Feminist criticism

Abstract

IN chapter 7 we stressed the important part feminism has played in changing thinking about society and how feminist criticism has had a major impact on literary criticism. We now want to fill out the picture with illustrations of how feminist criticism enables us to look at two of Shakespeare’s plays in a new light. In the case of one of those plays, Romeo and Juliet, what we will see is how it amounts to much more than an enticing love story, which is how most people tend to view it. In the case of Much Ado About Nothing, we should see how a Shakespeare comedy can be read in a way that uncovers some surprising dimensions.