Lately I have been criticized for not doing enough to further the cause of women. So let’s get one thing straight right now. I am not here to make things easier for all women or give you some sort of ‘equality’ or whatever it is you want. Ladies…face it... I am not like you.
I am a Queen and the Supreme Whatever of the Church of England.
I am exceptional.
I don’t represent my sex— I represent the Crown. In order to do that effectively I must rule as a man would rule. I must act as one of them and follow their rules. I must belly up to the bar and ogle the serving wench. (Actually I don’t have to do that. It’s just fun to do)
In fact, don’t even think of me as a woman. Think of me as an ‘honorary male.’ Or a de-sexed entity. Benevolent but all-powerful. Muahahahahaha.
BTW, 3rd Lady of the Bedchamber…you don’t have to worry about your promotion. The 1st or 2nd Lady is probably going to sneak off and marry without my permission, and I will be looking to promote from within.
Ah... Finally you are showing your strength! You are most correct, you are not an average woman, you are a powerhouse with which we must contend. You are the Queen with the stomach and heart of a man!! You are royalty and the rest of us women must remain in our places. Yet we can still dream ....
ReplyDeleteB
Dear Elizabeth,
ReplyDeleteYou may or may not know that a distinguished group of scholars (many of them women) have recently undertaken to analyze your reign and understand what your rule can tell us about how you English in the sixteenth century understand power, sex, gender, rule (authority), the sexes, the body, and many other things. It has recently been put forward that you act like a man, in a masculine way. What does that mean? I don't understand these concepts: "manly", "masculine", and what do you mean by heart and stomach of a King -- what does your heart have to do with it? What does your stomach have to do with it??? Why do you say you are weak? are you sick? what's with all the bodily references anyway? I feel like an alien...please help me understand the way you people think.
All my love,
ET