Women In Power
The powerful woman is a key factor in King Lear, A Doll's House and Rear Window. She has a central role in each story and is represented in different ways throughout the three texts. Ibsen shows the powerful woman breaking out of oppression in a time when it was not heard of, Shakespeare's powerful woman has her own ideas and is strong willed, Hitchcock's is a persistent and independent young woman.
In King Lear, Cordelia stands out to the audience as she defies her father from the very first scene,showing her freedom of expression and strong will from the onset. Cordelia separates herself from her sisters as she does not agree with what they are saying, or what their father is asking for. Shakespeare's use of the powerful woman in this play is the beginning of the downfall for King Lear and those around him. By banishing Cordelia and allowing the malevolent daughters to rule the kingdom is the beginning of the end for Lear. Cordelia's powerful attitude turns everything around and ultimately leads Lear to madness.
Similarly, in Rear Window, Lisa Freemont is extremely independent and has a very clear set of ideas and goals. She has her own work, interests and achievements, separate from any man. It is clear that she wants to marry Jeff but she is not put off by his obvious doubts. In this text, however, this powerful woman drives the story to an ultimately happy ending. Her self confidence does not anger Jeff and by her uninfluenced actions trying to catch Torwald, Jeff sees that she is someone he wants to marry.
This can also be observed in A Doll's House, the power of a woman is the key to this whole play. The play begins with a woman who has no life of her own, she is living under the spell of her husband, she has absolutely no real independence. In this play, it is an act of blackmail that ultimately changes things for Nora, but her new outlook gained from this experience is what changes the ending of the play. She suddenly realises what has been at the back of her mind for her whole life, that she is not really living. She takes control of the situation and by doing so she becomes the powerful woman that sets an example for the world at this time.
All three authors take the same approach to the powerful woman as they don't lose their independence throughout their story. They are strong women who don't lose their point of view in situations, they stick to their ideas and have their voice heard.
King Lear's Cordelia firstly tries to make her father realise her love for him in a true way not just as he has asked or as her sisters have done, but she is immediately put down for her defiance. She is told that she is horrid and has no respect. To hear this from a father she loves so dearly may be enough for her to breakdown and take back her words, but Cordelia is strong in her own mind and ideas, she will not be controlled by a man. This continues throughout the play as she accepts her banishment and travels away, returning only in war to protect those she loves.
Likewise, in Rear Window, Lisa is aware of what she wants and doesn't let this go for anyone. She wants Jeff but he doesn't think she is capable of his lifestyle. They have uneasy talks of what will come in the future for them but this doesn't hold Lisa back. She believes in herself and in the end she gets her way. Her and Jeff are happy and most likely to be married, but Lisa has not just conformed to the way that Jeff wants her to be, she is still herself and Jeff now loves her for this. She is even seen reading her fashion magazine in the last scene, a sign she is still herself and in control.
This can also be observed in A Doll's House, however the text does not begin with Nora as a powerful, independent woman but as the events of the play unfold and Torvald's actions cause her to re-think her life, she gains a much better insight into herself and from that, a sense of independence. She see's things clearly now and must figure the world out for herself. This puts her in a very difficult position of having to leave her family and home behind, but she does not back out despite this, she stays strong to herself and her judgement. She is determined to better herself and her life and she never doubts herself after this.
The powerful woman in all three of these texts is defined by her independence and courage to speak out in a time when women were thought to be second class citizens and shouldn't have a say in things. This is seen in all three texts even though the texts differ greatly in the time periods of when they were written. The one thing holding the powerful woman back, and this can be seen in all three texts, is their acceptance of how they are treated by those close to them, men in particular.
We can see in King Lear that Cordelia certainly has no hesitations in voicing her own thoughts of disagreement with her father, which is very true to herself. However, Lear banishes Cordelia and insults her very deeply. Cordelia leaves but returns later on in the play and has men find Lear and care for him. She reunites with a father who has been deeply unkind to her and was so quick to judgement of a daughter whom he has loved and has loved him for her whole life. This shows an acceptance by Cordelia of how she has been treated, which she should never view as having been fair.
