine way of killing yourself.

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Macie Abele Bohon English I H 08 March 2024 Let Freedom Reign In a patriarchal society, women are forced to make decisions beyond their control, under the rule of man. In The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare wrote as if Juliet were held to the same standards as all women at the time, with the exception of having the same level of courage as Romeo.

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In society, gender roles play an important role as it helps in building structure and assigning certain roles. However, some may not agree with these roles and expectations, which can potentially lead to their rebellious attitudes. This is apparent during the Elizabethan era in Verona, a place in which gender roles play a huge role in society and is very emphasized. In William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, gender roles are constantly shown throughout the play. The two protagonists, Romeo and Juliet display the consequences of circumventing gender roles as their actions later prove to result in external conflicts and tragic events.

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Their tough archetypes were always present in many plays and reinforced the idea of male superiority. This fact held true, especially for a certain tragic classic by William Shakespeare. There was a misogynistic mentality towards women in Romeo and Juliet, evident through the way women were shown as objects, portrayed as weak, and made to seem unable to dictate their own lives. Men in Romeo and Juliet could be seen acting like owners towards women. Women were seen as nothing more than possessions, as illustrated when Romeo first described Juliet as, “My lady…/my love” (II.ii.10).

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In today’s world, gender expectations and roles of men and women are a highly debated topic. However, the reconsidering of these expectations is not a new phenomenon. Set in Verona, Italy, the play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare explores the reversal and fluidity of characteristics usually assigned to a specific gender. In this play, two young people fall in love and end up tragically taking their lives as a result of their forbidden love. Shakespeare suggests that men are not necessarily masculine, women are not necessarily feminine, and that when people are forced by society to act the way their gender is “supposed” to, problems will arise.

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This shows feminism because in a patriarchal society, women are forced to follow men’s rules because they were more dominant. The play Romeo and Juliet shows feminism by forcing women to obey a patriarchal

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