` A victim of social circumstances, with whom the audience sympathises'

Write about these views in the world of the play

Men, some to Business, others to Pleasure take;

but every Woman is at heart a Rake.

- Alexander Pope, "Of the Characters of Women

For me Angelica Bianca seems to fit both these statements to some extent; she is one and both at the same time. By looking at her interactions with characters and her position in society contextually I will show both sides of the argument and summarize

Women in seventeenth century Europe had few options in terms of marriage and courtship. They could not initiate relations with men, often their father or and or their brother/s would decide whom they would marry. Once a rich and respectable suitor was found a dowry payment was invested in the hope...