Women in Literature: Examining Oppression Versus Independence in Henry V and Jane Eyre Kathern Armstrong

"In many different societies, women, like colonised subjects, have been relegated to the position of 'Other,' 'colonised' by various forms of patriarchal domination. They thus share with colonised races and cultures an intimate experience of the politics of oppression and repression."

This statement is valid for Catherine from Henry V whereas Hostess

Quickly, Miss Temple and Jane are portrayed as more self-determining and independent than oppressed. Henry V takes place in medieval times, when women were thought of as nothing more than property and their only function was to produce offspring. Catherine, from Henry V is controlled by the male patriarchal figures in her life, like her father King Charles and King Henry and Hostess Quickly has no patriarchal figures, and is very outspoken and self-assured. Jane Eyre took place during the Victorian era, when women were still being treated like property; however, there were some women who had the ability to be independent. Miss Temple and Jane exemplify female independence.

Catherine, the princess of France in Henry V is oppressed by first her father and later King Henry. Her function in the play is to unite France and England by marrying Henry and producing...