How are unwarranted dislikes and prejudices portrayed in the works of Shakespeare and to what extent does Shakespeare differ from his contemporaries in their portrayal? What can we learn about Shakespeare's times and our own through a close reading of prejudice depicted in his plays?
In this study, B. J. Sokol examines what King Edward in
Henry VI Part III
calls 'your scorns and mislike' (4.1.23) – the unfounded prejudices depicted in Shakespeare's works and targeted at five distinct areas: education, the arts, peace, 'strangers' or outsiders and sexual love. Through a close reading of his plays, comparison with the works of other Elizabethan writers and a consideration of Shakespeare's social environment, this study provides a detailed appreciation of Shakespeare's dramatic method and his insights into the psychological motivations behind the prejudices portrayed.
Presenting Shakespeare's prejudice against education, Sokol examines numerous representations of pupils, teachers and schooling, focusing on anti-educational prejudices in
The Merry Wives of Windsor
and in
King Henry VI Part 2
. The distaste of characters for art is considered alongside Shakespeare's repeated depiction of the destructive downgrading of the arts that erupts during political upheavals, while prejudice against peaceful living is traced in Shakespeare's various portrayals of 'honour'-driven feuding, such as in
Romeo and Juliet
, and in warrior characters such as
Coriolanus
. Prejudice against strangers as depicted in plays including
Titus Andronicus
,
Othello
and
The Merchant of Venice
is contrasted with that of plays by his contemporaries, including Christopher Marlowe's
The Jew of Malta
. A final chapter examines prejudice against sex and the representation of many male and female characters who evade the erotic, subordinate the erotic to power seeking, or regard their own or others' erotic attachments with revulsion.