Comparison of Brave New World and 1984

When one makes a study of Brave New World and 1984, one will come to the conclusion that both of these books are political satires which deal with the issues concerning the suppression of human nature in favor of one which is based on absolute control. One would say that both of these books depict the future world as a dreary place within which to live because the means through which the hums society interacts within them is very different from what is the case today. The interaction between human beings has traditionally been the means of transmitting knowledge from one generation to another, but this is not the case because in these societies, the fact that humans are able to interact does not mean that they learn anything from one another. A common depiction of these books is based on the belief that there will be less human interaction in the future, and this is seen in Brave New World, where because of a lack of serious human relationships, such as family, the issues are traditionally discussed more deeply do not take place and instead, there develops a type of society that is socially stagnant. While in the current world, the individuals get to have a better understanding of the issues being discussed because of regular interaction, in Brave New World, the opposite turns out to be true because of the fact that human beings, during the future age, are not conditioned to act independently of each other.

The events which are described in Brave New World, such as the establishment of a breeding program involving different castes of human beings, is not similar to those in 1984. This is because of the fact that in the latter, human beings, while being dominated by a single party whose purpose is to have absolute control of the society, has not made any attempt to alter humans physically. The main procedure used in gaining the absolute control and devotion among human beings is through the rewriting in history so that it is in the favor of the ruling party’s policies and objectives. Because the sources of history in the state described in 1984, known as Oceania, are either vague or scarce in content, it creates a situation where individuals get only a shallow understanding of the subject matter. In 1984, it is seen that because of the destruction of history, knowledge has become static, not being able to grow as it should. In both of these books, those people who possess knowledge or items that contain knowledge of the independent human nature of the past are completely ostracized from society or are put to death because of their perceived threat to the societal order. This makes it extremely difficult for knowledge to be transmitted and the lack of this knowledge has made the people in the societies described in the books disillusioned with life. This is especially true in Brave New World, where individuals have been conditioned by the ruling elite, to consume a drug known as soma, which is a hallucinogen used to ensure that they do not worry about their troubles.

The theme of control is prevalent in both Brave New World and 1984, and this is based on the need for the ruling elite to retain their power in what they consider to be the ideal state. Apart from working towards the destruction of all knowledge that concerns the past of human beings, they also adopt diverse methods to ensure that they have absolute control over the human society so that there are no rebellions. In Brave New World, there develops a caste system where human beings are no longer born in the natural way and are instead developed in laboratories. These are altered during their development so that they can best suit the purposes of the different castes to which they are assigned, with the higher castes being developed with such characteristics as intelligence while the lower castes are purposely given less intelligence so that they can work towards serving the interests of the higher castes. Because of their synthetic development, the lower castes of the society, who form the majority of the population in Brave New World, is not equipped to deal with the issues of day to day life and they have instead become artificial. It is possible that when Aldous Huxley was writing his book, he felt that the latter was the likely scenario that would face the world if there were no sources of human history from which people could get the knowledge and wisdom that they could use to make their lives more meaningful. In addition, it is possible that he believed that the intellectual development of the human race would be brought to a standstill because intelligent thought is often found in those instruments that perpetuate human history.

In 1984, on the other hand, there has developed a thought police whose purpose is to ensure that any material that individuals possess that might threaten the ruling order are apprehended and sentenced to death. The need for the party’s survival has created a situation where children in Oceania are indoctrinated with the need to spy on everyone who might possibly have any information that threatens the regime. This indoctrination is so great that these children end up also spying on and surrendering their own parents to the though police if the latter indeed have any dissenting material. In this way, children have become the means through which the government spies on its citizens and this is a sign that the normal traditional values of family loyalty have been destroyed, leaving behind a situation where there is no loyalty between individuals and families in the society. Independent thought has greatly been encouraged through the study of human history and this has ensured the development of new ideas. Because of this, the governments in both 1984 and Brave New World have ensured that this ability has been immensely diminished. These governments have come to realize that it is only through the study of old ideas that new ideas are developed and this has led to their destruction of material that may contain information that may be a threat to them.

