Theme Of Taming Of The Shrew

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).

Examine the different ways in which Shakespeare presents the attitude towards marriage in the play, ‘The Taming of the Shrew.’

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 addition, Petruchio’s taming has taken away her unique confidence and forced her to change into a woman that accepts the patriarchal norms. Moreover, since Katherine follows the “good girl” definition, it proves Petruchio’s taming plan worked. Likewise, when they finally reach the banquet, Katherine asserts herself as a changed woman who conforms to the social norms. She gives a long speech describing her newly found views: “Even such a woman oweth to her husband,/ And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,/ And not obedient to his honest will,/ What is she but a foul contending rebel,/ And graceless traitor to her loving lord?/ I am ashamed that women are so simple/ To offer war where they should kneel for peace” (V.ii. 160-166). In this ironic speech, Katherine urges women not “to offer war where they should kneel for

Petruchio’s nature in the play comes across as brutish and dominating, not as a romantic suitor courting the brash Kate. But, this is where an in-depth reading of the story has to come into play. This is a story that cannot be taken at face value. Instead, it has to be read with the understanding that this is not a soppy love story, but one where there’s an intertwining of two bold personalities through rather peculiar methods. Shakespeare is depicting a relationship true to Elizabethan times with a

Taming of the Shrew Character Profile · Romantic comedy Time and place written · Around 1592, London Date of first publication · 1623 Tone · The overall tone of the play is light and comic, though the exploration of larger social questions, such as the proper relation of the sexes in marriage, lends much of the comedy a more serious tone. Settings (Time) · Unspecific, though presumably sometime during the Italian Renaissance Settings (Place) · Padua, a city-state in Italy prominent during the Renaissance Major conflict · Petruccio's attempt to "tame" Katherine; that is, to assert his authority in their marriage and overcome her hotheaded

In the following is a compare and contrast of both Katherine and Petruchio’s behavior prior to marriage and after marriage to prove that Katherine becomes tamed. Before Katherine and Petruchio get married, Petruchio promises

This portrayal of love is seen in line 196 as Katherine finished her speech and Petruchio praised her ‘tamed’ actions by proudly proclaiming, “Why, there’s a wench! Come on, and kiss me, Kate.” Petruchio most likely would have praised her regardless of the intentions behind her words though, because he was either intrigued by her determination to remain the fiery girl he first met, or proud that he finally tamed the shrew and won the

Petruchio manipulates Katherine into kissing him in the middle of the street; after everyone has exited, “Nay, I will give thee a kiss. [she kisses him] Now pray thee, love, stay” (V,ii,153-154). It can be implied here that after everyone exits, Petruchio and Katherine in fact devise a plan to fool her family and the rest of the wedding guests into believing that she has Petruchio has tamed her into an obedient wife. This is important because it proves that the two are both equally manipulative and that they can trick people into believing whatever they tell them to be true and even make a financial gain from such schemes. Petruchio commands Katherine to instruct Bianca and the widow about the wife’s duties to her husband, “But love, fair looks, and, and true obedience-too little payment for so great a debt.

On hand, this play can be used to improve the treatment of women, on the other hand it can be used to reinforce the gender role separation. For example, throughout the play Katherine was compared with wild animals, who need to be domesticated as Petruchio says “I am he am born to tame you Kate, and bring you from a wild Kate to a Kate Conformable as other household Kates.”  Based on this quote, Petruchio compares Katherine to a wild cat who is out of control and need to be taught the boundary of life. This particular section can send a role division message that women born to be submissive and they need to be tamed if they do not fit the prescribed societal role. Kalidasa lived around 5th century, when women were not treated equally, this play can catch audience’s attention as a way to reinforce their gender role

This long speech by Katherine at the end of the play shows a shocking transformation of her opinion on marriage, men, and the role of women and it takes everyone that hears it by surprise. The once very well known shrew is now stating that Bianca and

In the play The Taming of The Shrew by William Shakespeare, it shows that people are able to change. Katherine was a shrew, everyone was scared of since she was so harsh. Katherine scared Hortensio and Gremio to the point where Gremio is calling her the devil. Hortensio and Gremio fight over Bianca, who is going to marry her. Baptista wouldn’t let Bianca marry until Katherine. Lucentio fell in love with Bianca at first sight and had Tranio act like him so he could get close to Bianca by teaching her. Petruchio came to town, Hortensio and Gremio talk him into talking marrying Katherine.\ After Petruchio and Katherine got married, Tranio acted like Lucentio, he was going to marry

The motif in the (almost) finale chapters of The Taming of the Shrew, was language and communication. In this section of reading several of the characters learn how to communicate effectively with each other. For example, the newly weds Katherina and Petruchio had a rough patch in the beginning, but by and by are learning to get along with each other. Katherina was horrible to everyone at the beginning of the play, now in Pisa her husband, Petruchio gives her a taste of her own medicine. First, he starves her, “What, did he marry me to famish me?” (4.3.1960). Second, Petruchio has a dress and hat made for Kate, and purposely finds fault in the garments and destroys them. Katherine even tries to say that they are beautiful and that every gentlewoman at that time was wearing them, to which her husband replies “When you are gentle, you shall have one too, and not till then.” (4.3.2034-2035). Thirdly, when off to see Baptista, Kate argues about what time the would get to Padua if they left at a certain time, because of this Petruchio refuses to leave,

This shows that men wanted women who were gentle and who were devoted to their husbands. Garner believes a woman who does not have a soft tongue is not a shrew, but rather a woman with ideas and someone who can stand up for themselves (212). Garner is correct because Katherine believed she was worth more than being an ordinary wife, instead of the norm, she believed her husband should obey her. Garner also mentions how there is no mutuality in the play between the female and male characters.

The modern world sees women as either silent or talkative. Silent women are the ones that deserve, in some ways, love and getting married, whilst the ones that talk too much are seen as undesirable and unworthy of marriage. Katherine fits into the second category as she is described as being a wildcat or even as the devil itself. The Taming of the Shrew is a farce and in this subgenre of the comedy, the characters don`t reflect too much but react with the speed of light. The plot moves fast and the characters may become violent at the slightest provocation, such as Petruccio who beats a lot of characters that try to provoke him, but it also lacks consequences. Petruccio never hits Katherine but he does belittle her through emotional mistreatment. As he beats other characters present in the play, in a way, he reminds Katherine of how powerful he actually is without laying a finger on her. Petruccio invites Katherine to play along, allowing her to enter his world. Even if it may seem as a misogynistic play, this is debatable, but the subjugation of the woman isn`t really comedy