Likewise, in Rear Window, Lisa allows Jeff to speak rudely to her throughout the film. He often puts her down, implying she knows nothing about the real world, only what's in magazines. She does voice her opinion in these situations but only to disagree with what he thinks of her, not acknowledging the fact that what he is saying is quite insulting. she lets the man who she loves and who is supposed to love her speak to her in such an unkind way, she is not staying true to herself in these situations.
Similar to Rear Window and King Lear, and maybe most obviously of the three texts, is Torvald's treatment of Nora in A Doll's House. As Nora does not have much independence or voice in her life until the end of the play, how unequally she is treated by her husband is quite prominent. He does not allow her to have control of money, she doesn't have a job and he absolutely despises her when he learns that she has borrowed money without telling him, even though it was to save his life. He is obsessed with societies view of their family and he tries to control Nora because of this. Deep down Nora knows this but she lives and does as Torvald says for eight long years. It is not til the end of the play that she no longer accepts it, so in a way she is different to our other powerful woman as she learns that she deserves so much more than this unfair treatment from a man.
All three authors take the same approach to the powerful woman as they don't lose their independence throughout their story. They are strong women who don't lose their point of view in situations, they stick to their ideas and have their voice heard.
King Lear's Cordelia firstly tries to make her father realise her love for him in a true way not just as he has asked or as her sisters have done, but she is immediately put down for her defiance. She is told that she is horrid and has no respect. To hear this from a father she loves so dearly may be enough for her to breakdown and take back her words, but Cordelia is strong in her own mind and ideas, she will not be controlled by a man. This continues throughout the play as she accepts her banishment and travels away, returning only in war to protect those she loves.
Likewise, in Rear Window, Lisa is aware of what she wants and doesn't let this go for anyone. She wants Jeff but he doesn't think she is capable of his lifestyle. They have uneasy talks of what will come in the future for them but this doesn't hold Lisa back. She believes in herself and in the end she gets her way. Her and Jeff are happy and most likely to be married, but Lisa has not just conformed to the way that Jeff wants her to be, she is still herself and Jeff now loves her for this. She is even seen reading her fashion magazine in the last scene, a sign she is still herself and in control.
This can also be observed in A Doll's House, however the text does not begin with Nora as a powerful, independent woman but as the events of the play unfold and Torvald's actions cause her to re-think her life, she gains a much better insight into herself and from that, a sense of independence. She see's things clearly now and must figure the world out for herself. This puts her in a very difficult position of having to leave her family and home behind, but she does not back out despite this, she stays strong to herself and her judgement. She is determined to better herself and her life and she never doubts herself after this.
The powerful woman in all three of these texts is defined by her independence and courage to speak out in a time when women were thought to be second class citizens and shouldn't have a say in things. This is seen in all three texts even though the texts differ greatly in the time periods of when they were written. The one thing holding the powerful woman back, and this can be seen in all three texts, is their acceptance of how they are treated by those close to them, men in particular.
We can see in King Lear that Cordelia certainly has no hesitations in voicing her own thoughts of disagreement with her father, which is very true to herself. However, Lear banishes Cordelia and insults her very deeply. Cordelia leaves but returns later on in the play and has men find Lear and care for him. She reunites with a father who has been deeply unkind to her and was so quick to judgement of a daughter whom he has loved and has loved him for her whole life. This shows an acceptance by Cordelia of how she has been treated, which she should never view as having been fair.
Likewise, in Rear Window, Lisa allows Jeff to speak rudely to her throughout the film. He often puts her down, implying she knows nothing about the real world, only what's in magazines. She does voice her opinion in these situations but only to disagree with what he thinks of her, not acknowledging the fact that what he is saying is quite insulting. she lets the man who she loves and who is supposed to love her speak to her in such an unkind way, she is not staying true to herself in these situations.
Similar to Rear Window and King Lear, and maybe most obviously of the three texts, is Torvald's treatment of Nora in A Doll's House. As Nora does not have much independence or voice in her life until the end of the play, how unequally she is treated by her husband is quite prominent. He does not allow her to have control of money, she doesn't have a job and he absolutely despises her when he learns that she has borrowed money without telling him, even though it was to save his life. He is obsessed with societies view of their family and he tries to control Nora because of this. Deep down Nora knows this but she lives and does as Torvald says for eight long years. It is not til the end of the play that she no longer accepts it, so in a way she is different to our other powerful woman as she learns that she deserves so much more than this unfair treatment from a man.
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