The June 23rd edition of The New York Times contains an article about Susan Greenburg Wood, a photographer who was “one of the few women who (had) succeeded as a photojournalist” at the time. The article praises Mrs. Wood on her rise to the top of a male-dominated field, but is quick to point out that her job has afforded her the opportunity to meet and marry a man. And, lest the readers be confused at her marital status, the author (a woman, by the bye) hastily reassures them that “once her identity as the wife of Brendan Wood . . . is established professionally, she will drop her maiden name.” This article is a very interesting examination of the clash between the dual roles many women were trying to maintain i

In the review of The Tempest, the male characters are described rather lengthily, while the description of Miranda, though flattering in the extreme, is quite brief. She is described only through the eyes of Ferdinand, and her consequence seems mainly derived from the fact that she is someone’s sweetheart. “His love for Miranda is tender and worshipful . . . And little wonder either. For Martha Henry’s Miranda is a vision of young beauty.” The reviewer is perfectly content with the fact that Miranda, the only female in the play, is totally defined by the men around her – her father and her future husband. While the other women in the play (Sycarax and Prospero’s wife) are spoken of in less than glowing terms, Miranda is a paradigm of femininity and loveliness. Interestingly, she is totally ‘unspoiled’ by other females, and has really only felt the influence of one man - Prospero, “stately in his magic robes, his face framed in a gray beard”. It is Prospero who is to be truly admired, then, for he has made Miranda into the perfect female, a “fragile beauty” who is utterly dependant upon men.

American society, as a whole, was having trouble thinking of women as independent, powerful figures. In Lewis Funke’s 1962 review of a June 21st production of The Tempest in Ontario for The New York Times, he is quite complementary about the performance as a whole, stating that “one of Shakespeare’s most beautifully poetic plays has been given a most regal and enticing production on the Stratford Festival Stage.” It was a traditional staging of the play, and was well received by audiences. Mr. Funke spends a great deal of time describing how wonderful William Hutt’s performance of Prospero is. He describes the character as “stern and determined” , and, in general, quite masculine and powerful. However, the reviewer is most charmed by Martha Henry’s performance as Miranda. She is “a vision of young beauty” and Mr. Funke seems quite taken with her. Of course, in the play, Miranda is almost totally helpless and her entire experience of life has been molded by her father, as she has never met any other humans. She is certainly living in a man’s world, as there are no other women in the play. The fact that Mr. Fun

Some topics in this essay:
Martha Henstridge, Martha Henry’s, Sycarax Prospero’s, York Times, Brendan Wood, Greenburg Wood, Susan Wood, Feminine Mystique, Henry’s Miranda, Mounting Tempest, york times, feminist movement, edition york times, successful woman, susan wood, roles women, american society, edition york, martha henry’s, article susan, production tempest,