Taming Of The Shrew Clothing Essay

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Shakespeare lived in a society where clothes were key in identifying certain social statuses. Only certain social statuses were able to wear specific colors or fabric. For example, purple silk was only reserved for the Queen, King and their family members, and velvet was reserved for only the highest nobility (Hanson). A person’s appearance affects how others in society view them. Shakespeare shows that clothing does not make a man. Characters in The Taming of the Shrew change their appearances to fit the role they are disguising as. Their change of clothes affected how society looked at them but did not change who they truly were. A servant dressed as a lord is still a servant and a lord dressed as a servant is still a lord no matter their change of clothes and a women is still a women even if she is labeled as a shrew. In the end of the play, they all changed to fit society norms. Sly is the first character to be disguised. In the Induction, a lord plays a prank Sly while he is found sleeping outside. The Lord decides to make Sly think he is also lord …show more content…

She is miserable and desperate because she wants a husband but does not like the way women are treated. In pursuit to be happy in life she decides to marry Petruchio. Petruchio tames her and her shrewish ways begin to fade away. She listens to her husband, obeys his commands, she does not talk back, and she agrees with everything he says. Katherine disguises being a shrew by taking up the role of a modern wife in that time.
Throughout The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare disguised his characters. With the disguises, he showed that clothes do not really make a man. Clothes label people into certain social structures but does not make them who they truly are. He disguised his characters physically and emotionally. Lucentio and Tranio disguised as each other by changing clothes while Katherine was disguised as a social wife by submitting to her

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