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Old women in Early Modern plays are stereotypically presented as ugly, randy, mouthy, mad. So Shakespeare is rare among dramatists of the day for his lively and empowering depictions of ageing ladies. This well-researched, accessible book looks at the way his old women subvert the stereotypes. There is particular focus on Paulina in The Winter’s Tale as a uniquely powerful old woman.
Introduction; Part 1 Early Modern Women Onstage and Off; Old Women Onstage – Not a Pretty Sight?; Old Women Offstage – Out and About; ‘Her Indoors’; Part 2 Dramatic Stereotypes of the Old Woman; Loyal and Loving; Embarrassing and Bawdy; Disobedient and Dangerous; Power-mad and Passionate; Part 3 Shakespeare’s Subversion of the Stereotypes; Wayward Wives; Much-Maligned Mothers; ‘Egypt’s Widow’; Part 4 Paulina’s Power; Conclusion; Bibliography