Analyze the influence of ideas about gender on the reign of Elizabeth I and explain how Elizabeth responded to these ideas

Analyze the influence of ideas about gender on the reign of Elizabeth I and explain how Elizabeth responded to these ideas

Introduction

Throughout the course of history, people have been persecuted for their choice of religion, ethnicity, and gender. One of the many leaders that experienced a type of oppression was Elizabeth I, the Queen of England from 1558 to 1603, and she voiced her responses about this inequality clearly for her challengers to hear. Opposes of the idea of a female ruling a country, such as religious figures, could not agree with the idea of Elizabeth leading England, and felt that it was a straight path to destruction. Other citizens of the country, specifically personal associates of Elizabeth, were completely behind the queen, supported her actions, and admired her bravery and confidence in herself and her country (Heisch pg 110). Elizabeth also had some reservations as well as strong opinions on the pressing issue that she faced and responded authoritatively. Challengers of Elizabeth mostly consisted of church officials who felt that she should not be leading the country and take a job fit for a man, John Knox, held this view and stated that women ruling a country are unjust. As a religious reformer who follows the Bible, he would be against female rulers, as “Gods law” denies them the occupation Bishops of the Church of England didn’t want the queen to be the primary ruler, either, arguing that women should “obey their husbands, and cease from commanding,” because

Not doing so would cause a disruption to the hierarchy of power, in which men should be superior to women. Another prominent religious figure, Nicholas Heath, the archbishop of York, stated that since a woman is not asked to perform the tasks of a doctor, preacher, an apostle, etc., she should not be a part of, much less the head of, the Church . Also, as he holds a high position in the Anglican Church, and would like to rise in power, it is expected that Heath would not only dislike Elizabeth but any ruler who happens to have a higher rank than he does. An additional motive for debating against Elizabeth might have been that Elizabeth wasn’t Anglican as he was, and he didn’t support anyone of another faith.

The authors behind all of these documents have not only their specific reasons for not supporting Elizabeth but also are all men trying to uphold their gender’s Status(Heisch pg 11). Companions of Elizabeth or those close to her supported her actions mostly to stay in her good spirits, but also wholeheartedly felt that her decisions were insightful and helped the country. Marcus Gheeraerts, a painter, created a portrait of Elizabeth, in which she is portrayed to be a great ruler. She is standing on top of the world (which is a map at her feet of England) while facing the light and away from darker clouds, which represents her leading England into simpler and brighter times while leaving the darker days behind her . The painter works for Elizabeth, so he undoubtedly painted this for her(Frazer pg 200). She is giving his work, and he did‟t want to get on her bad side by painting her as a terrible ruler, which would cause him to lose his job and his flow of money. William Tooker, Elizabeth‟s personal minister, upon seeing the ceremony in which Royals cure the disease, wrote about how moving Elizabeth‟s performance was.

Elizabeth understood the presumably modern art of public relations, and from her coronation onward she worked to gain the admiration of her subjects. She also surrounded herself with able advisers, the most faithful of whom was William Cecil, and he served her well for forty years. The domestic question whom would she marry? Early became an issue of foreign relations also, for the most ambitious bachelors of Western Europe recognized her as the greatest available prize (Frye pg 13). The Archduke Charles of Austria offered a politically advantageous match, but both Elizabeth and her subjects shied away from his Roman Catholicism. Elizabeth appeared to prefer one of her own subjects, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, eligible in 1560 after the death of his wife Amy Robsart, but the mystery surrounding her fatal fall down a flight of stairs cast a shadow over his name (Frazer pg 101). Throughout the early years of her reign, she kept everyone guessing about her marriage plans, but she made no commitments.

Queen Elizabeth had a difficult task when it came to sex roles.  She had to (and wanted to) keep power for herself at a time and place where women were seen as much weaker than men even regarding emotions and intellect.  She was not really challenged in terms of her right to the throne, but it was assumed that she would need a man to help her rule.( Archer pg 120)Elizabeth both accepted and fought against these ideas about sex roles.  For example, she received them by using the possibility of marrying as a political device.  She did not deny her womanhood but, at the same time, she did not completely accept that it limited her.  She is famous for having said (we cannot be sure that she said exactly these words, but it was something like this) “I may have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king.” (Frazer pg 200).

That pretty well sums up Elizabeth’s attitudes towards sex roles.  She had to live with stereotypes about women, and she used them to help her when she could.  At the same time, though, she asserted that the stereotypes did not ultimately apply to her and that she was perfectly capable of ruling. The belief that the Queen was really a man, is interesting in what it suggests about attitudes towards women and government in this period(Wiesner pg123). The origins and prevalence of this belief are as yet obscure, but there is the suggestion that this idea was especially pronounced in the south west of England. According to Constance Pratt, an entire legend emerged asserting that the real Princess Elizabeth was supplanted by a male or hermaphrodite imposter when she unexpectedly died of a childhood illness(Kevin pg30). It is unclear whether this belief was present during Elizabeth’s own lifetime, or was a posthumous development.

Determining the frequency and the cultural, social and regional origins of these rumors is of some significance in understanding further the nature and reality of the cult of the Queen. Christopher Haigh argues that the talks died away once the cult began to take root in the 1570’s, but even if this is the case, the reasons for this transformation, and it’s manifestation, have not been adequately explained. Also it seems, as Christopher Haigh himself paradoxically states, which the rumors resurfaced during the hardships of the 1590’s, precisely when the Cult of the Queen was allegedly at its height(McLaren pg 34). In Europe, stories of the Queen’s sexual immorality were still rife, and Henry IV of France in a moment of joviality, maintained that it was one of the three wonders of the world, “whether the Queen Elizabeth was a maid or no”. In 1944, Milton Waldman argued that even if the Queen’s subjects did believe that she was a still a virgin, it was not because they believed she was nun-like change.