For my research paper, I plan on writing on the romanticization of Ancient Egypt, specifically when it comes to some of the Egyptian queens. I will be specifically focusing on Cleopatra, Nefertiti, and Hatshepsut, who are possibly three of the most well-known women in Egyptian history. I think that many of us, myself included, had an Ancient Egypt phase during our childhood, and many of us learned about Cleopatra and Nefertiti. However, Nefertiti is primarily known for her beauty and being the mother of Tutankhamun; Cleopatra is primarily known for seducing two Roman leaders; and, one could argue, Hatshepsut is slightly less well-known, but is known for being a long-reigning female pharaoh.
Especially when it comes to Cleopatra, these three women have been in the spotlight when it comes to the ruling class of Ancient Egyptian society. There have been many, many movies based on Cleopatra, one of the most famous from 1963 starring Elizabeth Taylor and Rex Harrison, and Nefertiti’s famous bust has its own room in the Neues Museum in Berlin, Germany. (I saw it there when I was in Germany for three weeks in the summer of 2017; it is an incredibly beautiful bust. You cannot take photos of it, and it would be pretty hard to anyways, what with all of the people who are crowding the room to see her bust. It was one of the most telling things about the whole museum, since that was the busiest part of the whole building.)
However, this lack of knowledge can be incredibly damaging to the general public who might not know a lot about Ancient Egypt in general. What else were they known for other than being queens and their beauty? What are they known for other than being mothers and wives? How does our lack of knowledge about these three influential Egyptian women impact our view of Ancient Egypt itself? What were some of their other accomplishments? How did we get to where we are on our views of Cleopatra, Nefertiti, and Hatshepsut?
It is vitally important to understand the differences between the cultural views of Cleopatra, Nefertiti, and Hatshepsut, and the actual women who lived many centuries ago. While today there are many numerous resources, especially online, to learn more about these women, many people might be influenced by these cultural perceptions of the queens. Because of this, people may be more susceptible to believing other cultural beliefs that carry no archaeological weight about Ancient Egypt, which could mean believing other incorrect facts, like from the “Pyramidiots” who believe that anyone but the Egyptians could have built the Pyramids.
When it comes to sources, I will be using a few different websites. Two sites are related to two different major museums: one is the Brooklyn Museum, an art museum located in Brooklyn, New York, and opened in 1895. It has a permanent Ancient Egyptian collection. Another site that I will be using will be the Smithsonian Magazine. It is a magazine founded by the Smithsonian Institution in 1970, and the Smithsonian was founded in 1846 and now has nineteen museums and is generally seen as reputable. I will also reference the textbook, since I noticed that it has a section on Cleopatra in the movies, and an article on PBS and a New York Times book review.
Works Cited:
“Hatshepsut.” Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art, Brooklyn Museum, <www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/dinner_party/place_settings/hatshepsut>. Accessed 31 Oct. 2018.
Kakutani, Michiko. “The Woman Who Had the World Enthralled.” Rev. of Cleopatra: A Life, by Stacy SchiffNew York Times, 1 Nov. 2010, <www.nytimes.com/2010/11/02/books/02book.html>. Accessed 31 Oct. 2018.
“Nefertiti.” Egypt’s Golden Age, PBS, <www.pbs.org/empires/egypt/newkingdom/nefertiti.html>. Accessed 31 Oct. 2018.
Wilson, Elizabeth B. “The Queen Who Would Be King.” Smithsonian Magazine, Sept. 2006, <www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-queen-who-would-be-king-130328511/>. Accessed 31 Oct. 2018.
This is a great topic! The depiction of women is something that has bothered me about the public perception of Ancient Egypt as well. I would love to see your paper dive into the intricacies of these women and their lives, as you’ve promised. Something I’d like to possibly contribute is the study of other women in positions of power in Ancient Egyptian history. I did some light research about Hatsheput’s gender expression last week and found a (non-scholarly) article that included a larger list of women in other positions of power and their stories. You don’t have to, of course, but I thought that these other women might help your paper along and help support a larger argument.
Also, this might not end up being an issue for you, but I can imagine that writing a paper on such a broad topic might be a little difficult. Obviously that’s what the assignment wants, but it may be hard to deliver a strong argument if your research question is just “what were these women really like.” If you can narrow it down to something a little more specific about these women, like their accomplishments, affects on society, or perceived place in society, that might make things a bit easier on yourself because you’re giving yourself a unit with which to measure the answer to your question. Also, it could cut down the amount of time you spend reading through articles trying to find a decent amount of evidence for any given point if you have a more specific trend you’re originally looking for. Of course, you could also let the reading drive you.
I think this will be an excellent topic!! Like the person who commented above I have always been bothered by the depiction of Egypt’s Queens and how their primary characteristic that depicts power is their beauty. Not to say that this is false, but it’s a trope that is all too prevalent in western media. Why can’t we believe these women to be powerful without their sexuality and beauty? It would be interesting to get the Egyptian perspective on this. They were a patriarchal society, so how did this affect the way queens were pictured? I think your sources will work well with your topic and I’m excited to see where this goes!
I think the topic you choose is very promising and interesting! The women of ancient Egypt are definitely glamorized, something we’re reminded of every time Halloween comes around. If you hadn’t already thought about it, I think the costumes depicted ancient Egyptian women would be an interesting addition.
One part I was very interested in was Cleopatra in the movies. I can remember screenshots of these old black and white movies with white women dressed up and wearing makeup depicting Cleopatra. I personally don’t know how I would attack this topic. It might be hard to stray away from the cultural appropriation of costuming and movies and to focus on how the female pharaohs were depicted themselves in their true likeness rather than how we make them look in media. This also might be an important issue, though once again I’m not sure how you are going to go about writing this topic.
I’m glad you chose to focus your writing on this topic and I think your paper will be great!