In conclusion, as seen in both books, despite the large reserves of information that can lead to the further development of the human race, the ruling elite has chosen to destroy such information, perceiving it as a threat. In both of these books, the information provided by these governments do not have the qualities which the original sources of information have because most of the information gotten from the sources that are approved are often instant and shallow. These governments do not allow individuals to contemplate on the information which they read and this ensures that they do not have independent thought. The lack of independent thought due to the absence of knowledge has come to put the human race into a dark age of intellectual stagnation, as seen in these two works. When one reads these books, one comes to the conclusion that the ability to think through the learning of the previous work of others is what has helped the advancement of the human race. The inability to think and the reliance on shallow sources of information such as the internet is likely to see the end of the world as we know it. Human beings learn about their past from books and with this knowledge, the take action to avoid the mistakes of their past. Therefore, without adequate knowledge, the human race will probably end up destroying itself because it will not have the ability to learn from its past.

A World Without Books

Books have, over the centuries, been among the greatest inventions of the human race and it has been through them that human civilization has been able to advance. Books have become so essential that it is difficult to envisage humanity without them. Books have been the way through which the history of the human race has been transmitted from one age group to another. In addition, they have been the through which official records have bee kept, and without them, all the great civilizations of the past would not have been able to blossom and flourish as they did. Throughout history, scholars and those people who could read have been greatly revered by their fellow men because they were believed to be the carriers of and transmitters of knowledge. Before the modern times, books were extremely rare and were intensely sought after by those who could read them. In the Western world, books were so rare that the only book which many of those who could read had read was the bible, a book that certain priests could not even read. The ownership of and the ability to read books were therefore a source of great prestige for those who had the privilege of having them. This privilege eventually came to be spread all over the world as more people became literate and books became commonplace. There has, however, recently developed a trend where people have come to prefer other forms of entertainment at the expense of books, which are slowly, but surely, being viewed as relics of the past.

A world without books is a concept which many people are yet to comprehend due to the fact that a majority of the literate people in the world today at some point enjoys reading. While this is a fact, one has to consider that there have developed newer and seemingly more interesting forms of entertainment, which many of the younger generation is adapting to instead of books. This is creating a situation similar to that in the novel Fahrenheit 451 where books are of no value and any that are found are destroyed. In the world of this novel, books are considered by society to be useless and due to popular demand, it has become the duty of the firemen to destroy every available copy that is found. The influence of other media such as soap operas has become so great that the population prefers it to books, which are looked upon as being too strenuous to read. Many of the characters in the novel have become disillusioned by books, mainly because of the conflicting information which is found within them. Beatty, the boss of the main character, is said to have once been an avid reader, but his disillusionment with books soon led him to get involved in their destruction as a fireman. His disillusionment with them seems to be so great that he makes Montag, the main character, destroy the book which he realizes that the latter has in his possession.

One would say that a world without books would be a dreary place within which to live because books have traditionally been the means of transmitting knowledge from one generation to another. Through books, issues are discussed more deeply and in the process, the reader gets to have a better understanding of the issues being discussed. This is not true of other sources of information, because these sources are scarce in content and this creates a situation where individuals get only a shallow understanding of the subject matter. In Fahrenheit 451, it is seen that because of the destruction of books, knowledge has become static, not being able to grow as it should. Those people who possess books are completely ostracized from society and are put in mental asylums because of their intellect. This makes it extremely difficult for knowledge to be transmitted and the lack of this knowledge has made the people in this society disillusioned with life. Because of their hatred for books, the society in Fahrenheit 451 is not equipped to deal with the issues of day to day life and they have instead become artificial. This is the likely scenario that would face the world if there were no books from which people could get the knowledge and wisdom that they could use to make their lives more meaningful. In addition, it is possible that the intellectual development of the human race would be brought to a standstill because intelligent thought is often written in books.

