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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 10 page paper which examines why mothers are conspicuously absent from the plays “The Taming of the Shrew,” “As You Like It,” “Henry the IV (Parts 1 and 2),” “Othello” and King Lear.” Specifically considered are what Shakespeare gains through the fracturing of the family structure, considers whether or not motherhood is completely absent, if the conspicuous absence forms a unique presence, where this leaves the children, how it affects matters of parenting, mothering, child-rearing, childbirth, nursing, and whether or not there are mother substitutes in any of these plays. No additional sources are used.
Page Count:
10 pages (~225 words per page)
File: TG15_TGwsmom.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
plays, whether they are comedies or tragedies, the conflict is typically generated by the contentious relationships of dysfunctional families. More often than not, the problems stem from a missing
member of the family portrait, that of a mother. Perhaps this is Shakespeares acknowledgment that "mother knows best," and by depriving children of their knowledge and nurturing, the family
dynamic becomes fractured. His fascination with motherless families, as illustrated in the plays The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, Henry IV (Parts 1 and 2), The
Tragedy of Othello and The Tragedy of King Lear, enables the Bard to evaluate the extent of the maternal role; how its absence affects daughters and sons; if the absence
itself forms a unique presence; how this affects the concepts of parenting, mothering, child rearing, childbirth and nursing; and whether or not substitute mother figures can fill the void.
In Shakespeares sardonic comedy, The Taming of the Shrew, the mothers absence is glaringly apparent in the household of Baptista Minola, whose struggles in raising daughters Bianca and Katherina,
is evident by his expressed partiality toward Bianca, much to the irritation of the tart-tongued Katherina, who asks her father in frustration, "What, will you not suffer me? Nay,
now I see / She is your treasure, she must have a husband; / I must dance bare-foot on her wedding day" (II.i.32-34). The mother would have provided the
harmonious balance this family unit is clearly lacking, and while Bianca, no doubt, also suffers from the lack of a maternal presence, she openly receives love and affection from Baptista.
As for Katherina, the loss is more pronounced, and her personality, which can best be described as coarse, manifests itself in behavior described throughout the play as "shrewish."
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