A2 English Literature Coursework (grade B)

A2 English Literature coursework                         Victoria Munro

Compare the ways in which Shakespeare and Tennessee Williams present male dominance in ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, ‘Othello’ and ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’.

Although writing at different times Shakespeare and Williams illustrate how men have the power to control women. In all three play the women do start off with some dominance; an example of this is the initial presentation of Desdemona when she is wooing Othello. “Why, stay and hear me speak” she tells Othello. At this point she has some control.

Desdemona lives in a paternalistic, racist and stereotyping society - her father cannot believe that she has eloped with Othello demonstrating that he does not know his own daughter’s character. Equally, Othello prefers to believe a fellow solider, Iago, who accuses her of betraying Othello many times with a white lover, Cassio. Desdemona’s refusal to accept a woman’s position as inferior and submissive leads to her downfall and she is stereotyped as an adulteress. Desdemona’s character is not robust enough for her to brave these prejudices.

Blanche, however, manages to also show superiority and control when she defies Stanley by lying about drinking alcohol. She flirts with Stanley in scene two when she asks him to do up her buttons:

BLANCHE: I’m going to ask a favour of you in a moment.

STANLEY: What could that be, I wonder?

BLANCHE: Some buttons in back! You may enter!

Stanley then crosses through the drapes with a smouldering look. Williams’ use of this adjective conveys Stanley’s sexual deviance. Blanche says “Now the buttons” and “You men with your big clumsy fingers”. Her flirting shows how she is in control and using her body as a tool to create power over Stanley; she is also insulting his body (his fingers) and this perhaps is a way to make her feel better about herself.

She is also critical of the Kowalski’s two room apartment and of its location in a very seedy part of New Orleans. She is also disdainful of Stanley and his working class background. “Well- if you’ll forgive me-he’s common” Blanche tells Stella. She is trying to cling on to her middle class background and comfort herself by believing she is superior to Stanley. “He acts like an animal, has an animal’s habits” Blanche also exclaims, telling Stella exactly what she thinks of Stanley. This accusation of Stanley’s characteristics holds some truth. Stanley is forceful and violent like a wild animal and he regards sex as something casual and male dominated. He has sex when he wants, much like animals do. His obvious dominance causes Blanche to provoke him at any opportunity, for example:

Blanche rises and crosses leisurely to a small white radio and turns it on.

STANLEY: Who turned that on in there?

BLANCHE: I did. Do you mind?

STANLEY: Turn it off!

Blanche is clearly playing on Stanley’s nerves and perhaps deliberately unsettling him; she has control in this scene when she turns the radio on but Stanley gains asserts his power when he tells her abruptly to “Turn it off!”

Similarly Shakespeare presents the relationship between Beatrice and Benedick as a battle for dominance. This is portrayed most clearly when Beatrice flirts with Benedick in Act Two Scene One at the masked ball:

BEATRICE: Will you not tell me who told you so?

BENEDICK: No, you shall pardon me.

BEATRICE: Nor will you not tell me who you are?

BENEDICK: Not now.

This is a similarly provocative relationship. Beatrice perseveres in challenging Benedick’s superiority and insults Benedick, calling him “a very dull Fool”.

Benedick later states that “Every word stabs”, which indicates that Beatrice’s remark has penetrated his defence - he is losing control and showing his emotions. Shakespeare presents Beatrice as having control over Benedick when these events take place.

Both playwrights suggest that for males to gain dominance they need to resort to violent and destructive acts. The destruction of women is shown in various ways, for example Iago is clearly responsible for Desdemona’s destruction because he poisons Othello’s mind. Othello never confronts Desdemona; instead Othello questions and attacks her and this results in her loss of courage and independence.

OTHELLO: Give me your hand. This hand is moist my lady.

DESDEMONA: It yet hath felt no age, nor known no sorrow.

OTHELLO: This argues fruitfulness and liberal heart:

Hot, hot, and moist. This hand of yours requires

A sequester from liberty: fasting and prayer,

Much castigation, exercise devout;

For here’s a young and sweating devil here,

That commonly rebels. ‘Tis a good hand,

A frank one.

