Gender, Power and Sexuality in John Ford's ‘Tis Pity She's a Whore

Abstract

John Ford (1586 –1639), who is one of the most recondite of Renaissance playwrights, has been subjected to different criticisms due to astounding ways he embodied in his plays to unravel and even subvert both dramatic traditions and social codes. The diversity of critical opinions on Ford's plays range from praises to condemnations as immoderate and inauthentic as well as denoting moral degeneration. Despising drama that is sheer imitation of life and voice of morality, Ford creates spectacular plays intending to break down all conventional ideas, beliefs, social codes and representations, which, in a sense, justifies the polarization of opinions on his works. ‘Tis Pity She's a Whore (1633) is one of such plays that uses and abuses not only social, political and aesthetic elements in Caroline drama but also all existing codes of social and linguistic representation in Renaissance society. ‘Tis Pity, ‘a wretched woeful woman's tragedy', presents us with a grotesque and even scandalous version of romantic love story, an artificial version of Platonic love, disturbing interpretations of religious doctrines, subverted sexual interest, namely incest, and unconventional female figures exposed to conventional patriarchal oppression. Although the play offers a wide range of significant subjects to examine within the frame of both Renaissance drama and contemporary literary theory, this paper will focus on only the relationship among gender, power and sexuality in Renaissance society from the perspective of 21^st century woman reader familiar with feminist theory, taking historical dimension into consideration. In this respect, the study will begin with an analysis of standpoints from which men view women and women view themselves particularly during Renaissance referring to feminist scholars, and continue with a close reading of the play within this context.