The Value and Consequences of Women as Property - 876 Words

Women are seen as fickle, emotional creatures that spend most of their time on nonsense. Women are also known for their ability to hold a grudge, remember every wrongdoing ever done to them, and for their aptitude for revenge. Most women today would disagree with this stereotype, and women have made great strides, but women’s roles in society have not come as far as we may think. The roles of women in Shakespeare’s Hamlet demonstrate that women are fickle, obedient, and passive, but in Euripides’ Medea women are exhibited as aggressive, prideful, and subject to extreme emotion. Ophelia, from William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, is an innocent young woman who lives a fairly happy life. She has a loving father and brother, as well as a strapping young prince after her heart. Unfortunately, these men are also the cause of her plunge into insanity and her eventual death. Her father and brother both forbid her from seeing or speaking to Hamlet for fear of him using her, taking her virginity, and then throwing her away. This reinforces the label of women as property instead of people and further confirms that Ophelia has no control over her body, her relationships, or her choices. It also displays her complete obedience to her father because when he forbids her to fraternize with Hamlet, she replies, â€Å"I shall obey, my lord† (1.4.136). Ophelia doesn’t have the audacity to stand up to any of the men in her life, nor the intelligence to form or voice any opinions of her own. Queen GetrudeShow MoreRelatedThe And The Handmaid s Tale By Margaret Atwood1260 Words   |  6 Pages ‘’Every man has a property in his own person. This nobody has a right to, but himself’’ (John Locke). Therefore, societies should ensure that citizens are free to follow their individual desires for property because property is what ultimately determines the personality and value of each person in society. Nevertheless, totalitarian regimes are forced to restrain both intellectual and private property in order to ensure citizens follow the government’s revolutionary and oppressive rhetoric. HenceRead MoreCarol Karlsen s The Devil1692 Words   |  7 Pagesindividuals to act as if they were maintaining the safety and justice of society. Karlsen explains that in many instances, women who were labelled as witches were often females that had managed to acquire great economic and social status and society. In fear of these women, the neighborhood targete d them and called them witches to weaken their power. Independent of guilt, women who were accused of witchcraft could not possibly recovered. If they claimed their innocence, they would be stoned or burnedRead MoreThe Death Of A Man1058 Words   |  5 Pageshas been kindled, and a man who has come to extinguish the fire has lifted up his eyes to the property of the owner of the house, and has taken the property of the owner of the house, that man shall be thrown into that fire.(25). Drowning was another punishment, if a man s wife be surprised (in flagrante delicto) with another man, both shall be tied and thrown into the water, but the husband may pardon his wife and the king his slaves.† (129). Today, we see burning and drowning to be unreasonableRead MorePride and Prejudice V Bride and Prejudice1600 Words   |  7 Pagesitself over hundreds of years. Still, however changed, the values of todays society remain from the period of Regency England. Regency England, being the super power of the world in the 18th century, imposed the morals and ethics upon the world as they did their own country, where people were expected to abide by. Jane Austen illustrates the values of this prejudiced society through Pride and Prejudice, which involved the role of women as a major, governing over their marriages for economic sustainabilityRead MorePride And Prejudice V Bride And Prejudice Essay1603 Words   |  7 Pagesitself over hundreds of years. Still, however changed, the values of todays society remain from the period of Regency England. Regency England, being the super power of the world in the 18th century, imposed the morals and ethics upon the world as they did their own country, where people were expected to abide by. Jane Austen illustrates the values of this prejudiced society through Pride and Prejudice, which involved the role of women as a major, governing over their marriages for economic sustainabilityRead MoreThe Transition From The Traditional Hu nter Gatherer Societies878 Words   |  4 Pagesclass system where the wealthy rule, and were the weak and poor obey. As humans began to domesticate more plants and animals, they settled in permanent areas. The Change from hunter gatherer benefited few, but had dire consequences for the earth and groups with in it. One such consequence was the population increase, which has lead to major issues throughout history, and one that has ties to current global issues. As more people shifted towards an agriculture based society, many began to produce a surplusRead MoreWomen During The Imperial Period Essay1638 Words   |  7 PagesDespite having numerous powerful women leaders throughout Chinese history, China has been a traditionally patriarchal society. A society where women have long been charged with upholding society’s values in their roles as wives and mothers. However, radical changes in China’s political, economic and social structures have changed the expected values of women from the imperial period to the Communist revolution to the modern day. This paper aims to examine how these changes in the political, economicRead MoreEssay The Treatment of Women of Ancient Babylon1566 Words   |  7 Pagescurrent times consists of the lack of rights, privileges, and equity women had. Society maintained this assumption of a man’s superiority up until the women’s rights movement of the early twentieth century; yet with t he two sexes essentially equal in America today, imagining a restricted life as a female proves unfathomable. Looking back at the history of human kind, men almost always subdued women and treated them as property. When focusing on the first civilizations appearing thousands of yearsRead MoreLegislation And Legislative Change In Australia1122 Words   |  5 Pageslegislative change in Australia has sought over the years to both define the roles of women under the law and amend laws to ensure that gender inclusive redress occurs in the area of marriage and long-term relationships. The Matrimonial Causes Act 1857, passed in the United Kingdom, attempted to reform the law on divorce and marriage, however in that Act it explicitly granted men an easier route to divorce than women. The colonies at that time were invited to also pass this legislation. In responseRead MoreThe Invention Of The Cotton Gin By Eli Whitney1169 Words   |  5 Pagescalled), there was a consequent increase o n the request of slave labor. Therefore, slaves worked long hours on the fields, while many women slaves were confined to house duties, taking care of the masters’ family and home. Sadly, these women didn’t just work exhausting hours, but also suffered physical and sexual abuse by the hands of their masters. Undoubtedly, African women were not just used for labor, but they were also used to satisfy the sick fantasies of cruel men. In Colonial America, around