Twelfth Night Social Class Essay

In the play “Twelfth Night”, we experience a major change in social class, a division of a society based on social or economic status, compared to the time period it takes place in. There are six different levels of social classes, the Monarch, Nobility, Gentry, Merchant, Yeoman, and Laborers. The play takes place in the Elizabethan era, a time when social classes were thought to be created by god and completely defined who you were. However, there is cross dressing, having affection for the same gender, and overall no social class boundaries in “Twelfth Night”. Shakespeare used this difference between real life and his writing to show how social class, in that time period, was needed to keep order among the people.

According to “Elizabethan Era Social Hierarchy” the highest level in the social class of the Elizabethan era is the Monarch class. This class consists of the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth I, who was the last ruler of the Tudors and also ruled for forty-five years. This Monarch class is what kept the kingdom running in smooth order. The Monarch is typically born into the position of power but could be elected into the position. If the position of power is passed down a family, it is called

The heads of these families were dukes, earls, or barons. This class also holds all of the lords and ladies of the land. To be one of the nobility, one had to be born into it or be appointed by the queen or king. There are two different sub categories within the Nobility class, the new families, and the old families (“Nobility”). The difference between the two sub categories is their religion. The new families are protestants as that was the newest religion, and the old families are catholic which was the old religion of the land. The third class of the social hierarchy is the gentry class. The next level of social class is the Gentry