Kate and The Taming of the Shrew describes the progression of the outspoken and headstrong Kate, wife of Petruchio, as she gradually transitions into an almost perfect example of an archetypal loyal wife. This classic female archetype can be expressed through blind and ignorant support of their husband without any personal opinion or any priorities and objectives other than to satisfy the needs and desires of their husbands. While Kate begins possessing traits that oppose the loyal wife archetype due to her strong willed personality, her shift to obedience. However she continues to think with cunning strategy throughout the entire play, regardless of her weakened mental state caused by Petruchio limiting her food and sleep. Dutiful wives …show more content…
Penelope’s husband, Odysseus has been at war for the past twenty years and is presumably dead. During this time, Penelope and her son Telemachus end up living amongst numerous suitors who attempt to court Penelope. However she continues to mourn the “loss” her husband and vows to never remarry or entertain the suitors out of loyalty to Odysseus. She does this by beginning a large piece of needlework that must be finished before she entertains the suitors. Although at night, she undoes her work, in order to allot more time. This abounding loyalty to spouse can also be seen in Kate, within Kate and the Taming of the Shrew, towards her husband Petruchio. Later in the story when Kate becomes much more obedient towards Petruchio, belittling herself to nothing more than the womb that continues his lineage. She also proceeds to lectures other wives that see themselves as anything beyond this. “Than vail our stomachs for it is no boot and place your hands below your husbands foot, in token of which duty, if he please, my hand is ready, may it due him ease” …show more content…
With the preservation of life as the obvious priority, Kate decides to compromise her personal beliefs and emulate a loyal wife to please petruchio and ultimately save her life. When Petruchio begins to deprive kate of food and water in forceful efforts to make her acquire these traits, Kate continues to power through and remain confident and headstrong against Petruchio. Although as she continues to be malnourished and brainwashed, Kate makes the executive decision to submit completely and act as the perfect wife. Even when Petruchio is attempting to convince Kate of unrealistic nonsense, she is obedient and submissive. “Then God be blessed, it is the blessèd sun. But sun it is not, when you say it is not, and the moon changes even as your mind. What you will have it named, even that it is, And so it shall be so for Katherine” (). While Kate does eventually acquire the traits of a classic loyal wife, she continues to contrast the true archetype due to the fact that in reality, Kate is doing these things out of necessity and strategy, as a way to stay alive. In the case of a true loyal wife archetype, they believe they are lost or worthless compared to their husbands, and they must be relentlessly submissive at all costs. For example, in The Odyssey, Penelope is convinced her husband has died out in war and hasn’t stopped mourning since. In events following, Odysseus returns home with zero explanation of his
As was stated, although Kate, in many instances, appears to be controlled by others, she is actually in control of her actions. She is the one who does everything, such as allowing herself to be married off to Petruchio. Some people may say that she was forced to marry Petruchio, but she could have just run away if she really hadn't wanted to marry him. In this instance, Kate's family, especially her father Baptista, and society were influencing Kate to make the choice to not run away and follow through with the marriage. In the end, though, this was Kate's decision - no one made it for her, she had to make it for herself. She had the ability to choose to run away or do something else about being forced to marry Petruchio. Kate was already considered a shrew and often did not let society's roles for men and women influence her: Why couldn't she have done the same in this instance?
Firstly, Penelope who plays Odysseus’s wife is alone tending to her city Ithica until her husband returns. Meanwhile Odysseus is out fighting in the Trojan War and against many of the Greek God’s who are trying to make his trip back home as eventful and hard as possible; “…work out his journey home so Odysseus can return” (Homer 276). While King Odysseus is away Penelope is to deal with a bunch of suitors who are eating and trashing out Ithica, “…if those suitors have truly paid in blood for all their reckless outrage” (559). In order for Penelope to keep peace until Odysseus returns she has to come up with a clever plan to keep the suitors from completely taking over. For almost 2 years Penelope was able to keep the suitors from getting out of hand by saying she will find someone to marry and replace Odysseus after she is d...
