Degree Type

Honors Capstone Project

Date of Submission

Spring 5-2017

Capstone Advisor

Dympna Callaghan

Honors Reader

Jeffrey Carnes

Capstone Major

English

Capstone College

Arts and Science

Audio/Visual Component

no

Capstone Prize Winner

no

Won Capstone Funding

no

Honors Categories

Humanities

Subject Categories

English Language and Literature

Abstract

This project explores Shakespeare’s treatment of rape and sexual violence in Titus Andronicus and The Rape of Lucrece through close reading, analysis, and discussion of relevant source material. Critiques of Shakespeare that center around his perceived anti-feminist convictions tend to focus on his morbidly comical depictions of rape and violence against female victims. However, despite their position as victims, Lavinia in Titus Andronicus and Lucrece in The Rape of Lucrece reclaim revenge on their attackers. Shakespeare deliberately lends his literary eloquence to Lavinia and Lucrece, enabling them to partly avenge the crimes done unto them. By representing these characters as literate women, Shakespeare allows Lavinia and Lucrece to become more than abject victims. Lavinia and Lucrece fight back against the patriarchal structures which would deny them the capacity to resist the wrongs done unto them.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.

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