Weeping Widows and Warrior Women
A Feminist Reading of Shakespeare's First Tetralogy
by
Corey Lynn Hutchins
2011
Weeping Widows and Warrior Women will consider the plays of Shakespeare's first tetralogy, which includes 1, 2, 3 Henry VI and Richard III, through a feminist critical perspective. It will assess the female characters of these plays through their speech and actions rather than giving credence to external evaluations of them, whether from other characters or a perceived stance of the playwright. The goal throughout is to divorce previously seldom-studied characters from oppressive patriarchal interpretations of their actions in order to bring them in line with a feminist understanding of fully individuated women.
This thesis will explore issues of sexuality, witchcraft, war-mongering, widowhood, mourning, and scolding through the characters of Joan la Pucelle, the Countess of Auvergne, E...