Female Relationships in Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew and A Midsummer Night's Dream

1286 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Compare and contrast midsummer night dreams

Female Relationships in Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew and A Midsummer Night's Dream

Often in literature, parallels are used to accentuate certain things. William Shakespeare utilizes this tool in both The Taming of the Shrew and A Midsummer Night's Dream. In both of these comedic plays, there is a set of women who are at odds with each other. These relationships can be compared and contrasted in different aspects.

In Shakespeare's, "The Taming of the Shrew" the relationship between the sisters Katherine and Bianca appears to be strained with rampant jealousy. Both daughters fight for the attentions of their father. In twisted parallel roles, they take turns being demure and hag-like. Father of the two, Baptista Minola, fusses with potential suitors for young Bianca and will not let them come calling until his elder, ill-tempered daughter Katherine is married. The reader is to assume that meek, mild-mannered, delicate Bianca is wasting away while her much older, aging, brutish sister torments the family with her foul tongue. Katherine seems to hold resentment toward Bianca. Her father favors Bianca over Katherine and keeps them away from eachothers' torment. When gentlemen come calling, Bianca cowers behind her father and Katherine speaks up for herself. "I pray you sir, is it your will to make a stale of me amongst these mates?" (1.1.57-58)

Bianca and Katherine dislike each other feverishly. Katherine torments Bianca with words and physical harm. She binds her hands, pulls her hair then brings her forth to her father and the gentlemen callers. Bianca denies liking any of the visitors and portrays herself an innocent that merely wants to learn and obey her elders. She says, "Sister, content you in my discontent to y...

... middle of paper ...

... past was so quickly forgotten. "Good Hermia, do not be so bitter with me. I evermore did love you Hermia, Did ever keep your counsels, never wronged you " (3. 2. 306 -- 308) Hermia, however, feels hard done by. She feels that Helena has caused her true love to turn against her, and if Helena disappeared, everything would be fine. "Why, get you gone. Who is't that hinders you?" (3. 2. 317) Helena also has the solution of running away, but can't as she foolishly still loves Demetrius. Helena and Hermia's relationship has changed completely, entirely because of the effect of the love potion on Lysander and Demetrius. The friendship shown before the argument contrasts greatly to the hostility afterwards. The change has been for the worse, completely destroying the women's trust in each other, and all because of a fight between two men, caused by a mischievous spirit.

Show More
Related

  • Passion In A Midsummer Night's Dream Essay

    868 Words  | 2 Pages

    Lysander and Demetrius were both deeply in love with Hermia, but suddenly they became slaves for Helena, under the spell of a love potion. This antagonises Helena and she blames it all on Hermia and her cruel joke. She says to Hermia, “The sisters’ vows, the hours that we have spent, when we have chid the hasty-footed time for parting us,-o is all forgotten” (III.II.199-201)? Helena asks her if she has forgotten about their friendship, about the vows they took to be like sisters and never leave each other. This shows that although Hermia may have forgotten their friendship, Helena will always remember because friendship is really important to her.

    Read More

  • Women in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing and Taming of the Shrew

    1905 Words  | 4 Pages

    During the early modern period, despite Queen Elizabeth’s powerful rule in the mid-sixteenth century, women in England had very few social, economic, and legal rights. According to the British system of coverture, a married man and wife became one person under the law, thus, “all the legal rights and responsibilities a woman had when she was single transferred to her husband upon marriage” (McBride-Stetson 189). Additionally, once married, the entirety of a woman’s property and wages came under the husband’s control; thus, in essence, women became the responsibility and property of their husbands (McBride-Stetson 189). Shakespeare, through his writings, illustrates the early modern period’s obsession with maintaining the legal subordination of women through marriage. Shakespeare’s leading lady in The Taming of the Shrew severely contrasts her obedient and demure sister and, in doing so, transcends the gender roles appropriated to her and, thus, must be tamed. In contrast, Much Ado About Nothing’s Hero plays the role of the ideal early modern woman until the nature of her chastity comes into question. Despite the fundamental differences between the characters of these two women, the financial and object-based language used to describe women as well as the institution of marriage in The Taming of the Shrew and Much Ado About Nothing demonstrate the early modern period’s view of women as pieces of property.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Katherine In The Taming Of The Shrew