Kate in William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew Katharina or Kate, the shrew of William Shakespeare's The Taming Of
...e to show how ridiculous she looks, and will not let her have what she wants until she agrees with him on everything. Thoughtfully stated in the 1 Peter 3:1-4, Peter writes, “Likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands, so that even if some do not obey the word, they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, when they see your respectful and pure conduct. Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious”. Peter explains to the people, that obeying your husband is important and your appearance is not that important which backs up Petruchio when he does everything in his power to get Kate to obey him and treat him with respect.
However, his journey isn’t over yet. This last leg of Odysseus’s journey is perhaps the most important and crucial. Odysseus’s nurse and maidservant, Eurycleia is the first woman in Ithaca to know that Odysseus is back after she recognizes the scar on his leg while she is washing him. Eurycleia vows to keep his identity a secret. Odysseus’s wife, Penelope has stayed faithful to Odysseus for all the years that he was gone. Penelope was consistently unweaving her web to the delay the suitors. The reader even grows sympathetic for Penelope as “we see her struggle to make the virtuous choice about her marriage, despite pressures from her suitors, her son’s endangered situation, and her own uncertainty about Odysseus’s survival” (Foley ). Finally, Odysseus reveals his identity and Penelope is bewildered, but quickly embraces her husband after he tells her the secret of their immovable bed. It is the faithfulness of Penelope and nurse Eurycleia that insures Odysseus’s survival to the very end.
“And to conclude we have ‘greed so well together That upon Sunday is the wedding day” (Act 2: scene 1 l 314-315.) Throughout the first scene of act 2 Kate and Petruchio fight about Kate loving him. He only cares about himself he is self entitled. His sexism towards his wife escalates throughout the entire play. Sexism normally isn’t vocal the person doesn’t really point it out that there being sexist they just go with it. Petruchio doesn’t say to Kate “hey um you're wrong because your a girl.” He portrays it through his actions in the scene right after they get married he doesn’t allow her to eat, claiming the food is all burnt and none of its good. Another example of him only thinking of himself. Poor Kate is thinking to herself am I that horrible? Kate isn’t the problem, Petruchio is. He wants her to be something that shes not. He wants her to be calm and a obedient wife. He doesn’t ever take time to think abou...
In the beginning of “The Taming of the Shrew”, some say Shakespeare portrays Katherina as a very shrewish figure. Others may argue that she is not shrewish but just a very strong willed person. At the end of the play some people say she is transformed into a very kind and gentle person, while again others will argue that she is not “tamed” but just putting on an act to “show up” her younger sister Bianca, whom has always been more beautiful and charming. Kate is “like a wasp, like a foal, like foal that kicks from his halter; pert, quick and determined, but full of good heart.” 1. This statement made by one author, shows clearly that he does not see her as shrew-like, even at the beginning of the play. The same author states that at the end of the play she has not really transformed, rather she has just fallen in love with Petruchio, in essence she is free from torment because she is no longer seen as the shrew.
...t, she prays to Artemis so that she may die and escape her remarriage. Penelope’s prayer reveals that she would rather die than remarry because she understands that she will never love anyone more than Odysseus. Her refusal is unlike Clytemnestra, who betrays her husband by having a lover. Penelope remains loyal to her husband and she is ecstatic when she realizes that he has returned from his twenty years of absence.
For instance, Odysseus develops two relationships outside of his marriage – one of which was a goddess. Penelope remains loyal to her heroic husband, and even avoids suitors by unraveling the shroud she weaves for Odysseus during the day. The handmaidens that assist circumspect Penelope act as reminders to her consistent virtue and loyalty to her husband as they outline what not to do. The handmaidens are untruthful to Penelope and report her actions to the suitors, engage in festivities with the suitors, and do not stand by her side when she needs them. Penelope undergoes the struggles because she knows that her Odysseus will return to her, and he is a man worth waiting on. However, of course, Penelope does not know about these relationships that Odysseus has taken part in. Though, Penelope still believes that Odysseus is a good man and is proud to be his wife. Odysseus wants to return to his wife but he has everything and more with Calypso on her island. He could have stayed there and would have been very happy there, however he would not have earned his kleos for his quests. If he stayed with Calypso then no one would hear his great tales of battle or his amazing cunning abilities. Penelope is great and all, but she’s no
"Women have a much better time than men in this world; there are far more things forbidden to them." -Oscar Wilde. This quote embodies the fight over gender roles and the views of women in society. Taming of the Shrew deals with Kate and Bianca, two sisters who are at the time to he married off. However, suitors who seek Bianca as a wife have to wait for her sister to be married first. Kate is seen as a shrew because she is strong willed and unlike most women of the time. In his 1603 play The Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare enforces traditional gender roles and demonstrates how little say women had in society. He accomplishes this through the strong personality of Kate, Baptista 's attitude towards his daughters as transactions, and
The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare is a play that is ahead of its time in its views toward gender roles within society. Katherine is a woman who is intelligent, and is not afraid to assert her views on any given situation. She is paired with another obstinate character in Pertuchio. The Marriage formed between the two is a match made in heaven for two reasons. First Because Katherine is strong enough to assert her views, and more importantly, she realizes when she should assert them. The second reason the bond survives is that Petruchio is strong enough to accept the fact that Katherine has a mind and, more importantly he loves her for that reason. Petruchio cleverly weaves the relationship into the framework of society without compromising the integrity of the relationship. Petruchio does this by comparing Katherine’s at attitude to repulsive clothing. Carefully and calculatingly, Petruchio forges a relationship that is envied by all who witness it.
