The aim of this dissertation is to show that the film’s plot is built on the notion of religious, political, and emotional conflict by which Kapur creates obstacles for Elizabeth to overcome so that she is shown to become a powerful and independent monarch. The development that Kapur’s Elizabeth goes through in the film is a preparation for the transition that takes places at the end of the film: that is to say the metamorphosis from a woman subject to emotions to the iconic Virgin Queen.
Part one will examine closely the religious conflict between Protestants and Catholics in England and Elizabeth’s policy concerning religion. Sects and secrecy together with plots and counterplots will be also examined as a part of the political conflict in the film. All along the film Elizabeth will be in an emotional conflict which for this study I will call “temptations of love versus the demands of duty” and will refer to it in the close examination of “The Dance Sequence.”
Part two will deal with Elizabeth’s transformation into the Virgin Queen. The factors that Kapur seems to suggest as reasons for Elizabeth’s change will be taken into account and the director’s understanding of the concept surrounding the term “virginity” will be clarified and compared with the representation of the queen as The Virgin Queen in history, contemporary literature and asthenic portraits of the period. We shall see how Elizabeth’s development in the film is related to thecostumes and make-up. I will refer to historical facts to suggest that the criticism about the mismatch of film with history is inappropriate. To evaluate the validity of this thesis, relevant statements of the director and other persons who were involved in the making of the film shall be taken into consideration.
Part three will present the Historical Film genre and locate Kapur’s Elizabeth in it. The notion of emotional conflict and temptations of love versus the demands of duty will be studied in the Introduction of the Duke of Anjou and the Gondola Sequence which illustrates what Elizabeth’s life might have been if she had had a husband. Once again the political conflict will be introduced through the assassination attempts from which Elizabeth narrowly escapes.
Table of Contents
Part 1
1. Re-creating the Iconic Virgin Queen
Introduction
Religion in England: Henry VIII, Mary and Elizabeth I.
1.1.1. Religion under the reign of Henry VIII.
1.1.2. Religion under the reign of Mary Tudor.
1.1.3 Religion under the reign of Elizabeth.
1.2. Religious conflicts in Elizabeth: “The Burning of the Protestants”.
1.2.1. Contextualizing Elizabeth in the first sequence “The beginning of the film”: history and aesthetics.
1.2.2. Elizabeth consolidates Protestantism: “The Queen and her Bishops”.
1.2.3. Temptations of love versus the demands of duty: “The Dance Sequence”.
Part 2
2. From innocence to experience
2. 1. From youth to power: “Elizabeth adopts the persona of the Virgin Queen.”
2.1.1. Elizabeth’s transition from an innocent young woman to a powerful monarch.
2.1.2 Reasons behind a transition.
2.1.2.1 War with Scotland
2.1.3 The final transition: “The closing sequence.”
2.2. The concept of Elizabeth’s virginity according to history and its application in Kapur’s Elizabeth and Westin’s historical novel The Virgin’s Daughters in the Court of Elizabeth I.
2.2.1. The Mother image of Elizabeth according to history and its application in Westin’s historical novel The Virgin’s Daughters in the Court of Elizabeth I.
2.2.2. Elizabeth as a Sacred Figure according to history
2.2.2. Elizabeth and marriage in Westin’s novel
2.2.3.Elizabeth and marriage according to history
Part 3
Codes and conventions of the Historical Film: Elizabeth within this genre
3.1. Elizabeth and the codes and conventions of the Historical Film
3.1.1 Codes and conventions
A display of pageantry: “Introducing the Duke of Anjou”
3.2. Who was the Duke of Anjou?
3.3. Dramatization in the Assassination attempt.
3.4. Representation of Queen Elizabeth I in Portraits of the Period
Research Objectives and Themes
This dissertation examines how Shekhar Kapur’s 1998 film Elizabeth constructs the protagonist's transition from a vulnerable young woman into the iconic, powerful "Virgin Queen" through the lens of religious, political, and emotional conflict. It investigates the cinematic methods used to externalize the Queen's inner struggles, analyzes the historical deviations employed to heighten dramatic tension, and compares these depictions with historical reality and other contemporary literary representations of Elizabeth I.
- The impact of religious conflicts between Protestants and Catholics on Elizabeth’s early reign.
- The portrayal of the "Virgin Queen" persona as a strategic, albeit demanding, political necessity.
