« Cannot women hate as well as men? » : La haine au féminin dans The Tragedy of Mariam d’Elizabeth Cary et La Mariane de Tristan l’Hermite

This article analyses the expression of women’s hatred towards their husbands and its consequences in a society ruled by patriarchal norms through a comparison between The Tragedy of Mariam (1613) by Elizabeth Cary and La Mariane (1637) by Tristan L’Hermite. In these two tragedies, female characters...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Pauline Durin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Institut du Monde Anglophone 2024-11-01
Series:Etudes Epistémè
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Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/episteme/18223
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Summary:This article analyses the expression of women’s hatred towards their husbands and its consequences in a society ruled by patriarchal norms through a comparison between The Tragedy of Mariam (1613) by Elizabeth Cary and La Mariane (1637) by Tristan L’Hermite. In these two tragedies, female characters often express hatred: animosity dominates marital relationships. Yet conduct books published in the early modern period all condemn manifestations of hatred on the part of women, especially towards their husbands. In both plays, the women who express their hostility thus indirectly question a certain ideal of femininity. In this article, I study the causes of female hatred, its expression and the targets at which this hatred is directed. Wives’ hatred towards their husbands transgresses a social, marital and political order. However, the expression of this passion on stage is quite theatrical, as it is both audible and visible, thus representing an aesthetic issue. However, the two tragedies choose different treatments for this forbidden passion, presenting the queen as a model character despite her transgression, or as a complex and torn character.
ISSN:1634-0450