KLEOPATRA, LJUBAVNICA I VLADARKA: POLITIKA OSVAJANJA U ANTONIJU I KLEOPATRI
CLEOPATRA AS A MONARCH AND A MISTRESS: THE POLICY OF CONQUEST IN ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA

Summary/Abstract: The paper deals with the characterization of the female protagonist in Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. It examines the degree to which the character of Cleopatra fits into the role of femme fatale, who seduces and conquers Antony. On the surface, Egypt and its queen represent ‘the Other’, opposite to Roman culture: love and hedonism against fighting and killing, pleasure against duty, and sensuality against rationality. Therefore, Cleopatra, as a woman who rules Egypt, is the main antagonist of the Roman emperor, Octavius Caesar, who personifies Roman cultural values. However, the tragedy will reveal that this distinction between the characters is not as simple and straightforward as it seemed: Cleopatra, for all her whims and passion, is not without prudence and political ambitions; on the other hand, Roman honour and virtue are not unsullied (Bamber, 1982). The femme fatale role turns out to be just that – a role, while the Egyptian queen skillfully pursues her policy of conquest.

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