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Dark Lady (character)

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Dark Lady (character)

The Dark Lady is a stock character in fiction. Her darkness is either literal, meaning that she has dark skin, or metaphorical in that she is a tragic, doomed figure. The two may go together, with one being an allegory for the other. The Dark Lady is not usually seen to be married to a Dark Lord.

Contents

Shakespeare

William Shakespeare wrote of a Dark Lady in his sonnets. The woman is described as having dark hair, dark skin, and a dark nature. There has been much speculation as to her true identity. He also created several, doomed dark ladies as characters in his plays such as Cleopatra and Lady Macbeth.

In American media

In American media, she is often portrayed as Latina.

Notable examples

  • A.L.I.E. from The 100 TV series
  • Evanora and Theodora from Oz the Great and Powerful
  • Evil Queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
  • Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty (1959) and Kingdom Hearts
  • Princess Mombi from Return to Oz
  • White Witch from The Chronicles of Narnia
  • Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  • References

    Dark Lady (character) Wikipedia