Elizabeth's Complicated Self-Portrayal: Music Edition

Katherine Butler’s Music in Elizabethan Court Politics was published sometime in the last four months, and is exactly geared toward what I’m writing my paper about, thus validating my research and my life. I still feel like I should write about it here because there are plenty of things within the book that may apply to other people in the class, especially those focusing on Elizabeth’s self-portrayal. There is a section in this book that talks about Elizabeth’s reputation as a musician and her portrayal as such in a royal portrait. In it, Elizabeth carries a lute, and is in fact actively playing it – extremely unusual for a portrait of an upper-class woman. Apparently, this would generally be used to portray a prostitute or otherwise wanton character, but in this instance, with Elizabeth’s high-necked gown and the throne rising up behind her, it seems instead to connote political harmony. It’s just fascinating.

Perhaps even more fascinating is the fact that this painting – a miniature – was not for the public eye, but was instead a private gift to a friend, who likely had the pleasure of hearing Elizabeth play the lute in person many times. This complicates Elizabeth’s self-portrayal. Here, she is not just presenting herself as a talented musician to the public, but is instead weaving a political statement inside of a personal gift.

While I’ve read arguments over and over about how Elizabeth uses the culture of music to portray herself in a certain light, and essentially manipulates her courtiers and musicians to also portray her political power, I have not previously read a detailed argument about the political power this also gave the court. The court, Butler argues, is also empowered by music – a courtier may use music to suck up to Elizabeth (i.e. portray her in a certain light), but on the other end, he is also using it for his own political gain.

Butler’s research covers such political games of courtiers, uses for music, and self-portrayals and outside representations of Elizabeth. Music is, she argues, much more complicated politically than other research leads us to believe. 

Butler, Katherine. Music in Elizabethan Court Politics. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 2015. Print.