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Author
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Topic: Rapunzel with a twist! And remember Taming of the Shrew!
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Moe
Member
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posted 05-19-2001 08:52 AM
  
Hypothetically......
Remember the fairy tale Rapunzel? Let's just say instead of her long hair and the wicked witch there's just her beauty and a wicked Prince who wants to marry her but is refused.
The prince then keeps her in a castle to 'tame her' (remember the Taming of the Shrew movie with Richard Burton and Liz Taylor?). If this was set in Elizabethan times, what castle would be the best setting for her confinement?
Honest replies please and I ain't kidding either. It'll help a great deal on my research.
Thanks guys and thanks for the feedback so far on the other topics! |
Shelly
Senior Member
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posted 05-19-2001 10:45 AM
I'm not exactly sure what you are looking for so I imagine that any sturdy castle would do. Most likely she would be kept in the keep or "donjon" which would be the strongest tower of the castle. I say sturdy castle because he might have to contend with her angry relatives. A prince was not necessarily immune to having his castle attacked. Assuming that she is of noble birth her family could probably afford a siege. Since you mentioned the Elizabethan era, the cannons which existed during this time could wreck havok on the strongest of castles. This of course would also put her at risk, so the most likely scenario would be the arranged marriage.You didn't say her parents had arranged that she marry this prince-in that case she would have no choice anyway. Most likely she would remain with her parents or be sent to some other nobles castle to be taught how to conduct herself as a lady. She would probably remain there until her wedding day. That's all I can guess at, maybe someone else has a better answer. Another note if you are interested. She would have been considered of marriagable age at about 14 or 15 years old. [This message has been edited by Shelly (edited 05-19-2001).] |
Moe
Member
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posted 05-19-2001 09:04 PM
Shelly,
Thanks for the feedback.
Similarly, 14/15 was considered a marriageable age on this side of the earth at that time too!
1. So she would be sent to some nobles castles to learn to be a Lady. Were there any notable 'schools' at that time one would be sent to? Where would I find more info on this?2. Didn't Anne Boleyn went to one of 'em in France or sonething? 3. Following your reply, yes, she is from a noble family and her family can't wreck havoc on the 'donjon' she lives in because of the risk factor. I chose that my female protagonist marries reluctantly in the end albeit an unhappy marriage at that. In the movie Elizabeth, when Elizabeth was taken in by Mary, Eli. had brought with her her lady in waiting/maids. Assuming this is allowable, what other priveliges would she be accorded besides her freedom during her captivity? Could it be something like giving druglord Noriega the prison treatment in a 5 star hotel? And how about visitors?
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Shelly
Senior Member
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posted 05-20-2001 10:21 AM
I'm guessing again mainly because I have no historical reference about someone being held captive for the purpose of marriage. I would assume that she would be allowed some freedom to move about the castle and to have maids. As an unmarried woman she would also have a "chaperone" who would always be with her and who also would probably teach her how to conduct herself before the prince. She would have her food and clothing provided by the prince himself. In general she would be treated as a Lady of the Court. She would most likely be allowed visitors only under the watchful eye of the prince's trusted chaperone.I know of no schools, but I can give you a website about Anne Boleyn. this covers a little about Anne's early life. It's not much though.
http://www.tudorhistory.org/boleyn/
[This message has been edited by Shelly (edited 05-20-2001).] |
Levan
Moderator
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posted 05-24-2001 12:46 AM
This is all very idealistic - there are plenty of examples of where "Ladies" have had lovers that were not approved by their families. Sometimes a "blind-eye" was turned, othertimes it was necessary to elope.Levan |
penelope
Member
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posted 06-09-2001 12:12 PM
Question what makes your two main characters tick. In other words what are their character traits, is she a femme fatale, with narcissistic tedencies. Is he a man's man who beat everything into submission. Once you know what makes them who they are, their story will write themselves. But I recommend good research, which will give you ideas for your novel. Try finding Linda Edelstien's book "The writer;s guide to Character Traits", I have found it most useful when developing my characters. |
penelope
Member
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posted 06-09-2001 11:58 PM
Moe did some checking and found several different situations for your characters, some I'm sure you've heard, but maybe some thing completely different.
1/ Arranged marriage from birth
2/ Betrothal at an age when she could leave her mother and take up residence in her intended home. If she was to marry the heir, his mother would teach her to be chatelaine.
3/ Royal degree, or political marriage
4/ Hand-fast ceremony. When a man and woman agree to live with one another for one year to see if they were compatible. If not at the end of the year they could go their separate ways
5/ If a man wanted a woman, her family and herself were against it. The man could kidnap the woman, get her pregnant, then the church would have to marry the couple, and the woman had no say. If she refused the child would be a bastard born.
6/ Here's a reason a woman would marry quickly in your time period. The church controlled much. Few noblewomen were literate and if their husbands or fathers were wealthy landowners, or they themselves were beautiful, the church would make a grab for the land and send the women to nunnery's, and some were even burned as witches. I say make your woman intelligent, and have her marry the village idiot.
**little note** Wife selling was a customary practice, and it was still apart of Canadian Law until 1972, found reference to it in a book called "The book of days" two volume published 1863 & 1864
I'll see if I can find more |
Moe
Member
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posted 06-15-2001 06:37 AM
Penelope,
I've figured out the character traits bit. But the secret is convincing other people or the indifferent lay man that such a thing did happen. It's got to be believable. Hence the questions.
E.g. remember Sense and Sensibility, the movie? Emma Thompson remarked people coming to her asking why the hell didn't the women at that time find a job instead of having waiting around for a suitor to pay their bills!
What is more difficult with historical pieces is that even though you are fictionalizing the story, the setting must be authentic. Else, you get Kevin Costner in Robin Hood , Prince of Thieves.
Thanks a million by the way, Penelope.Moe | |
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