My research paper for Shakespeare class is about Female Shaming Rituals in Early Modern England. Females who were opinionated, adulterous, and unlady-like were shamed in front of the citizens of their town. They would be paraded around in this type of device - a Scold’s Bridle. It was meant to show the woman as an animal who should be silenced. The women were often leered at and ostracized for their behavior. Women weren’t meant to have a voice back then - this device and ritual made doubly sure of that.
