Women’sPositionsinthe17thCentury
SocialcircumstancesinEarlyModernEnglandmostlyservedtorepresswomen’svoices.Patriarchalcultureandinstitutionsconstructedthemaschaste,silent,obedient,andsubordinate.Atthebeginningofthe17thcentury,theideologyofpatriarchy,politicalabsolutism,andgenderhierarchywerereaffirmedpowerfullybyKingJamesinTheTrewLawofFreeMonarchieandtheBasilikonDoron;bythatideologytheabsolutepowerofGodthesupremepatriarchwasseentobeimagedintheabsolutemonarchofthestateandinthehusbandandfatherofafamily.Accordingly,awoman’ssubjection,firsttoherfatherandthentoherhusband,imagedthesubjectionofEnglishpeopletotheirmonarch,andofallChristianstoGod.Also,theperiodsawanoutpouringofrepressiveorovertlymisogynistsermons,tracts,andplays,detailingwomen’sphysicalandmentaldefects,spiritualevils,rebelliousness,shrewishness,andnaturalinferioritytomen.
Yetsomesocialandculturalconditionsservedtoempowerwomen.DuringtheElizabethanera(1558—1603)theculturewasdominatedbyapowerfulQueen,whoprovidedanimpressivefemaleexamplethoughsheleftscantculturalspaceforotherwomen.Elizabethanwomenwritersbegantoproduceoriginaltextsbutwereoccupiedchieflywithtranslation.Inthe17thcentury,however,variouscircumstancesenabledwomentowriteoriginaltextsinsomenumbers.Foronething,somecounterweighttopatriarchywasprovidedbyfemalecommunities—mothersanddaughters,extendedkinshipnetworks,closefemalefriends,theseparatecourtofQueenAnne(KingJames’consort)andheroftenoppositionalmasquesandpoliticalactivities.Foranother,mostofthesewomenhadareasonablygoodeducation(modernlanguages,history,literature,religion,music,occasionallyLatin)andsomeapparentlyfoundinromancesandhistoriesmoreexpansivetermsforimaginingwomen’slives.Also,representationofvigorousandrebelliousfemalecharactersinliteratureandespeciallyonthestagenodoubthelpedtoundermineanymonolithicsocialconstructofwomen’smatureandrole.
Mostimportant,perhaps,wastheradicalpotentialinherentintheProtestantinsistenceoneveryChristian’simmediaterelationshipwithGodandprimaryresponsibilitytofollowhisorherindividualconscience.ThereisplentyofsupportinStPaul’sepistlesandelsewhereintheBibleforpatriarchyandawife’ssubjectiontoherhusband,butsometexts(notablyGalatians3:28)inscribeaverydifferentpolitics,promotingwomen’sspiritualequality:“ThereisneitherJewnorGreek,thereisneitherbondnorfree,thereisneithermalenorfemale:foryearealloneinJesusChrist.”SuchtextsencouragedsomewomentoclaimthesupportofGodthesupremepatriarchagainstthevariousearthlypatriarchswhoclaimedtostandtowardtheminhisstead.
Thereisalsothegaporslippagebetweenideologyandcommonexperience.Englishwomenthroughoutthe17thcenturyexercisedagooddealofaccrualpower:asmanagersofestatesintheirhusbands’absencesatcourtoronmilitaryanddiplomaticmissions;asmembersofguilds;aswivesandmotherswhoapexduringtheEnglishCivilWarandInterregnum(1640-60)astheexecutionoftheKingandtheattendantdisruptionofsocialhierarchiesledmanywomentoseizenewroles—aspreachers,asprophetesses,asdeputiesforexiledroyalisthusbands,aswritersofreligiousandpoliticaltracts.
1.Whatisthebesttitleforthispassage?
[A].Women’sPositioninthe17thCentury.
[B].Women’sSubjectiontoPatriarchy.
[C].SocialCircumstancesinthe17thCentury.
[D].Women’sobjectioninthe17thCentury.
2.WhatdidtheQueenElizabethdoforthewomeninculture?
[A].Shesetanimpressivefemaleexampletofollow.
[B].Shedominatedtheculture.
[D].Sheallowedwomentotranslatesomething.
3.WhichofthefollowingisNotmentionasareasontoenablewomentooriginaltexts?
[A].Femalecommunitiesprovidedsomecounterweighttopatriarchy.
[B].QueenAnne’spoliticalactivities.
[C].Mostwomenhadagoodeducation.
[D].QueenElizabeth’spoliticalactivities.
4.Whatdidthereligionsoforthewomen?
[B].Ittooaskedwomentobeobedientexceptsometexts.
1.A.17世纪英国妇女地位。见上面文章大意。
B.妇女服从于家族制。D.17世纪妇女的反抗，都是A.内容中的一部分，不能作为最佳标题。C.17世纪英国社会形式，只能作为背景出现。
2.C.她没有做什么。英女皇伊丽莎白在位时期间在文化上并没有妇女做过什么。这在第二段讲得很清楚。“伊丽莎白统治时期(1558——1603)，文化领域为强有里女皇所控制，她本人确实树立了令人难忘的妇女形象，可是她并没有为其它妇女能够创作一些东西。”见前面列出之原因和下一道题的A.B.C.
3.D.伊丽莎白女皇的政治活动。这文内没有提及。
A.妇女亲情网对家长制进行抗衡。B.安娜女皇的政治活动。C.大多数妇女都受过良好教育。这三项在第二段中都提到。“首先，妇女亲情关系，如母亲，女儿，他们的亲戚网，好友;安娜女皇单独的宫殿，她那对立的化装舞会和政治活动都和族长制予以抗衡。”
4.B.除了某些文本外，它也要求妇女服从。第一段，见上述内容。第三段集中论述这一点。“也许，最重要的是基督教固有潜在激进性。它坚持主张每个基督徒和上帝的直接关系，坚持人首先责任是服从她或他的良知。在圣•保罗使徒书以及在别的圣经中有许多对家长制，妻子对丈夫的服从支持。可是有些文本镌刻着一种完全不同的政治观点，鼓吹妇女精神平等：”人没有犹太和希腊之分，没有束缚或自由之分，没有男女之分，因为在耶酥基督面前，你们都是一样。“
A.它什么也没有做。不对。C.它支持妇女。也不对，只有某些版本支持。D.它求助于上帝。它借上帝之名压制妇女。第一段：“因此，妇女首先服从父亲，然后服从丈夫，体现了(象征)英国人民服从他们的君主，所有基督徒服从上帝。”
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