The Influence Of Courtship In Elizabethan England

Parents may have wanted to break up a courtship for a variety of reason, economic reasons being some of the most common. Although parents did have influence in their children’s courtships, if a young person felt strongly enough, they may have defied the wishes of their parents, and married the person they wanted to.
Carlson explain that many factors had to be taken into account before a courtship could move on to an engagement, and then eventually marriage. Some of the most important factors were the economic situation of both parties, and feelings of mutual affection between both parties. Though it was generally thought that it was foolish to marry solely for love, it was usually thought that there should be a genuine love between the two
This situation is representative of older marriage traditions. Although this scenario is a more extreme and dramaticized version of Elizabethan marriage traditions, it has undeniable parallels to customs of Elizabethan times. Under the Athenian law in this play, Egeus could put his daughter to death by not agreeing with his choice of husband. While in Elizabethan England it wasn’t illegal to disobey your parents wishes, parents definitely had influence in courtships, and could pressure their kids into making decisions that they agreed more with. As we spoke about previously, many viable courtships were broken up because of disapproving parents. Parents may also withhold financial support to stop their kids from marrying someone they do not approve of. Egeus doesn’t take into account Hermia’s feeling at all, justifying it by claiming Hermia as his property: “As she is mine, I may dispose of her” (A Midsummer Night’s Dream I.i.43). This also mirrors the views on women in Elizabethan times, as they subject to the mercy of their husbands or male relatives, and couldn’t live a life independent of males. Many parents in Elizabethan times cared about the happiness of their children, and usually took that into account when they considered approving engagements, but there were some like Egeus who would destroy courtship for their own personal agenda. Hermia, choosing to think with a more progressive mindset, decides that the only way she will enter into marriage, is if it is with the man that she truly loves. She runs away to be with Lysander, and much chaos and confusion ensues. Eventually it is all remedied, and the play ends as all comedies do, with a wedding. In the end Hermia ends up with who she wanted to be with all along, Lysander. All the confusion and fighting that happen in the middle of the play all could have been avoided If Egeus would have listened to the wishes of