Marie de Frances Eliduc, Boccaccios Ninth Tale of the Fifth Day, and Shakespeares As You Like It :: comparison compare contrast essays

study Women in Marie de Frances Eliduc, Boccaccios Ninth Tale of the Fifth Day, and Shakespeares As You Like It Whether it is Greco-Roman, Judeo-Christian, or Renaissance writing, women have always played a significant social function in literature. Sometimes they act as counterparts to men, but sometimes they triumph the storyline themselves. Helen of Troy, Guildeluec, Monna Giovanna, and Rosalind, among others, prove to be just as vital characters as the men in their stories. Whether it is beauty, salmagundiness, or strength, each one contributes significantly to the brilliancy of the classic in which she is a part. Helen of Troy is perhaps one of the nigh famous women of all literature. It is her beauty that Paris desires, and it is her abduction by this handsome young that brings the Greeks and Trojans to state of war. Helen is powerful although the Hellenic tradition stresses the importance of mens achievement. Sparking a war is quite a task for one woman to accomplish, a nd yet Helen in Homers The Iliad does not play an active role as Achilles does. She is a unimaginative beautiful woman, whose physical appearance is all that counts, and her beauty becomes only a curse. As a woman, she is no more than an object of possession. Nowhere in the epic does the reader really gain insight into how she thinks or feels. In Marie de Frances Eliduc, Guildeluec is Eliducs wife, or first wife, who is a devout Christian. She, as well as the story, puts great importance on the pleasing of God. The Judeo-Christian tradition is cognize for Gods adoration rather than mans achievement. The portrayal of Guildeluec, which is rather unrealistic, adds to the storys fairy-tale style. Guildeluec is the loyal wife who waits patiently at home while her husband fights for the good of his country as well as his Lord. She waits patiently once again when he leaves to tending another king since his own monarch no longer trusts him. Eliduc meets the kings little girl and falls i n love, despite the fact that he has promised his wife he would never leave her. When Guildeluec realizes that her husband is in love with another woman, she not only saves this womans life, but gives her to Eliduc as well. The fairy-tale characteristics come into play here because no woman in real life would be so kind if her husband cheated on her.