- The use of "temptations of love versus demands of duty" as a core narrative engine.
- The influence of aesthetic choices (color, light, costume, camera angles) in shaping the historical film genre.
- The comparative analysis between cinematic representation and historical portraiture as symbols of power.
Excerpt from the Book
1.2. Religious conflicts in Elizabeth: “The Burning of the Protestants”
In order to show how the film represents the theme of religious conflict as it existed in 16th century England it is pertinent to examine the sequence of the film which would be called “The Burning of The Protestants”. In the opening scene, three Protestant heretics (Bishop Hugh Latimer, Nicholas Ridley and an unnamed woman) are burned at the stake under the order of the Duke of Norfolk, who is into of service of the ill Queen Mary. Susan Doran and Thomas S. Freeman state in their work The Myth of Elizabeth that the scene was “obviously [is] a largely fictitious version of a famous historical event” and that “there was no woman burnt alongside Latimer and Ridley”(Susan Doran and Thomas S. Freeman 255). The authors explain the addition of the female martyr as it fallows:
The female martyr’s presence in this scene allows the film to create a parallel administered make-over at the film’s conclusion. It is clearly significant that there is an emphasis in the film’s opening sequence on the physical violence the female martyr suffers at the hands of her male captor.7
Doran and Freeman also make a connection between this female martyr burnt at the stake and Elizabeth as they claim that “at the end of the film Elizabeth makes herself into an object to be consumed-here the audience is shown a person being forced to become just such an object” (Doran and Freeman 255). From their point of view the placement of a female at the stake reveals “the audience’s voyeuristic masculine gaze” (Doran and Freeman 256).
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: Outlines the dissertation's aim to show how Kapur uses religious and emotional conflict to drive Elizabeth's transformation into a powerful icon.
Part 1: Examines the religious climate under Henry VIII, Mary Tudor, and Elizabeth I, focusing on the film’s opening representation of persecution to establish political stakes.
Part 2: Analyzes the transition from Elizabeth's innocent youth to her adoption of the "Virgin Queen" persona, evaluating historical accuracy versus cinematic narrative needs.
Part 3: Situates Elizabeth within the historical/heritage film genre, discussing techniques such as the use of pageantry and authentic portraits to build the myth of the Queen.
Keywords
Elizabeth I, Shekhar Kapur, Virgin Queen, historical film, religious conflict, Protestantism, Catholicism, costume drama, heritage cinema, gender, power, Robert Dudley, martyrdom, iconography, political symbolism
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research?
The paper explores how Shekhar Kapur’s 1998 film Elizabeth dramatizes the Queen’s evolution into a powerful monarch by framing her personal and religious conflicts as necessary obstacles for her transformation into the iconic "Virgin Queen."
What are the primary thematic pillars of the work?
The central themes include the religious conflict between Catholicism and Protestantism, the dichotomy between private love and public duty, the construction of gender roles, and the use of cinematic aesthetics to build historical myth.
What is the author's primary research goal?
The goal is to demonstrate how Kapur uses specific cinematic techniques to justify Elizabeth's eventual rejection of personal desire in favor of a spiritual and political marriage to England.
Which scientific methods are applied in the thesis?
The author employs a sequence-based analysis of the film, comparing it with historical facts, contemporary academic critiques (such as those by Higson and Chapman), and comparative literature (Jeane Westin’s novels).
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main sections analyze the religious environment of the 16th century, the symbolic importance of the Queen’s costume and appearance, and the classification of the film as a "hybrid" historical drama.
Which keywords best summarize the research?
Key terms include: Elizabeth I, Virgin Queen, religious conflict, historical film genre, and political symbolism.
How does the author analyze the "Burning of the Protestants" sequence?
The author argues that the inclusion of an unnamed female martyr is a deliberate, albeit historically inaccurate, choice by Kapur to create a visual parallel to Elizabeth's own later sacrifice of her private self.
How does the film use "The Dance Sequence"?
The author interprets the dance sequences as a key indicator of Elizabeth’s development, showing her transition from a carefree, joyful youth in the fields to a restrained, powerful queen who utilizes humor and performance to manipulate her court.
- Quote paper
- Lora Cvetanova (Author), 2014, Kapur's Elizabeth. A coming-of-age story of a Queen, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/278329