Here Othello is implying that Desdemona has ‘moist’ and ‘hot’ hands because she is guilty and lying. He is psychologically tormenting her into trying to confess to her sins. Later on in this scene he brings up the subject of the handkerchief asking her to “Lend me thy handkerchief”. Desdemona exclaims “I have it not about me”. Othello gave Desdemona this as a gift and is a symbol of their love for each other so Othello is distraught and angered when Desdemona says “It is not lost but what and if it were?” because this suggests it means nothing to her. Othello is angered by her casual dismissal of the handkerchief because it not only symbolises for him the evidence of her infidelity but also suggests that she does not regard him as important. His response is his need to take revenge and re-assert his dominance.

As a result Shakespeare presents Othello as cruelly setting up Desdemona in act 4 scene 2 when he says “Let me see your eyes, look in my face” - he is tormenting her and she loses confidence. He is beginning to destroy her.

OTHELLO: Why, what art thou?

DESDEMONA: Your wife, my lord; your true and loyal wife

Desdemona is presented as standing up for herself here by protesting that she is innocent when she replies ‘Your true and loyal wife’-she is eradicating any rumours that she is not loyal or faithful. Othello goes on to call Desdemona a ‘whore’ and liken her to ‘summer flies’ which is a grotesque image of flies that swarm round dirt and faeces. He is implying that Desdemona is no longer pure or innocent. Othello strikes Desdemona. Shakespeare here escalates the dramatic tension and this display of physical violence is similar to the domestic abuse Stella suffers at the hands of Stanley. Both writers suggest that male characters manage to gain dominance and control by using physical violence.

Hero’s marriage to Claudio would be seen as a positive event for the sixteenth century audience and a triumph for Hero, but in reality she is just conforming to society’s wishes. Twenty first century audiences would be shocked at how she marries the man who declared her ruined. Hero is a victim of prejudice of society and of male wrongdoings. Don John’s vicious delight in confusing and hurting the characters emotions affects Hero directly. When Claudio exposes her false secret at their wedding, she immediately becomes a ruined woman. Society scorns her for what they think she has done. Twenty first century audiences would frown upon Hero’s decision to marry Claudio, the man who declared her a ruined woman and likened her to a rotten orange - “Give not this rotten orange to your friend” – a metaphor that suggests she is perfect and beautiful on the outside but grotesque and deceiving on the inside. Claudio illustrates that Hero has slept with another man and is no longer pure by exclaiming that, “She knows the heat of a luxurious bed”. Hero is ruined by Claudio on their wedding day. He compares her to Dian-goddess of chastity and Venus-goddess of lust and sexuality. The comparison of Hero to the goddesses is much like the metaphorical comparison of the ‘rotten orange’. Claudio is implying that Hero is externally like Dian-sweet and innocent but is actually, internally like Venus-wild and sexual. Claudio gains control in the wedding scene as he tears Hero’s dignity to shreds. Claudio uses the humiliation of Hero to assert his dominance in a variety of ways.

At the end of the same scene when Beatrice is arguing with Benedick about Hero’s wrongdoing Shakespeare presents her as showing superiority over him. She is standing up for her cousin, and therefore standing up for women’s rights - her feminist characteristic flares. Benedick remarks, “I do love nothing in the world so well as you: is not that strange?” Beatrice later replies, “I love you with so much of my heart, that none is left to protest”. Benedick is softened by this romantic outburst and says, “Come, bid me do anything for thee” to which Beatrice immediately replies, “Kill Claudio!” She is putting Benedick in an impossible situation - asking him to kill his best friend to please his lover (Beatrice) and bring justice to Hero. Beatrice has control over Benedick’s emotions and is toying with them in order to persuade him to do what she wants. Shakespeare presents her as triumphant because she agrees.

Blanche is destroyed by Stanley both mentally and physically. When he rapes her, towards the end of the play, she is completely destroyed in a physical sense however he does manage to destroy her sanity, although she is unstable to begin with, he succeeds in tipping Blanche over the edge.

At her birthday party he cruelly manipulates her by declaring “I’ve got a little birthday remembrance for you”.

Blanche is delighted and replies “Oh, have you Stanley? I wasn’t expecting any”.

Stanley continues to revel in Blanche’s blissful ignorance “Yes, I hope you like it”.

Blanche: Why, why-Why, it’s a-

Stanley: Ticket! Back to Laurel! On the Greyhound! Tuesday!

Blanche tries to smile. Then she tries to laugh. Then she gives both up and springs from the table and runs into the next room. She clutches her throat and then runs into the bathroom. Coughing, gagging sounds are heard.

