Language is Power Brock Cooley College

Throughout history, women have often been characterised as subordinate to men, their thoughts, feelings, and actions labelled as excessive or insignificant. In Shakespeare’s Richard III this phenomenon is subverted, his representation of Margaret and her ‘curses’ given significant importance in shaping the outcome of the play. Shakespeare gives Margaret a persuasive voice and uses her to symbolise a powerful presence that publicly challenges Richard, influencing the way that other characters perceive him. Through her asides, soliloquies, and appearances this ability to articulate her anguish into 'curses' become a driving force of the play; ultimately ending in the demise of Richard and his associates. Hence, through the power of language, Margaret is able to destabilise and weaken Richard's facade of authority while also giving her and the other women in the play ways to cope with the injustices that Richard has caused them.

Richard's performative use of language is contrasted with Margaret's veracity of voice to convey how authenticity and intention make language powerful (Mirabella, 2018, 192-193). In Act 1, Scene 3 Richard enters loudly, immediately on the offensive as he falsely accuses Elizabeth and her Kingsman of...