Books have been a source of history for the human race for centuries, and without them, one would conclude that there can be no history. The study of the history of the human race is extremely important because it enables people to learn from the events of the past and this knowledge helps in the making of future decisions. The study of history is only possible through books and because of the developing lack of interest in them, slowly but surely, the human race is going to end up without a history. This can clearly be seen when, in Fahrenheit 451, most of the women prefer watching interactive soap operas to having intellectual discussions. This has led to a situation where the women in the novel have no life other than that which they watch on television. The power of the media has become so great that the characters in the novel do not have the will, or the inclination, to live a different sort of life. When Montag asks his wife if she remembers where they met, she declares that she does not remember. In fact, she does not seem to show any more interest in the matter despite the fact that it is supposed to be one of the most important events of her life. Her obsession with soap operas has damaged her intellectual ability as well as her long term memory. Perhaps if she had been obsessed with reading books instead soap operas, then she may have had an interest not only in her life but also in her past.

Independent thought has greatly been encouraged through the reading of books and this has ensured the development of new ideas. This ability would be immensely diminished if there were no books in the world because it is only through the study of old ideas that new ideas are developed. Such technology as the internet will inevitably lead to the extinction of books from the world because it is the source of plenty of information. However, despite the large reserves of information within it, the internet does not have the qualities which books have because most of the information gotten from it is often instant and shallow. The internet does not allow individuals to contemplate on the information which they have just received, as books do. The lack of independent thought due to the absence of books is likely to put the human race into a dark age of intellectual stagnation. The ability to think through the learning of the previous work of others is what has helped the advancement of the human race. The inability to think and the reliance on shallow sources of information such as the internet is likely to see the end of the world as we know it. Human beings learn about their past from books and with this knowledge, the take action to avoid the mistakes of their past. Therefore, without books, the human race will probably end up destroying itself because it will not have the ability to learn from its past.

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

The Jungle is a novel which depicts the unpleasant conditions within which workers had to work in meat packing plants in order to earn a living. It is a description, in the form of a story, of the experiences which Upton Sinclair had while working undercover for six months in an attempt to gather information on an article he was writing. These working conditions are described so vividly that anyone who reads them might become revolted by the conditions in these meatpacking plants. The novel is most realistic, as it follows the life of an immigrant, Jurgis, and his family who comes to America in an attempt to have a better life. In doing so, he ends up working in a meatpacking plant, where the exact opposite of his dreams come to take place. It must be noted that many of the people who ended up working in these plants under sometimes appalling conditions tended to be immigrants and these had no other choice other that to go on doing the same jobs because they had no education and had little knowledge of English. It was therefore difficult for them to recognize the injustices in their lives and in doing so work towards escaping such injustices. It can be said the The Jungle is an attempt by Sinclair to describe the working conditions of the United States according to his socialist views and a way to push the American public into taking action against such conditions, since they are the ones who are the largest beneficiaries of the labor of the immigrants.

The Jungle is basically a political novel whose main purpose is to propagate the socialist view of the ideal America. It is an attempt by Upton Sinclair to show how workers in the industries in the United States worked under bad conditions to earn a living. One of the main themes that can be found in this novel which are an obvious part of the socialist views of Sinclair is that of exploitation. The factory owners and managers exploit their workers in every way possible and treat them more like slaves than as free human beings. Among the most appalling things which the factory managers do is to sexually abuse some of their female workers. This can be seen when Ona, Jurgis’s wife, is raped by her employer, with the latter threatening that she would lose her job if she does not continue giving him sexual favors. Moreover, many of the factory workers have no job security because they can lose their jobs at any moment at the slightest pretext. An example of this sis when Jurgis ends up losing his job because of an injury sustained while working. While this would not, in normal circumstances, get him to lose his job, in Jurgis’ case, it is different because he is not aware of his rights. When it is seen that he will not be able to be as productive as before, he is fired, and this is done without his being provided with any compensation by his employer. While it is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that the workplace is safe for his employees, this is not the case in The Jungle. Although it is the employer’s fault when accidents take place in the workplace, the employer does not take steps to improve the working conditions. Instead, workers who get injured lose their jobs, and the families of those who lose their lives are not compensated.

