The Duchess of Malfi - Context

Literary Context

• Revenge tragedies were influenced by those of Seneca - shown noble characters acting immorally with moments of black comedy

• set in Italy place of political intrigue and could reflect corrupt rulers and avoid persecution

• The Malcontent, a disillusioned character who challenged societal norms, was a popular character type

Religious Conflict in Jacobean England

• During the 16th and 17th century, England had large religious conflict between Protestants and Catholics

• In the later part of her reign, Elizabeth became committed to ending the “catholic threat” by passing laws that oppressed catholics and executing key catholic figures

• She was succeeded by the unpopular James I, who made many unwise political decisions

Class roles in Jacobean England

• people believed in the great chain of being, a divine order ordained by God, and if one challenged their position then chaos would ensue

• During the Renaissance, a prosperous middle class emerged and this allowed for larger economic stability and social mobility - the aristocracy feared that this threatened the natural order

Gender roles and family values in Jacobean England

• during this era, women had little to no rights - they were seen as physically and mentally subordinate to men

• They would be constantly controlled by their fathers, husbands, brothers and sons

• In 1646, it was argued that women had no souls - George Fox debunked this through Mary saying “my soul doth magnify the lord”

• This could also be debunked through historical figures like Elizabeth I, who was bilingual and an accomplished writer

• The 17th century saw a stress on family values - people disapproved of violent husbands and scolding and promiscuous wives

• If a sibling was older, they were stronger

Giovanna D’Aragona

• born in 1478, as the daughter of Enrico D’Aragona, half-brother of Frederick, King of Naples

• In 1490, she married Alfonso Piccolomini who became Duke of Amalfi in 1493 but was killed in 1498

• She remarried Antonio Beccadelli, who Cardinal Luigi D’Aragona used his influence to expel from Ancona

Lady Arbella Stuart

• was born in 1575 to Charles Stuart and Elizabeth Cavendish, who died when Arbella was a child - leaving her an orphan

• She planned to William Seymour in 1610 - but was placed under house arrest and tried escaping England but faced imprisonment in the Tower of London

• While she was there, she went on hunger strike and died in 1615

Philosophical influences

• Machiavelli’s the Prince - argued that a leader should be brutish, pragmatic and scrupulous “it is better to be loved than to be feared, if one cannot be both”

• James I’d Daemonologie - a dissertation that detailed on black magic, the occult, and witchcraft