INTRODUCTION
Both Taming of the Shrew and Othello Shakespeare present a variety of relationships which dramatise abuse against women. In Taming of the Shrew Petruchio’s attempts to reform Kate to make her the ideal housewife can be interpreted as a form of domestic abuse. Not only does he withhold necessities such as food, he places her in isolation, and even plays mind games with her to such an extent that she is fearful of defying him - creating a relationship of dependence. In Othello too, there are two different types of abusive relationships that have the same outcome - a husband feels so betrayed by his wife that he subjects her to a barrage of verbal abuse, ultimately seeing no option but to murder her.
METHODOLOGY
In order to
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Early modern marriage could be likened to a financial trade which was mutually beneficial to both parties. Therefore in Othello, upon learning of his daughter’s clandestine marriage, Brabanzio’s refers to Othello as a ‘thief’ , because he considers Desdemona ta possession which he believed was his to trade but has been ‘stol’n’. Similarly in Taming of the Shrew, Petruchio regards Kate as a mean to a dowry as he states that he could put up with all her faults provided there was ‘money enough’. Furthermore, during the wooing scene with Kate he expresses his intention to change her into the ‘other household Kates’. This term has been interpreted by the scholar Natasha Korda as Petruchio’s assertion over Kate, she states that ‘Cates are thus by definition … commodities’ and the wordplay on the name Kate suggests that he simply views her as another household object. The fact that women were viewed as commodities and objects and not humans is an indicator of why they were subject to domestic abuse.
ANALOGIES OF MARRIAGE
There were two main analogies of marriage in the early modern period both of which reiterated the husband’s position as the head of the household, and the rest of the members as subordinates. The first was the religious analogy between the Church and a marriage. In order to research this, I read some verses from the Bible which indicated that married couples should use the relationship between Adam and Eve as a guide for a
Fear of cuckoldry is widely known theme in medieval and Renaissance English literature. Fear of cuckoldry was also a widespread fear in English society during those eras. Men often treated their wives as possessions. Once men and women married, divorce was almost impossible, especially since it was almost impossible to prove that one had been cuckolded. If one were cuckolded and one’s wife had another man’s child, one might spend decades taking care of that child and passing on one’s money and belongings to that child without ever knowing that one had been deceived. Unmarried women are seen as their fathers ' property and the play 's two marriages are marked by jealousy and cruelty. Most
In Othello every character has their own personalities that makes them the person they are. In Othello there are characters that show true grit, a fixed mindset, and a growth mindset. Each characters are different which makes the book even more interesting. True grit means to endure and push through to do something better no matter what it takes. An example of grit is studying for a long period of time for a test and enduring the amount of work that must be completed. The definition of mindset is the established set of attitude held by someone. There are two other types of mindset as well. There is growth mindset and fixed mindset. Growth mindset is when the person isn 't
I must and will have Katherine to my wife. (Act 2, Scene 1, Page 13)
The Taming of the Shrew examines the way traditional 16th century notions about gender and its hierarchy are tested and reinforced in tempestuous relationships. While patriarchy rules supreme at the plays end, it’s vital to consider the constant attempts to undermine the sexist assumptions about a women’s place in marriage. In The Taming of the Shrew gender plays a
Katherina may be a shrew, but Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew does not truly show a study of how a selfish, spoilt individual is made to conform to society’s expectations, or be tamed into a ‘proper’ woman. At the end of the play, Katherina is not, necessarily, tamed - she just realizes what she must to do in order to get the things she wants. Two main examples of her submitting to Petruchio in order to achieve her desires are in Act 4, scene 5, (the sun versus moon scene) as well as Act 5, scene 2 (the kiss me kate scene and her final monologue).
The Taming of the Shrew, written by William Shakespeare, is historical proof that flirting and temptation, relating to the opposite sex, has been around since the earliest of times. Because males and females continue to interact, the complications in this play remain as relevant and humorous today as they did to Elizabethan audiences. This is a very fun play, full of comedy and sexual remarks. It's lasting impression imprints itself into the minds of its readers, for it is an unforgettable story of sex, flirting, and happiness. The Taming of the Shrew remains as relevant today because of its relation to the age-old story of the battle of the sexes and dynamics of marriage, as well as the woman's struggle with both of these.
