Female Roles Titus Andronicus Vs. Julius Caesar - 901 Words

Female Roles: Titus Andronicus vs. Julius Caesar The portrayal of Shakespeare’s female roles in the plays Titus Andronicus and Julius Caesar, leave one to question his belief on gender equality. Even though both of these plays take place during the Elizabethan era in Rome, the depiction of women’s roles in each play is significantly different. The female leads, Tamora and Lavinia, in Titus Andronicus, exhibit strong and powerful personalities, which however contradict with the portrayal of women in his other plays. The different approach used in his play Julius Caesar, leaves the only two female characters, Calpurnia and Portia, with much less significant beliefs. Shakespeare’s purpose behind the different portrayals of women in each play is to appeal to diverse audiences. The fact that both plays are set in the same era makes it particularly odd that the women have such different societal expectations that limit them to not only freedom of speech but power as well. The lack of female roles throughout both plays also represents how there weren t many authoritative figures that were females in this time period. Tamora, the villainous Queen of the Goths, depicted a character that was intensely persistent and never let anyone push her down. Her cutthroat behavior is what made the play not only entertaining but also exhilarating. One of her most devilish acts is when she persuaded Chiron and Demetrius, two of her sons, to rape Lavinia. In this scene she says, â€Å"But