    864 Words  | 2 Pages

    A shrew, by definition, is a bad-tempered, vile woman. This definition describes Katherine in William Shakespeare’s play, The Taming of the Shrew. In Act I of the play, Katherine is seen as an Unquiet Woman, or someone who is extremely unpleasant, uncontrollable, and overall vile (Breton 28). Katherine is also the elder sister of Bianca, a beautiful, innocent young lady whom men find attractive. In Act I, Bianca is characterized as A Virgin, or a woman with divine innocence, and lacking no good thing (Breton 28). There is very much contrast between Bianca and Katherine. Bianca is pursued by countless men, whereas few men dare to encounter Katherine. Throughout the story, Katherine and Bianca undergo somewhat surprising changes as they flourish into new identities.

    Read More

  • Katherine and Bianca of The Taming of the Shrew

    1386 Words  | 3 Pages

    Katherine and Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew. & nbsp; The Taming of the Shrew brings out the comedic side of Shakespeare. where irony and puns carry the play throughout.  In my paper, I will. concentrate on the irony of the play, the introduction of the two. sisters.  These two sisters begin off with the elder, Katherine, viewed as. a shrew, and Bianca as the angelic younger of the two.  However, as the play proceeds, we begin to see the true sides of the two sisters and their roles totally turn around.  I will try to analyze the method in which Shakespeare introduces the two sisters and how he hints at their true identity.

    Read More

  • William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew

    3143 Words  | 7 Pages

    Katherina rebuts this whining after their father enters, and ends the scene with her own speech in which she argues that

    Read More

  • Women in William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream

    774 Words  | 2 Pages

    A Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare, is a play that illustrates a good picture of woman’s lack of freedom. It is a story of several couples, among which there is a fairy king, Oberon, who proves his sovereignty over the queen of the fairies, Titania. The two have an ongoing conflict about who should keep the Indian boy, whose mother had recently died. Titania doesn’t want to give him up because she and the boy’s mother knew each other very good; whereas Oberon has no relations to the boy, but really wants him as a servant. Ultimately, Oberon wins the boy by using a trick of his on Titania, revealing her weakness. Shakespeare uses Oberon to show this power of man over woman and to expose woman’s unheard, meaningless, and feeble opinions through Titania. In several scenes throughout the play, the female character, Titania, struggles to do as she desires; however, Oberon takes things under his control and helps to portray the female as weaker than the male.

    Read More

  • Gender Quotes In Taming Of The Shrew

    1013 Words  | 3 Pages

    "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

    Read More

  • Sexism In The Taming Of The Shrew

    605 Words  | 2 Pages

    Shakespeare’s plays were often viewed as controversial because of the content he chose to discuss within them. One example of a controversial play of his would be “Taming of the Shrew”, where many disagree on if his portrayal of the way women were treated was meant to be satire or sexist. Although sexism is a sensitive subject, Shakespeare took a humorous approach on it, making it more of a mockery towards male dominance over women.

    Read More

  • Essay on the Battle of the Sexes in Taming of the Shrew

    1496 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the taming of the shrew, the play focused on two women in particular, Baptista's daughters, Bianca and Katherine. These women lived in this environment that gave men power for all their lives...

    Read More

  • The Taming of the Shrew - Feminism and Shakespeare

    491 Words  | 1 Pages

    Some have made the claim that Shakespeare was pro-feminist and did all he could to illuminate the wrong done to women of his time by creating some overwhelmingly misogynistic characters. This was his way of showing men the errors of their ways and shaming them into showing women more respect.  This is an interesting hypothesis for a number of reasons.  First of all, there are no signs that it worked, if Shakespeare did indeed intend to reform men.  Could the Bard, supposing that he was trying to shame men into changing, influence men in this manner?  Can we blame him if he failed?  Secondly, and by far more interesting to me, is that, in some cases, feminists seem to be more interested in martyring the Bard than in promoting feminist agendas What proof do we have that Shakespeare was really that enlightened?

