Western literature. Shakespeare and Robert Bolt - Book Report/Review Example

Western Heritage A. Shakespeare's View of Women: In the play Othello, there are three significant female characters - Desdemona, Emilia, and Bianca - who hardly appear in the film version, although she has a significant role in the play. It is evident that the playwright presents a male dominated society in the play where women are inferior and all the female characters including Desdemona, Emilia, and Bianca are abandoned by their partners, though they love them magnanimously. A prominent question regarding the portrayal of women in the play is whether Shakespeare can be faulted in any way for his treatment of women, or is it an accurate and realistic portrayal of women in this play.

As Shakespeare has been acclaimed as the master craftsman who is celebrated for his realistic portrayal of various characters in his plays, it is indubitable that the playwright is giving us a truthful and realistic picture of women in his social context. Men have traditionally given superiority over women in almost all the societies and the position of women in Shakespearean society was not different. Being a realistic artist who insisted on mirroring the society, as it is, through the themes and characters of his works, Shakespeare has been just being exact and realistic in presenting the women characters in the play Othello. 2. D.

Robert Bolt, in his A Man for All Seasons, creates the "Common Man" character to serve as something of a modern day Greek Chorus. The character introduces and concludes the play, comments on the action periodically through both acts, and assumes a variety of roles in the play. The Common Man in the play has vital roles in the play and his actions in these roles reinforce the various themes of the play. Significantly, the Common Man in the play serves as the link between the audience and the play and everyone can identify with this character.

According to Bolt the Common Man is a universal character and he "laments the fact that upper class and even lower-status people, who resented such an image, failed or refused to view the Common Man as a representative of themselves. However, regardless of how Bolt viewed his character, the Common Man embodies both universality and baseness. In fact, the Common Man shows that the "common" human being is base and immoral." (Analysis of Major Characters) In fact, the Common Man develops into a coherent character as the play progresses, though the character acts in several different roles in the play so as to establish his universal nature.

Therefore, the Common Man in the play A Man for All Seasons has several has various important functions within the framework of the play and it is this character that serves the development of different themes in the play. 3 .E. How - if at all - have the readings been worth your while Significantly, the major readings of the syllabus, including Shakespeare's Othello and Bolt's A Man for All Seasons, have been very significant in realizing several important facts and ideas of life. These readings presented different themes and characters which have a great function in influencing the lives of the readers.

They also provided the opportunity to comprehend the social life in different periods as well as communities. The essential themes of these readings also have an important function of enhancing the experience and knowledge of the individuals living in the contemporary world. In short, all of the six readings of the syllabus have been worth a while and instructive. Work Cited "Analysis of Major Characters." A Man for All Seasons: Robert Bolt. Spark Notes. 09 May, 2009. .