The character of Penelope in Homer's Odyssey reflects the faithful wife who waits twenty years for the arrival of her husband. Only a strong woman could sustain the stress, anxiety and confusion resulting from the chaos of a palace with a missing king whose fate is unknown. Her responsibilities and commitments toward the man she loves are particularly difficult to keep, under the strain of the situation. Although she does not actively pursue an effort to find him, her participation in the success of Odysseus' homecoming can be seen in her efforts to defend and protect the heritage, reputation and the House of Odysseus in his absence. As Odysseus withstands his trial, Penelope withstands her trials against temptations to give in to the many anxious suitors, to give up on her faith and respect for her religion, her husband and even her self. Penelope's strength in keeping the highest standards in her function as a wife, woman and mother contributes to the success of Odysseus' homecoming by keeping the home and family for him to come back to.
Atwood is playing with two levels of myth here: the Homeric myth of ‘faithful Penelope’ and cultural myths about women as either submissive or domestic (Howell 9). After marriage Penelope spends most of her time alone in boredom and Eurycelia, former nurse of Odysseus, often reminds her duties as wife by saying, “So you can have a nice big son for Odysseus. That’s your job” (63). Furthermore, Atwood recounts the vulnerability of alone woman in the male dominated world. To grab opportunity of being king, a number of suitors assemble at Ithaca, to marry Penelope, and she thinks, “They all were vultures when they spot the dead cow: one drops, then another, until finally every vulture for miles around is tearing up the carcass” (103). Moreover, Atwood argues about the partiality of sexual of freedom along with the vexed relationship between man and woman, as the former can do sex with any other woman such as Odysseus’s affairs with the goddess and whores, but the woman is restricted to marriage like Penelope. The foremost fatuous allegation makes on Penelope is about her faithfulness and loyalty for her husband Odysseus, and she defends herself from any sexual conduct in the chapter, “slanderous gossip”. The death of Amphinomus, the politest suitor among all, leaves the question of marital infidelity among the genders.
...ironic use of manipulation before and after the wedding, Petruchio is able to tame Kate. Or so he thinks. The only real change is that Kate agrees with him, but she only does this to get her way. Therefore she is manipulating him by pretending that he has been able to tame her. He has not tamed her, because she also utilizes the art of manipulation. Before, Kate’s only defense against patriarchy is to be outspoken; now, she negotiates her own sense of power within patriarchy by using manipulation. Shakespeare’s critic of the patriarchal social structure is therefore just, because not only are women denied the same legal power as men, but their manipulative power is also disregarded and considered a weakness. Therefore women are not to be blamed for utilizing this powerful form of control, because that is what the patriarchal social structure forces them into.
Throughout Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare portrayed women as objects or shrews that needed to be tamed. Kate was the daughter of a wealthy man named Baptista Minolta from Padua. She was the oldest sister and, under tradition of the time, had to be married first. Bianca, on the other hand, was the younger daughter and was courted by many. Due to Kate’s wild behavior, the suitors were afraid of her. Along came a man named Petruccio, who was determined to marry her and get the money that would be given to the man who marries her. Through Petruccio, Shakespeare exploited women.