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Themes

Frailty, thy name is woman!

— William Shakespeare • Hamlet

Three carved theatrical masks in black, charcoal and pale grey show different degrees of frowning against slate.
Original artwork
Behind the line May contain spoilers.

Our reading

An editorial interpretation.

The speaker personifies frailty as woman. The exclamation makes a sweeping association between weakness and women; it expresses a gendered judgment rather than an established fact.

Context reviewed

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