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  • Essay / What contemporary women are capable of according to Terry Pratchett

    In classical literature, women have been characterized as submissives who lack the intellectual substance to play leading roles. As generations move toward modern culture, allusions to sexist ideals cling to societal norms. Women's bodies do not belong to them, but belong to another man. Women's thoughts are not highly valued because men consider themselves more intellectually gifted than women. The fear of the modern woman is embodied by what men claim to own: their body and their mind. Terry Pratchett's whimsical play introduces these feminist visions with a group of supernatural characters who happen to be women. The name "Monstrous Regiment" itself becomes synonymous with the unknown qualities and power of these women through their minds and bodies, rather than their supernatural beings. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get Original Essay Terry Pratchett creates the narrative that women are more intellectually superior than men in his fictional world. The introductory scene of the main women joining the ranks starting on page 9 shows how the women enunciate their words better than Corporal Strappi and prove to be more educated due to their ability to read and write their names: "My word , I can see, we have ourselves a recruit college today” (Pratchett 11). From Strappi and Jackrum's answers, it can be assumed that while the men went to war, the women spent their lives in school and acquired an education. Pratchett further explores this theme of intellectual women through the manifestation of the main heroine, Polly Perks. Pratchett uses the washerwoman scene and the barmaid scene to show women and their manipulative power over men. Polly pushes Lieutenant Blouse to adopt her own idea of ​​dressing as a washerwoman to enter the dungeon, while retaining Lieutenant Blouse's ego by allowing her to think that it was her original idea: "If a man enters inside, he could spy on the situation from a military perspective, disable all the guards near the door and let the rest of the troops in! … 'Oh, you're quite a brave boy, sure, but what makes you think you have any chance of passing as a woman?' (Pratchett 95-96). The women Pratchett writes are aware of their talents as women and know how to act to get them through. However, as the audience discovers the extent to which women are involved in the military system, Pratchett continues to resist the sexist ideals of modern society despite their adversity. The family lives of all the female characters in the play reveal that the role of women is openly excluded in the advancement of society and politics. In terms of recruitment for war, women are at the bottom of the societal hierarchy compared to trolls, vampires, and Igors. Although it is now common to see women pretending to be men to join the ranks, sexism prevails even in the face of defeat. Even when he reveals himself to be a woman, General Froc refuses to submit to the ideals of equality in the army: "You others, with the exception of Lieutenant Blouse, will agree to be sent home and placed under the responsibility of a responsible man. » (Pratchett 125) The condemnation of this regiment becomes more disturbing in the face of Jackrum's discovery of the hierarchy of the military branches: "Who needs proof? Once they believe it, well, that's as good as it gets.