Critical Essays     Scholars who write about silence in
Shakespeare's plays emphasize that it is an important dramatic
element, particularly with regard to characterization and
thematic development. A character's muteness may signify the
experience of an emotion that is beyond human understanding or
articulation, imply that a character feels intimidated, or
communicate defiance. Calling attention to its inherent
ambiguity, critics frequently note that the way actors “perform”
a dramatic silence will endow it with alternative meanings.
Furthermore, the text of a Shakespearean play may itself be
“silent” with respect to an action or episode—that is, not
represent it directly but introduce it through the report of one
or more characters, thus leaving its implications ambiguous or
confusing. Many late-twentieth-century commentators allude to
the way Shakespeare dealt with the conventional notion that
women should be reticent or soft-spoken. Disputing the idea that
there was such a fixed concept, Christina Luckyj