One of the main themes that are dealt with in this novel is that of the evils brought about by capitalism and the idea that socialism is its cure. For most of his political life, Upton Sinclair was a dedicated socialist whose actions and works tended to upset many of the mainstream Americans who were dedicated capitalists. While Sinclair did not call out for the abolition of capitalism, he advocated for the inclusion of socialism into the American way of life. This would have ensured that there was a balance in the economy, with the people in the lower classes in society being provided with the opportunity for advancement. Throughout The Jungle, Sinclair shows how the family of Jurgis is destroyed by the cruelties that are brought about by capitalism. Most of the disastrous and tragic things that happen to his family are as a result of their lack of a stable financial base through which to support them. Their faith in the so called American Dream is tarnished as the realities of the capitalist ways that are prevalent in America are felt directly. They turn from a family that is full of hope for a better future, to one which gets involved in some of the most abhorrent practices in society. Sinclair’s narrative is one designed to show that capitalism is evil and that the best way to get rid of it is to adopt communism.

In the novel, the American Dream is considered to be just that, a dream and this is because of the fact that despite moving from Lithuania to America in anticipation of having a better life, this does not happen for Jurgis’ family and instead, they end up living in worse conditions than those in their home country. This can be considered to be a parallel of the life which Upton Sinclair’s family lived due to their relative poverty. While both his parents’ families were of aristocratic backgrounds, his father’s family had been ruined during the American Civil War and despite being in America, they had not managed to regain the wealth and prominence that had once been theirs. Instead, Sinclair’s father had to become a salesman in order to make ends meet, something he barely could because of his alcoholism. Sinclair therefore spent some of his childhood with his wealthy maternal family and because of this, experienced both poverty and wealth. In The Jungle, through the portrayal of the tragedies which are encountered by Jurgis and those around him, Sinclair comes to reveal the ugliness that is capitalism, and his belief that the lot of the poor in America has to be improved for the American Dream to finally come true. It is this theme which he used throughout his political career and despite not being able to gain any elective position; he ended up being influential in other matters.

In conclusion, it can be said that The Jungle is an influential novel whose main endeavor was to prove Sinclair’s view that capitalism was an evil practice. Instead, there is the recommendation for the adoption of socialism as the best way of improving the lives of those who have been deprived in society. Sinclair wanted the American public to see the evils which were brought about by the greed and inhumanity of those who practiced capitalism. The unfortunate working conditions that the poor had to undergo everyday of their lives to make their employers wealthier than they already were is a recurring theme in the novel. While this was the novel’s original intention, the public did not come to view it the way Sinclair did and instead, they came to look upon it as a revelation of the unclean environment through which the food they consumed was processed. In the end, The Jungle failed to represent the real intentions of its author and instead, it became a revelation of the food health issues that were prevalent in the United States. The novel was a representation of the political views of Upton Sinclair but it ended up coming into the service of the larger meat processing plants at the expense of the smaller ones.

Little Shop of Horrors

Little Shop of Horrors is a play that seeks to display the folly of unchecked ambition as well as the attraction of individuals to the promise of wealth and power. These are themes that are seen throughout the play where the character of Seymour is attracted to the promises made to him by the plant Audrey II concerning attaining all that his heart desires, and this, in the end, proves to be the cause of his downfall. In this play, the themes of unchecked ambition and the false promises of wealth and power are highly prominent and dominate its entire plot.

The theme of unchecked ambition is extremely prominent in Little Shop of Horrors and this is mainly as a result of the desires that the characters of Seymour and Mushnik have. Seymour is an individual who desires to achieve success in his life and it is as a result of this desire that he is shown to constantly want to get out of the Skid Row neighborhood. Additionally, he has a major crash on his fellow employee at the flower shop, Audrey, in whose honor he names the strange plant that he finds. Therefore, when he realizes that Audrey II has the potential of saving the flower shop, after Mushnik decides to close it, he convinces Mushnik to give Audrey II the chance to bring in more customers. The result is that Seymour ends up becoming indispensable to Mushkin, who, on realizing that his business is completely dependent on Seymour, takes advantage of his innocence and decides of adopt him in order to keep him tied to the shop.

