Petty is Power: AMC+ 'Anne Boleyn' Shows That Some Harmful Female Stereotypes Actually Stem from Survival Skills
The wives of Henry VIII have been getting more attention in the last five years than in the last five hundred. These women, throughout high school level history classes, are the mere secondary characters to the king. Henry VIII had SIX wives! Woah, so funny. In recent years, however, these women have become microcosms of the female experience: powerful, unique women hidden for hundreds of years in the shadow of a man. Recent Broadway musical Six focuses on the lives of these wives, in what they so playfully deem a histo-remix. The former queens, reimagined as pop singers fighting to win a competition, sing their stories of trial, tribulation, and tumultuous experiences with Henry VIII. It puts the focus on the women, in a powerful Broadway burst of unquestionable girl power.
The upcoming AMC+ series Anne Boleyn is similar. But also THE MOST different.
The television series focuses on the life of King Henry VIII's second wife, played by the incredible Jodie Turner-Smith. With this specific shifting of focus we, just like the musical, are able to capture Anne's side of the story and her struggles being a woman in a world that is not made for them. Unlike the musical, however, this is not a story of women uniting in a perfect song and dance of sisterhood. Instead, it puts a microscopic lens to the backhanded, backstabbing subtlety that Boleyn had to bear towards other women in order to survive. There is a problematic stereotype that women are petty and passive aggressive towards other women. While I won't say it is fair to cast all women under this small shadow, it is not a claim without a basis. (Hear me out!) Tactics such as rumor spreading, gossiping, and petty comment dealing are tactics that have been used in our lifetime to ensure popularity or status. For proof, watch any girl-group movie from the 1960s to the early 2000s.
In recent times, contrarily, we have seen a change in call. There has been an active strive to break people of this habit. Easy quotables like "women supporting women" harken to women to hold each other up. This rejection of the gossipy-girl stereotype leads many to believe it exists because of a premeditated, biological reason. It's just a thing women do. This is where many are wrong. These passive aggressive, calculated, mean-girl moves are not some biological problem in the make-up of women. They are survival skills, forged in a time when every-woman-for-herself was the only survival strategy. Anne Boleyn points a microscope at this necessity.
(Spoilers of the first three episodes may be included, but also...it's history, so you might know anyway!)
Cheating never works out, at least on TV. Why? If your partner was cheating on his ex-partner with you and then came to you, how could you ever trust him? You know, first hand, that the bonds of a marriage are effectively meaningless. King Henry VIII is a perfect example of this. He was so adamant about being allowed to get a divorce that he created The Church of England.
Now, focus on Anne. The woman that he, ultimately, created the Church of England to get with (aw, for me?) is with child, unable to really do-the-deed with her husband, recognizing, for one of the first times, the fragility of her position. She sees the threats that lurk behind every corner and with every woman. As far as her court goes, the main threat is a young girl (yes, I said girl) named Jane Seymour.
As history buffs or die-hard fans of the musical already know, Jane Seymour, played by Lola Petticrew, does end up becoming the third wife in this King's collection of Queens. Historical irony shows us that Anne Boleyn is absolutely correct to be wary of this young girl that has caught the King's eye. So, in a moment of passive power, Anne takes Jane on a "pleasant" walk. Anne asks, "Are you in love, Jane?" After Jane replies "No," Anne continues, "You're lucky. It's difficult to love a man. Especially when he's your husband." While this may seem like a normal girl-chat, any woman can feel the passively powerful weight of the word "husband." Anne has not said anything incriminating, BUT she has emphasized that Henry is her HUSBAND, she LOVES her husband, and if Jane doesn't back off there will be trouble. (That last part is all in the subtext, but you see it.) Jane then, who picks up on this OBVIOUS threat, tells Boleyn that when she marries it will be for "security," and, "honor." You know what is insecure and dishonorable? Marrying someone else's husband. The Queen picks up on this subliminal note saying, almost boldly, "I see I have nothing to worry about. Because you'll never find safety in the King's bed." That two minute saying-without-saying conversation was Anne's brashest attempt at saving her marriage.
Anne Boleyn has no choice but to confront Jane in this seemingly passive way. If she were to take violent action against her, the King, who she is certain feels for her, would punish Anne. If she let Jane and Henry's feelings go unchecked, her marriage would already be over. Her only choice is to be calculating, manipulative, and passive. Her only course of action that protects her safety, rank, and marriage is to fill Jane with veiled threats of what could be to come if anything were to ever hypothetically happen. With any other approach, the King, played by Mark Stanley, would have Anne's head. This is the only move that protects her survival. This cultural memory is what has motivated women, and movies about women, to share similarly pressuring passive moments. It is not a frail, female stereotype. It is a mechanism for self-defense that has been carried with women throughout time in order to survive in a patriarchal society.
Anne does not only use these tactics with other women. As the Queen, she wields a significant amount of power and influence, but, as a woman, that power and influence is squashed by the powerful male diplomats that surround her. She has to fight to be treated with the respect of a Queen. She must use manipulation. When Thomas Cromwell, played by Barry Ward, tries to manipulate the lineage of Henry's ex-wife's daughter (a move away from Anne's favor), Anne proves that he cannot beat her at her own game. Boelyn goes to Henry and reveals the obviously secret information to him in a very put on "Oh, I thought you were punishing me by doing this, I didn't know you didn't know..." This obviously sends King Henry VIII into a fury, declaring that Mary will never take the throne. Through her passively persuasive powers, Anne Boleyn still gets what she wants.
Men, especially in this time period, were known for their violence and brute strength. These men maintained the physical capacity to overpower women. Therefore, if a woman wanted to get something done or exercise her power, she had to do it mentally. It had to be done secretly and carefully. If she were to be caught, she would be killed. If she were to do nothing, nothing would happen. Therefore, if Anne Boleyn wants to get any policies past, protect her line and lineage, she has to use her mind. Her only option is to manipulate. Manipulation, much like passive-aggression, is a survival skill that was perfected by women, in an AMAZINGLY powerful way, to get what they wanted without dying.
Anne Boleyn shines a new light on feminism. It is not fighting to push a message of sisterhood to the forefront. Instead it shows us how far we have come. We no longer need to put each other down to survive. As we dismantle this problematically patriarchal foundation, we have found that supporting each other is the true way to make each other stronger.
