Brief Questions Shakespeare’s Sister Premium Premium Content This content is available for premium subscribers only. Login or Subscribe to access premium content. Brief Questions Shakespeare’s Sister What is a perennial puzzle for the author? Ans: The author wonders why no woman wrote during the Elizabethan age though men did. Why does the author say fiction is like a spider’s web? Ans: Because fiction, like a web, is delicate and must be connected with rea l life. What kind of affair was marriage in the Elizabethan age? Ans: Marriage was a matter of family greed, especially among the rich. What was the position of women during the Stuart period? Ans: It remained the same—women still could not choose their own husbands. What did law and custom make the husband? Ans: Law and custom made the husband lord and master of his wife. What contrast is found between poetry and history about women? Ans: Women fill poetry everywhere but are almost absent from history. What difference exists between women in fiction and reality? Ans: In fiction, women are wise and strong, but in real life, they were uneducated and weak. What does the writer not feel sure of? Ans: She is unsure how Elizabethan women were educated or how they spent their days. At what age were Elizabethan women usually married? Ans: They were married at about fifteen or sixteen. What did an old bishop remark about women? Ans: He said no woman, past or future, could ever have Shakespeare’s genius. Why could a woman genius not be born in the Elizabethan age? Ans: Because women were uneducated, forced to marry early, and lacked freedom. What does the author say about Shakespeare’s state of mind? Ans: She says Shakespeare never revealed his feelings while writing his plays. Why do mighty poets die in misery? Ans: Because the world remains indifferent to their greatness. What were girls debarred from in that time? Ans: They were denied travel, independence, and freedom from family control. What was Mr. Oscar Browning’s opinion about women? Ans: He said the best woman was mentally inferior to the worst man. What did Mr. Browning say about the stable boy? Ans: He called the boy “a dear and high-minded lad.” What did Mr. Greg say about women? Ans: He said women exist to depend on and serve men. What did Lady Bessborough write to Lord Granville? Ans: She said women should not involve themselves in serious affairs. What are modern girl students likely to say? Ans: They would say genius should ignore criticism and rise above opinions. Why is genius doubly unfortunate? Ans: Because it is easily hurt by criticism yet must stay creative and free. What is a miracle, according to Woolf? Ans: Creating art despite all hardships is a true miracle. What is literature strewn with? Ans: It is full of people destroyed by harsh criticism. What is the name of Shakespeare’s imaginary sister? Ans: Her name is Judith Shakespeare. What does Virginia Woolf want to know from historians? Ans: She wants to know how women lived in Elizabethan England. Which women does Woolf attack in the essay? Ans: She attacks the condition of women in the Elizabethan period. How were women treated by men? Ans: They were treated cruelly—locked up, beaten, and dominated. What does “that extraordinary literature” refer to? Ans: It refers to the literature of the Elizabethan period. What question does Woolf raise about the Elizabethan age? Ans: She asks why no woman wrote poetry or fiction then. How did Mr. Oscar evaluate women’s intellect? Ans: He said the best woman was inferior to the worst man. Why do mighty poets die in misery? Ans: Because the world is indifferent to their suffering. What is feminism? Ans: Feminism is the belief in equal rights and treatment for women and men. Who was Mr. Oscar Browning? Ans: He was a Cambridge examiner for students of Girton and Newnham Colleges. What does Woolf mean by “spider’s web”? Ans: She means that fiction is delicate and deeply tied to life’s reality. What miracle does Woolf speak of? Ans: A woman producing art despite restrictions is a miracle. Who is Judith Shakespeare? Ans: She is an imaginary sister of William Shakespeare, symbolizing lost female genius. What is the main message of “Shakespeare’s Sister”? Ans: It shows that women lacked freedom and education, which silenced their genius. Continue Reading Subscribe to access the full content Upgrade to Premium