The theme of false promises of wealth and power is explored in this play and this is in relation to Seymour. Seymour, after coming to the realization that Audrey II needs blood in order to survive decides to give it his own blood. However, when he cannot do it anymore, Audrey II asks him to kill people in order to provide it with blood, promising him that if he does so, it will make all his dreams come true. While he has doubts concerning this course of action, he succumbs to his baser instincts and ends up killing people, beginning with Orin, Audrey’s boyfriend, in order to ensure that Audrey II has a constant supply of blood. The result is that Audrey II keeps on asking for more as it grows and this leads to a situation where it ends up killing Audrey, the woman that Seymour loves. This is when Seymour realizes his folly, but by then, it is too late because Audrey II has become too powerful and cannot be killed.

Therefore, the plot of this play is dominated by the themes of unchecked ambition and the false promises of wealth and power. These are shown through the actions of the characters as they seek to ensure that they make use of an unusual plant in order to make their fortunes. However, all of these attempts end up being for nothing because the plant is actually manipulating the whole situation in order to fulfill its desire of achieving world domination.

Gender and Power in the Renaissance Period

The Renaissance period is one which saw significant advancement in the arts and culture of Europe as a result of the coming to an end of the Middle Ages and the rise of the modern period. It was a period that brought with it great changes in society although the latter essentially remained a patriarchal society. The submission of women towards men was considered to be the ideal in society and even those women who had considerable power, such as Queen Elizabeth I were required to be seen to submit to the ‘wisdom’ of their male advisors rather than taking their own counsel in matters concerning the governance of the state. Women, considered to be lesser creatures than men, were denied real power because of the feeling by society that they were not equipped to wield it.

The reign of Queen Elizabeth I can be considered to be among the best in English history because she presided over great achievements. It was under her that England was able to first exercise incredible ability as a naval power that would rival other great maritime powers such as Spain and Portugal. Furthermore, for the first time in history, the country was led by a strong woman who, unlike her sister Mary before her, took an active part in government and did what she had to do to ensure the security of her kingdom. However, despite these achievements, Queen Elizabeth, as a woman, was expected to receive counsel from her male advisors; meaning that society was not ready to admit that women had the ability to lead. In a world which was dominated by religious beliefs, women were believed to be inferior to men to such an extent that they needed a constant male presence in order to make major decisions. Women were relegated to taking care of their households and were expected to constantly submit either to their fathers, husbands, or to other male members of their families. Such a situation proved to be serious especially in a situation where women, especially in English society, were for the first time taking the throne in their own right. The ability of women to lead was constantly disregarded by the patriarchal society which sought to make sure that the role of women was kept in the background rather than given prominence in the rest of society.

Additionally, despite England being ruled for over half a century by women during the Renaissance, there were really few changes in society when it came to the achievement of political power by women. This is especially the case considering that women had almost no legal rights and could therefore not participate in public life. Even Queens Mary and Elizabeth had to a large extent to submit to the will of their male advisors when it came to matters on governance; essentially continuing to propagate the male-dominated society within which they lived. It was also through the development of the norm of female dependency before and during the Renaissance that women were almost completely excluded from public life. The belief that women had to be completely dependent on the men in their lives meant that the freedoms that they had previously enjoyed were brought to an end (Deats, 2003, p.189). Women had to submit themselves to their fathers, and after marriage, to their husbands. Women who did not submit to a male authority more often than not earned themselves a bad reputation in society and ended up being marginalized. Therefore, women were expected to remain in the background of public life and were not to be heard while their male counterparts took an active role in it in addition to having almost complete authority over the women. All real political power in society remained in the hands of men and very few women were able to achieve any significant role in the governance of their society.

