A-Level OCR English Literature Essay - Patriarchal Hierarchies in Richard III (13/15 - A*)
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Drama and poetry pre-1900
Instelling
OCR
"The patriarchal hierarchies at play in Richard III exclude women from power."
Using your knowledge of the play as a whole, show how far you agree with this view of the play Richard III.
Remember to support your view with reference to different interpretations.
“The patriarchal hierarchies at play in Richard III exclude women from power.”
Using your knowledge of the play as a whole, show how far you agree with this view of the
play Richard III.
Remember to support your view with reference to different interpretations.
Women are excluded from power due to patriarchal hierarchies in the ways in which status is
awarded to the characters, how they are defined by others, and whether they are presented
as successful under and after the rule of Richard. Queen Margaret embodies the
experiences of women in Shakespeare’s contemporary era, and her deviation from societal
norms in both her mannerisms and her attitude towards men makes her one of
Shakespeare’s most distinctive characters throughout the play and its numerous
interpretations.
Old Margaret obtains status partially through her aristocracy and infamously due to her
reputation as a witch. The latter is accentuated in the 2016 Benedict Cumberbatch
adaptation, in which Margaret exudes a threatening aura through her consistently glowering
gaze and her lack of verbal contributions. This is ironic in that she reflects Richard in this
way - in both their aristocracy and their spiteful nature - but uses her minimal power (largely
due to her gender) to curse Richard’s arbitrary expansion of power in Act 1 Scene 3.
Although Margaret has the capacity to use her words for vengeance due to her upper class
status, her doing so is not deemed as powerful because of her limited authority following the
death of her husband, King Henry VI. Due to this loss, she remains grasping at opportunities
of power and strength as she is left without a husband to grant her status. However,
Margaret is but a shadow in Richmond’s influence on Richard’s psychological state, as
Richmond is feared by Richard due to his sheer determination to bring peace to England
again. So although Richmond is only introduced in Act 5 of the play, he overshadows
Margaret’s significance which further alludes to the subordination and inferiority of women
due to the patriarchal hierarchies in Richard III, and consequently the exclusion of women
from power.
Margaret is also reflective of Richard in that she is largely defined by her unruly and
unsettling appearance and unrestrained tongue. Particularly in Roy Dotrice’s 1965
adaptation, Margaret is presented as old, unattractive and disruptive of court discussions
(largely when Richard is involved). However, while Richard is empowered by his deformed
physique, Margaret is shamed by the men of the play. This is because she fails to conform to
the expectations of Shakespeare’s contemporary society on how a woman is to present
herself. Instead, Margaret compensates for this with her unrelenting drive to expose Richard
for who he truly is because, as Ian McKellen affirms, she has a “persistent litany of revenge”.
She is defined by her consistent counters to Richard because of her unrestrained use of
language as a weapon where her social status and gender fail her. This is particularly
evident in Act 1 Scene 3, in which Margaret argues with Richard for his manipulative and
devilish facade, and this tension is heightened within the 1965 version. Although she
attempts to subvert the characters into viewing Richard as transparently as she does, her wit
fails to drive her ambition in the same way it drives Richard’s. In this way, Margaret is
confined to her socially constrictive position in the patriarchal hierarchy of Richard III,
therefore affirming her exclusion from power as a result of her foreign mannerisms in
comparison to the other women of the play.
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