“Physical brutality was added to psychological pressure. Her father beat her several times when she refused to simulate fits” (11)

Anne’s entire situation is incredibly disturbing, but especially the trauma she faced at the hands of her father is particularly shocking. The evidence in this quote of the physical violence and mental anguish she underwent reveal how Anne, though not actually bewitched, was grossly impacted by another form of devilish torture: abuse. Constantly feeling like she needed to perform something, alongside the actual pain her body had to respond to, undoubtedly placed a massive strain on Anne, one that impacted her thought process and view of herself immensely. Anne’s father is a sickening character and it is appalling how he could act in such a way to his daughter.

“There are remarkable correlations between the sexual multivalence of Shakespeare’s heroines and an important strain in the political rhetoric of Queen Elizabeth I.” -Leah Marcus quoted in Carole Levin’s “The Heart and Stomach of a King”, page 192

Politics influence art, and Queen Elizabeth I worked to ensure that she influenced her subjects, not just in her policy or decisions but in her very being: her identity, appearance, and what she sought to represent. By asserting herself as a queen who was also a king, a woman who possessed both feminine and masculine qualities, she had an impact on the way in which the culture saw gender. This created room for experimentation with the ideas of gender, something the Shakespeare likely found fascinating and chose to highlight within his female heroines, like Viola in Twelfth Night. Art often begins a controversial conversation, and Shakespeare instigated new thought about the role of men and women within the world and their relationships- one that is still carried on today. Society at the time was still stringent in regards to gender binaries, and the idea of transgender was likely unheard of. However, the characteristics defining masculine and feminine were being explored and Elizabeth’s queenship surely had an impact on that.