Moreover, it is important to note that during the Renaissance period, the major vocation of women was marriage; expected of women of all classes. One of the most significant aspects of marriage during this period was that it led to a situation where women ended up losing all their rights and freedom of action. They could not own property and had to be completely submissive to their husbands because once married, their husbands had full rights over their persons. It is most likely as a result of such circumstances that Queen Elizabeth chose not to get married because marriage would have restricted the exercise of her power. Instead, she remained unmarried for the whole of her reign since marriage would have almost automatically led to a situation where her husband became king and the main decision-maker in the running of affairs in England. Elizabeth’s decision not to get married may have been wholly political since it was a means of not only securing her reign, but also making sure that her position remained intact through denying any potential husband her birthright. In addition, she chose to use the potential of marriage as a political tool to secure the interests of England because of the significant number of suitors from powerful European countries. However, while the promise of marriage ensured the security of the interests of England, it never came to fruition because Elizabeth was able to skillfully maneuver her way out of such arrangements. Therefore, despite the expectation that she would end up getting married and submit to her husband, Queen Elizabeth was able to transcend such social expectations by choosing not to get married; retaining her political power in a male-dominated society.

Furthermore, there was a failure by men in Renaissance society to recognize the value of women in their lives. Among the values that were often ignored by men was that their societies could not continue to function without the women in them. Even though they were not allowed to take part in the social and political life of their societies, women played an active role in making sure that they projected a positive image on behalf of the men in their lives. However, despite this, women continued to be relegated to the background with those who dared to speak their minds being considered an anomaly and discriminated against by the rest of society. Women themselves may have also helped to prop up the patriarchal system which was meant to make sure that they were kept out of power because they allowed themselves to be almost completely dominated by the men in their lives. Even the perceptions they had of themselves were often shaped by the views that the men in their lives had of them (Levy, 2001, p.83). The refusal to submit to the opinions of the men in their lives meant that women had to endure isolation as well as fear from both men and women because being outspoken was considered to be against the natural order of society and deserved to be broken off the women involved. Thus, men were justified in using whatever means necessary, including violence, as a way of making sure that the women in their lives remained submissive and in the background; conforming to societal norms.

Also, the religious nature of Renaissance society played a significant role in making sure that women were kept away from power. This was especially the case where religious teachings emphasized that women had to submit to their husbands and fathers as a means of making sure that they did the will of God. However, there was often a failure to note that women were given equality to their male counterparts in the New Testament and that they took part in similar activities as the men. Despite this argument, women in the Renaissance period were not allowed to take an active part in the administration of their own property as long as either their fathers or husbands were still alive. The only way for women, especially from the upper class, to attain a degree of freedom as well as to exercise their rights was through making sure that they did not get married at all (Enterline, 1999, p.25). As seen in the case of Queen Elizabeth above, women were able to achieve a level of independence by not having men in their lives because under such circumstances, they did not have to cede their rights. While this may have been the case, Elizabeth was still required, to an extent, to be seen to submit to the counsel of her male advisors because of the common belief at the time that women had no political sense and that only men could be able to take part in it without the involvement of emotion. It is as a result of such perceptions that it became possible for a great number of women to be kept out of public life with those who spoke their minds being described in derogatory terms.

 However, while it was uncommon for women in the Renaissance to participate in public life, there were instances where some of them were able to privately influence the opinions of their sons and husbands. Women were able to exercise their influence through pushing the men in their lives to adopt their views; leading to a situation where these women, through their husbands, were able to push their own agenda in society forward. Therefore, while not having any real political power, women were able to bring about diverse changes in their societies either through the men in their lives or their actions which can be considered to have been acts of protest. In Shakespeare’s The Rape of Lucrese, Lucrere, the main character, ends up committing suicide as a result of being raped by Tarquin and it is as a consequence of this suicide that the populace of Rome overthrows the Tarquin dynasty and becomes a republic (Kirkland, 1999, p.660). The depiction of the actions of women having an influence on the course of society in this play shows that despite the discrimination that they faced when it came to public life in the Renaissance period, there were instances where they had a profound impact (Shakespeare, 1997, 2.3.259-60). Renaissance writers, however, seem not to consider the actions of these women to have been conscious actions and instead, their consequences were indirect and not intended. The recognition of the role of women in public life remained limited in the Renaissance and these continued to be relegated to the background in the belief that women had no constructive place in male-dominated society and had to submit to men.

