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Cleopatra's Sexual Dominance

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Cleopatra’s Sexual Dominance
The struggle to find a well-rounded female character in literature is a task in itself, yet William Shakespeare has outdone himself with his version of Cleopatra. She is a queen, a lover and a mother, juggling the complexity of fitting into mainstream Roman society. Shakespeare’s humanly complex characterization of Cleopatra shows the prevailing female sexuality and the influence it has over men.
Throughout the entirety of the play Antony and Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen is the topic of almost every conversation between the Romans. She is called a differentiated amount of names, all resonating as a negative connotation. She’s been called ‘whore’ ‘witch’ and ‘wench’ numerous times throughout the play. It felt …show more content…
It was enticing and a new perspective from the male gaze that didn’t completely demolish her as a character. The scene is reliving the first time Cleopatra enters Rome and meets Antony and it gives a rare, first person insight into what made Antony fall in love with her. Enobarbus is a good friend of Antony tries his best to explain to Agrippa and Maecenas what makes Cleopatra so desirable. Enobarbus starts off the scene by describing Cleopatra’s boat ride into Rome. It is a stunning scene, filled with vivid imagery to make sure the reader is able to picture it properly in their heads. “The barge she sat in, / like a burnished throne/ Burned on the water. / The poop was beaten gold; / Purple the sails, / and so perfumèd that /The winds were lovesick with them.” (2.2.197-200) From the first lines, I can already tell that she is imperial importance. Purple is considered the color of royalty and they covered her sails in that specific color. When he mentions the perfumed sails in the winds, it immediately reminded me of some sort of aphrodisiac. I got the impression that Cleopatra was spraying a type of ‘love potion’ in the air and every person who first saw her, would …show more content…
Agrippa seemed much more passive about Cleopatra’s entrance, continuing to call her a “royal wench,” (2.2.233) and even begins dishonor her for sleeping previously with Caesar and bearing his children prior to the relationship with Antony. She made great Caesar lay his sword to bed./ He plough'd her, and she cropp'd. (2.2.234-235) This classic version of female slut shaming is not different than what women experience now. Women will still be referred to as sluts if they have more than one sexual partner. Which is why I think Cleopatra was so intelligent, regardless if people think she was a childish leader. She is a good feminist icon. She was not ashamed of her body or enjoying sex and I think she also basked in the fact that Antony was just as willing to be her submissive in the act. Roman’s views on a women’s sexual appetite were very simple, any woman who took part in it and not with her husband (and when her husband wanted it), was a whore. “The male control of female sexuality was a central component of Roman ideology; women of the Roman Republic were (typically) subject to the authority of their father or husband or legal guardian.”

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