ke hima monarch? I should venture purgatory for't"(Act 4, Scene 3, Line 77-79)What she is saying, is that she is willing to sacrifice her body's purity in order to make her husband be more powerful. Something like this isn't just a response out of the blue, it must be driven into someone. Society is the hammer and chauvinism is the nail. Another example of Emilia's desperate attempt to obtain her husband's approval is when she steals Desdamona's napkin. Gives it to Iago, without even thinking of the consequences. If she did not feel so unequal, she wouldn't have done this act in order to obtain a sense of approval. However without this kind of society, Shakespeare's plot would not work. Yet another example of how Shakespeare uses women to assist the play. However Emilia will start to break free from inequality when she stands up to her husband near the end of the book (act five). Even in this book one can see how society is beginning to grow from it's primitive views. Where would chauvinism be in society if it were not for men, men like Iago. If ever there was a leader for a male dominant society this man would be it. Every word Iago speaks in referance to women he devours their worth. In fact he even makes a speech about the purpose of women:"Come on, come on! You are pictures out ofdoor,Bells in your parlors, wildcats in your kitchens,Saints in your injuries, devils being offendedPlayers in your housewifery, and housewives inyour beds." (Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 108-112)If this does not perfectly describe his view of women, then maybe the way he refers to even his own wife as "wench" does. Iago spends the whole play trying to achieve power, but any extra time he has, he goes out of his way to put down women. Society will always be filled with simpletons who will never treat women with equality. The fact is that if women would have been treated with more respect and they were actually viewed as equals free to voice the...