This description illustrates how upset Blanche is, at first she tries to hide it, rather unsuccessfully and then her emotions become too much for her and she presumably vomits in the bathroom.

Stanley has managed to gain emotional control by upsetting Blanche, but also physical control by making her sick-which leads on to the awful rape scene later on.

Women are victimised and abused by men and whatever dominance, independence or confidence they have at the beginning of the plays is lost by the end. Many would argue that Hero has dominance because she is finally married to Claudio, however she only has this dominance and control because of her marriage, if she were independent she would be an embarrassment to society. Beatrice’s witty and unique character alters when she lets herself fall in love with Benedick, and although their marriage indicates a happy ending, it also shows how women were just objects of men’s desire and were only regarded in a dignified manner when they married a man.

Desdemona has been destroyed by men. Her fidelity has been questioned, her life has been lost and her dignity toyed with. Blanche is also destroyed by the male sex-her body violated and her rights and freedom banished after she is taken away to a mental asylum.

The male gender manages to destroy and corrupt the female gender and succeed in becoming the dominant characters in the plays.

At the end of ‘Much Ado’ Benedick and Beatrice are betrothed. This event seems unlikely to happen at the beginning of the play, especially when Beatrice says “I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me”. This illustrates her complete lack of desire to marry or fall in love and makes the inevitable wedding seem somewhat unlikely.

However Beatrice agrees to marry Benedick in the end and is therefore giving up her independence and own goals and dreams in order to marry a man. At the end of the play Benedick says “Peace. I will stop your mouth” and kisses her. This gesture could be seen as romantic but also as patriarchal and controlling. Although Benedick is pursuing a romantic and tender gesture he is also physically stopping Beatrice from being able to speak or argue-essentially taking away her right to speak.

With this gesture Benedick is gaining control over Beatrice and sealing up any independence, spark and feministic beliefs she might have-she becomes his property, which was common at the time but seems appalling to a 21^st century audience.

Similarly Hero is giving up her individuality to marry Claudio, the man who disgraced her in front of her family and friends. He gains control over her once he marries her after falsely accusing her and she manages to become dignified-purely because she is wed. Although Hero and Claudio are clearly in love and marrying Claudio ensures Hero’s happiness, she is also subconsciously giving in to the male gender and allowing herself to be controlled by a male. Shakespeare highlights the Christian act of forgiveness-Hero may be seen as property to Claudio socially, but she holds superiority over him because she is moral enough to forgive him for his mistake.

Blanche is completely destroyed by Stanley’s actions. Although the audience are clear from the beginning of the play that Blanche is mentally unstable and deluded, her delusions worsen as Stanley abuses her and eventually she is broken apart.

Her (Blanche’s) terror subsides a little. The lurid reflections fade from the walls, the inhuman cries and noises die out and her own hoarse crying is calmed.

Blanche is delusional and extremely upset; her life is being destroyed forever.

She turns to face him and stares at him with desperate pleading. He smiles; then he speaks to the MATRON.

Blanche is desperate now-clinging onto any act of kindness the people around her can show.

Her own sister refuses to believe her accusation of Stanley raping her and so she is taken away to a mental asylum-and this shreds any control she once had.

In the final scene of the play Blanche says “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers”-this famous quotation conveys Blanche’s ability to trust, it also reveals a slice of hope that she still carries with her-and suggests that she does still carry some self-worth and faith-even though she has been torn apart by the male gender. Blanche’s flirty characteristic is shown when she says this-she is flirting with the doctor who has come to take her away, in a positive light this shows that even in the worst circumstance Blanche can sustain some of her personality.

Hero gains social status when she marries Claudio, and this act would be one that a Shakespearian audience would find delight in.

Men were seen as the dominant and more important gender at the time the plays were written-especially the Shakespearian plays. The audience at the time would see the men’s empowerment as normal and inevitable-in particular a Shakespearian audience; however Williams highlights the inequalities between men and women and disturbing issues such as domestic violence, alcoholism and mental illness. His play is a revelation and a protest to society-a way of illustrating the wrongs in the world at the time.

It seems accurate to say that men succeed in dominating women. They manage to do this by using vicious, violent actions-in Stanley’s case, mockery, wit, honesty and love-Benedick, and remorse and pure love-Claudio.