The Orient and Women in Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra

버나드 쇼의 『시저와 클레오파트라』에 나타난 동양과 여성

For a long time Westerners have considered the Orient as unknown and mysterious, but Orientals soon came to be seen as weak and dependent, or feminine. The Oriental woman became a synecdoche for the Orient itself. We can find this theme in several British plays that deal with the Orient and Oriental women, including Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra and Dryden's All for Love. Both of these plays have Egypt as their setting and Cleopatra as a main character. For a better society, Shaw emphasizes the importance of education. In Caesar and Cleopatra, Shaw sees Egypt as a weak and dependent country which needs the help of Rome. Accordingly, he depicts Cleopatra as young and ignorant, needing to be educated in her role as a queen. Shaw finds possibilities for growth and independence in the Egyptians and Cleopatra, who recognize themselves as Egyptians and pursue their identity apart from the colonialization of Rome. Here the Egyptians attempt to resist and escape the oppression of Rome. Young, dependant and ignorant Cleopatra becomes independent and knowledgeable as the result of her education by Caesar and in the end she becomes a real Egyptian queen. According to Shaw, the Orient and women have the potential to develop themselves and ultimately to overcome the government of Western countries and men. In this play, Shaw emphasizes the potential of the Orient and women and the importance of education. Shaw thinks women can grow and develop through education. Especially through Cleopatra's growth, his thought can be applied for Oriental women as well as Western women. His thought is beyond the 19th century British society in which this play was written. Through this play, we can see Shaw's thought is not limited by race, time and place and also has universality to transcend everything.