In the play Taming of the Shrew, written by William Shakespeare, many characters are reshaped and given new personality traits. Petruchio is known as being a cocky man who intends to help tame a shrewish young lady named Kate. There are many critics that believe Petruchio is solely obnoxious and a bully but through out his interactions with Kate it is shown that he truly cares about the well being of others. Of course at the beginning of Petruchio’s plan to tame a young lady he is acting off of his confidence and trying to impress those around him but this soon changes once he begins to interact with Kate. Petruchio proves that his ways have changed and he is only taming Kate to make her feel better about herself, “Petruchio uses psychological methods, not aggressive or barbaric ones, to tame Kate, which alls her to still be witty and intellectual, but also happily married, at the end of the play”(Natale,98). Petruchio truly believes that by taming Kate he is preforming a good deed and helping her accept herself in this process.
“When love speaks the voice of all the gods makes heaven drowsy with the harmony,” Taming of the Shrew, Act IV, scene II.
The Taming of the Shrew is one of Shakespeare's most famous plays, and has weathered well into our modern era. For all the praises it has garnered throughout the centuries, it is curious to note that many have considered it to be one of his most controversial in his treatment of women. The "taming" of Katherine has been contended as being excessively cruel by many writers and critics of the modern era. George Bernard Shaw himself pressed for its banning during the 19th century. The subservience of Katherine has been labeled as barbaric, antiquated, and generally demeaning. The play centers on her and her lack of suitors. It establishes in the first act her shrewish demeanor and its repercussions on her family. It is only with the introduction of the witty Petruchio as her suitor, that one begins to see an evolution in her character. Through an elaborate charade of humiliating behavior, Petruchio humbles her and by the end
In The Taming of the Shrew Shakespeare is using Kate and Petruchio’s relationship to present marriage as something women should not aspire to, this is different to the conventions of other comedies, for example; in Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing the two characters dislike each other but become better people through love and marriage.
Shakespeare wrote his plays without a thought that they would ever not be performed on stage. Many of Shakespeare’s plays have been performed since his death 400 years ago. And with time comes advances, as many of Shakespeare’s play have been adapted from text to film. Some films take Shakespeare’s original plot and twist it to be more modern, while others stick with the classic. In Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 film version of The Taming of the Shrew, he recreates Shakespeare’s loved play. Although Zeffirelli stays close to Shakespeare’s original text, he does omit and add lines and scenes that weren’t originally in the play. Zeffirelli also adds body language and stage directions where they aren’t in the play. These directorial decisions change the way the romance looks between Katherina and Petruccio in the text. The relationship between the two characters in Zeffirelli 's film is attempted to be seen as more consensual than in the text.
William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew is an interesting story that demonstrates the patriarchal ideas of how a marriage is suppose to be according to society, what is acceptable of a woman's role in a relationship. It's a story that has many things to show for it's been remade, and remade, even slightly altered to better relate to the teenage audience.
Before the final scene, we see Katherine “playing along with Petruchio’s game, agreeing with him to advance her own agenda. The comical setting of the final scene, along with the uses of irony and hyperbole in the monologue provide more evidence that Katherine shouldn’t be taken at face value. Finally, Shakespeare’s theme of marriage’s role as an economic transaction makes an underlying message behind Katherine’s speech essential in order for it to coincide with the theme of the book. All of these points culminate to a final verdict that the Katherine we see at the end of the movie is not broken and beaten down but still shrewish at heart. Katherine is playing along with Petruchio’s game and gives hints to her real intentions through hyperbole and irony in the monologue.
In Shakespeare's comedy, The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare has a woman as one of the story's main characters. Katherine Minola (Kate) is off the wall, and kinda crazy. Because of her actions, the “male centered world” around her doesn't know what to do with her.
Their arranged marriage, based on the agreement between Katherine’s father and Petruccio, bonds in the extreme sense. During the arrangement Katherine was present, but had no input in the matter. The fact that Katherine denies Petruccio to be her husband and they are wed anyways, suggests that it did not matter as much when a woman opposed her marriage to a man. In this time period a woman’s input was overlooked, especially living in a patriarchal society. From a 21st century perspective, having an arranged marriage seems to not make for a happy life, even in the time period of Shakespeare. At Katherine and Petruccio’s wedding, Petruccio arrived very poorly dressed, almost homely looking, he deprived Katherine of food, clothes, and sleep, and argued with her until she agreed with him. All of these circumstances do not call for a happy marriage. However, in the fifth act of TOS, Katherine brings hope to light that she can be happy, even in her situation of an arranged marriage. When she gives the speech to her sister, Bianca, and the widow, the reader gets the sense that she is now “tamed.” Although, the marriage was arranged and Katherine does not seem happy, she leaves the reader thinking that there can be hope for happiness when you meet in the middle. Petruccio has the pleasure of having an obedient wife while Katherine gets to keep her witty