    Read More

  • Sexism in The Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare

    735 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sexism is an ever changing concept in today’s world. Every day the concept morphs a little bit, changing the entire definition of what is sexist and what is not. In The Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare, the male characters lie to and abuse their women in order to have the women marry them. Lucentio come to Padua to study, but when he sees a beautiful girl, he pretends to be a teacher in order to marry Bianca. Petruchio on the other hand forces a woman to marry him and then trains her to follow his every command. Although the The Taming of the Shrew is frequently regarded as a particularly sexist play, it is not sexist and demeaning towards women.

    Read More

  • The Relationship Dynamics Of A Midsummer Night's Dream

    1353 Words  | 3 Pages

    The relationship between Demetrius and Hermia is problematic, in that Demetrius is seeking the affections of Hermia, while she is in love with Lysander. However, Hermia’s father approves of Demetrius and tries to force her to marry him, but Hermia refuses because of her love for Lysander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 1.1.22-82). Lysander points out the flaw in the situation through this comment, “You have her father 's love, Demetrius –/Let me have Hermia 's. Do you marry him,” (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 1.1.93-94). The second flawed relationship is between Lysander and Helena, as a result of an enchantment put on Lysander that made him fall in love with Helena. Helena does not want the affections of Lysander, but rather the love of Demetrius, and believes that Lysander is taunting her. In addition, this relationship creates tensions because Hermia is in love with Lysander (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 2.2.109-140). Both relationships are not desirable due to a lack of mutual admiration and the creation of non-peaceful and unsatisfying

    Read More

  • Gender Roles In The Taming Of The Shrew?

    1613 Words  | 4 Pages

    When someone is a female their first thought should not be weak or nurturing, just as when someone is male their first though shouldn’t always be powerful. Unfortunately it has becomes so ingrained in societies mentality that this is the way that things work. The Taming of the Shrew is a past writing piece that expands on a mentality that is modern. The male gender cannot be put into this same constraint. Petruchio is the epitome of what society would describe a male as. He thinks he is in charge and always the superior to women. He expects Katherine to always do what he tells her to do, because he believes that is her duty as his wife. Moreover he should not be expected to do that for her. Furthermore, Bianca is what many would describe as the perfect woman. She is nurturing and she does not speak out against what she is told. When she does speak she always speaks like a lady. She exists merely for decoration in the home and to serve her husband. Katherine is the inconsistency in this stereotype on femininity. Her purpose in the novel originally is to rebel against this biased thought on female gender roles. Katherine is not afraid to speak out against the things that she is told to do. If she disagrees with something she will act on it and she is just as strong as the men in the novel; which is why many of the men actually fear her. Katherine is not submissive and does not believe that the only reason that she exists is to serve a husband. Katherine does not want to be just the damsel in distress, she wants to be in charge. At the end of the novel there is a switch in the personalities of Katherine and Bianca. This alteration provides the purpose of showing that gender is not something that someone can be confined in just because they were born a female. A woman can have many different traits and still be feminine. It is impossible to put femininity in a box because there are no real qualities for what

    Read More

  • A Midsummer Nights Dream - Hermia And Helenas Relationship

    905 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hermia and Helena's relationship has changed greatly after the intervention of Puck with the love potion. Once best friends, they have become each others enemies, and all for the love of Lysander and Demetrius.

    Read More

  • Women Characters in Midsummers Night's Dream by William Shakespeare

    886 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Williams Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," many of the play's female characters have strong similarities and differences among one another. Although many of the main female characters in the play come from dissimilar backgrounds, their similarities are brought together by common problems associated with society and love. Of the four main female characters, Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia, both Hippolyta and Titania are royalty while Helena and Hermia are commoners. However, a common theme associated with Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia, regardless of their social caste, is their similarities and differences in dealing with love in a patriarchal society. Nevertheless, the patriarchal society in which Hippolyta, Titania, Helena, and Hermia live in struggles to hinder the feelings and attitudes which provide them with a distinct conception for love in a male dominated society.

    Read More

More about Female Relationships in Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew and A Midsummer Night's Dream

Open Document