Abstract: Gender has become a common, though often confusing, topic in our society – especially as it relates to privilege and social opportunity. While it’s tempting to think of gender constructs as a modern invention, the relationship between how well society perceives a person’s gender performance and the ability to obtain and retain power is not a new phenomenon at all. This thesis will examine gendered power and performance by women in early modern England, France, and Scotland, with a focus on Mary Stuart, Catherine de Medici, and Elizabeth I as a comparative study. Specifically, I will investigate what these women needed to do to wield or hold onto power and how their gender performances affected their ability to do so. I will argue that women were collectively forced into choosing between a few select archetypes within early modern society, that of the mother, virgin, or woman, and that the role they chose directly influenced their ability to retain their positions of power. I intend to show that Catherine de Medici leaned into the mother role while Elizabeth I rejected the feminine and aligned with the virgin (as though she were sexless or a man), and these roles allowed them to retain power more securely and acceptably. On the other hand, Mary Stuart aligned with the role of woman by following the feminine ideals of the period, but as she was a queen regnant, this actually impeded her ability to retain power.
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