Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) Free Essay Example, 2750 words

But the play Goodnight Desdemona (Good morning Juliet) does a good job in advocating the feminist approach which complies with the staunch belief of Marx regarding women’s liberation. The three feminist heroines of the play are the symbols of feminism which represent this theory. Anne-Marie McDonald has shown in her play women having switched gender roles, females having strong characters and having complete independence from men. While the Shakespearean tragedies portrayed the women who were generally victims to the men’s actions, the present play successfully enables female characters to take roles which were considered masculine. During the play, Juliet takes a dominating role and tries to seduce Constance. She no longer cries in the love for Romeo and uses the lines of Romeo, â€Å"But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east and Constance the Sun! † to win the heart of Constance. She gets weary of her husband on her wedding night and says â€Å"love’s first keen edge grows dull with use and craves another grinding† and is in search for a new love during the feast of her wedding night. We will write a custom essay sample on Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now After meeting Constance she mistakes her for a boy and says â€Å"Hail, Roman Cupid that hath heard my cries, and sent Greek Eros to benight mine eyes! †. Juliet is shown to be determined to win Constance’s heart. Given her character in the Shakespearean play, being very innocently mature and sensitive, she would have killed herself on Constance’s rejection but she did not. Although the classic Juliet had been young, the love she had for Romeo was pure and true and she in the end had killed herself. Her character as we can see has taken a sweeping turn and her boldness is commendable. She no longer assumes the role of the depressed Juliet who kills herself. This is how a woman is portrayed to have strength. The other heroin, Desdemona is also portrayed as a brave and strong woman. Lady Constance comments on Desdemona by saying â€Å"Desdemona, I thought you were different; I thought you were my friend. I worshipped you. But you are just like Othello-gullible and violent. † Desdemona participates in the war and returns with holding a bloody hea d of a man saying â€Å"Behold what I have plucked off the beach! † She reflects traits of masculinity within her and also attempts to kill Constance herself, without anyone’s help. She was frequently seen to be involved in sword fighting which is often associated with being masculine. At one instance she also expresses that â€Å"My sole regret—that heaven had not made me such a man. † The original classic Desdemona has been altered by McDonald who could serve to Constance as a role model who is in the process of rediscovering herself and rediscovering her courage, following the setbacks she received that Constance’s love interest Claude Night announced his engagement and also took up a coveted post at the Oxford University.