In addition, Renaissance literature shows a majority of women as being completely dedicated to domestic chores while the men got involved in public life. In Lucrere, the title character is shown to be an individual who is highly proficient in domestic tasks as well as being able to make sure that she undertakes tasks that are essentially feminine. However, there is the propagation of the idea that women are weak individuals and need constant male protection in order to be safe. In this case, Lucrere is shown to be an individual who, despite her proficiency in domestic tasks, is neither able to protect herself or the home from an invasion by the stronger Tarquin (Shakespeare, 1997, lines 232 - 238). The violation of her body by Tarquin and her devastation afterwards is a sign of the fragility of women and the need for them to have male protection. Lucrere’s lack of male protection at the time of her rape shows her vulnerability because there was no one to stop Tarquin from doing such a vile act (Kelemen, 2005, p.151). Lucrere’s rape can also be considered to be a means of showing the power of men over women in all social matters because it is women who have to submit to the will of men. It is also a sign of the unwillingness of the patriarchal system to recognize that women are the equals of men and that they have a right to have a place in public matters. The subjugation of women to the will of men in society is a means of the latter exercising their power and dominance over women in such a way that it propagates the status quo.

Also, upper class women were often used for the purpose of advancing the interests of their families. These women were married off to more powerful and affluent families in order to form alliances with them. This is especially the case in Renaissance European countries where fathers were the ones who made decisions concerning who their daughters could marry in a bid to secure useful alliances for their families. A famous example is that of Pope Alexander VI who made use of his daughter Lucrecia as a means of solidifying alliances with powerful Italian dynasties when it was convenient for him. The various marriages that Lucrecia got in and were annulled were for political purposes because they ensured that the wealth and power of the Borgia family were maintained. Therefore, while such women as Lucrecia got more opportunities for mobility that other women of their time, they still had to submit to the will of their fathers for the sake of their families. Furthermore, they were not able to gain significant power despite their mobility because they had to submit to the will of their husbands so that they had to conform to the ideal of being the caretakers of the household. As a result, a major theme of Renaissance literature was the subjugation of women because they were not often prominently featured in the said literature, and if they were, their role was supplementary. Thus, women were depicted as fragile individuals whose role in society was in the periphery and that their involvement in public affairs would lead to chaos.

Likewise, women were denied a voice in society because of the belief that they were inferior and that they were emotional individuals who did not have the capacity to think rationally (Carrera, 2005, p.63). Women who would have been rulers in their own right, such as Maria-Therese of Austria could not achieve real power because they were expected to submit to their husbands. Maria-Therese’s husband, Joseph, is the one who took over control of the Austrian Empire when her father died while she took on a more subordinate role. The result of such circumstances was that women ended up being denied their inheritance and property rights by their husbands; making it more difficult for them to advance in society than their male counterparts. Even in those situations where women found themselves to be unmarried, they were expected to seek a close male relative to not only protect them, but also to manage any wealth that they might have. Women in the Renaissance period, as reflected in its literature, were considered to be essentially weak individuals who could not be trusted to govern their own affairs and instead had to make sure that they placed themselves under the protection of the men in their lives in order to achieve a level of security. The enforcement of the masculine dominance of society came about as a result because women ended up being largely accepted as the lesser of the members of society while at the same time having to endure being denied all the rights that were accorded to men. Female monarchs such as Queen Elizabeth did not seek to change the status quo and instead sought to propagate it; making it possible for the patriarchal system to perpetuate itself.

In conclusion, women were denied real power because of the belief in society that they were not equipped to wield it. Despite this perception, as shown in the discussion above, the reign of Queen Elizabeth I can be considered to be among the best in English history because she presided over great achievements. Additionally, during her reign, there were really few changes in society when it came to the achievement of political power by women since the major vocation of women was marriage. Furthermore, there was a failure by men in Renaissance society to recognize the value of women in their lives. This is also the case where the religious nature of Renaissance society played a significant role in making sure that women were kept away from power. However, there were instances where some of them were able to privately influence the opinions of their sons and husbands. Also, upper class women were often used for the purpose of advancing the interests of their families; hence greater mobility for them through marriage. Finally, women were denied a voice in society because of the belief that they were inferior and that they were emotional individuals who did not have the capacity to think rationally.

References

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