Shakespeare’s Sister as a feminist essay

Answer

Evaluate “Shakespeare’s Sister” as a feminist essay. [2020] ✪✪✪

Or, Consider “Shakespeare’s Sister” as a feminist essay. [2018, 2016]

Feminism is the belief that women and men should have the same social, political, and economic rights and opportunities. “Shakespeare’s Sister” (1929) is a famous feminist essay by Virginia Woolf (1882–1941). Through this essay, she examines the actual condition of women in the Elizabethan era (1558-1603). She also shows how social injustice destroyed their creative freedom. She imagines that Shakespeare had a sister named Judith, who failed to express her genius due to the tyranny of men. The essay, therefore, is an authentic voice of feminist protest and awakening.

Feminist Protest against Patriarchy: Woolf begins with a strong feminist concern. She exposes the system of patriarchy that controlled women’s lives in all spheres. Citing Trevelyan’s History of England, she says, 

“Marriage was not an affair of personal affection, but of family avarice.” 

Girls were beaten and forced to marry men chosen by their parents. They were treated as property, not human beings. This cruel control shows how deeply patriarchy destroyed women’s dignity and freedom in the sixteenth century.

Inequality in Education and Freedom: Woolf’s feminism also appears in her comparison between Shakespeare and Judith. Shakespeare went to grammar school, learned Latin and logic, and gained fame in London. Judith, on the other hand, was denied schooling. She was told to “mend the stockings or mind the stew.” Even if she read secretly, her parents scolded her. This inequality reflects the main feminist idea. The central idea is that women’s talents were suppressed not by nature but by lack of education and opportunity.

Imaginative Greatness but Practical Slavery: Woolf observes that women in literature were often depicted as queens, saints, and heroines. But in reality, they were treated as slaves. She writes, 

“A very queer, composite being thus emerges; imaginatively she is of the highest importance; practically she is completely insignificant.” 

This shows the double standard of male society: men glorified