The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare

821 Words2 Pages

Petruchio openly woos his bride to be Kate; however, the other three suitors for Bianca take a different approach. The three suitors, Lucentio, Gremio, and Hortensio, all secretly try to woo Bianca, but the strategies and schemes they make are all very different. Petruchio seems manlier for wooing Kate openly; however, the cleverest of the three suitors appear to be Lucentio.
Petruchio agrees to marry Kate, however only because he wants to have a good time and a rich wife. Petruchio seems manly because he openly courts Kate and asks her to kiss him and to celebrate their engagement. Petruchio saying sweet words to Kate such as, “is this not well? Come, my sweet Kate. / Better once than never, for never too late” (V.i.130–131). Petruchio is brave enough to tell Kate’s father Baptista that he and Kate are in love and wed as soon as possible. Petruchio’s way of wooing a woman is definitely manlier than the three suitors woo Bianca for her hand. Petruchio also does not take no for an answer from Kate; and, when she rejects him; he still acts as if she loves him. When Kate hits him and insults Petruchio, he only responds with courteous responses and compliments. Petruchio does not give up easily on Kate saying, “Alas, good Kate, I will not burden thee! For, knowing thee to be but young and light” (II.i.1050). A real man only compliments a shrew. The way that Petruchio shows his feelings for Kate and willingly takes all her shrewish behavior without complaint is the behavior of a true man. He also shows his anger after he marries Kate by starving her and training her to obey his command. His aggressive actions show off his manly side, but show off his beastly side, as well. Petruchio’s boldness and manly nature wins Kate over, and s...

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...way that Hortensio tries to win Bianca’s heart by singing to her to woo her into marrying her is overdone and cliché. Hortensio is clever for courting her with music, but not as clever as Lucentio who courts her with words of love and romance. Gremio is really does not stand a chance because of his age and lack of money. Gremio also helps Lucentio without knowledge of it because he hired Lucentio to be Bianca’s schoolmaster giving him the chance to woo Bianca. Lucentio is the cleverest of the three suitors because he is able to trick Gremio and marries her secretly. Lucentio is the cleverest of the suitors because he elopes with Bianca capturing her and cuts off the opportunity for the other suitors to woo her making her all his. Petruchio is the manliest of the suitors because he openly woos Kate and Lucentio the cleverest because his plan works without fail.

The Taming of the Shrew EssayIn William Shakespeare’s play The Taming of the Shrew, Petruchio acts as a master tamer by depriving Katherine of her...
720 Words | 2 Pages
Petruchio deprives Kate of all her fundamental needs and essentials to prove he is going to be a master tamer to her. As soon as they get to Petruchio’s house and sit down for dinner, Petruchio refuses to eat the meal because he verbally expresses it is burnt and forbids Kate to eat the meal as well saying they will fast. Exhibiting his authority as a master tamer, Petruchio stops Kate from eating the meal to weaken her so she cannot resist him. Deprived of sleep, Kate angrily states, “But I, who have never known how to beg and never had to beg, am starved for food, dizzy with lack of sleep, kept awake with curses and fed with brawlings”(4.3.6). Petruchio believes that depriving Kate of her sleep along with food will make her unable to go against what he asks for and says. Getting ready for Bianca’s wedding, Petruchio takes on his role as a master tamer and shows Kate a new dress and hat he has had made for her but he changes his mind. He argues with Kate stating that if she were an elegant and graceful woman she could have the dress and hat, however she is not, therefore she does not deserve them. Depriving Kate of all her necessities, Petruchio believes he is acting as the best master tamer possible.
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782 Words | 2 Pages
find a wife. "I come to wives it wealthy in Padua; If wealthy, then happily in
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700 Words | 2 Pages
“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...
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William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew
1161 Words | 3 Pages
Kate’s first reaction to Petruchio, her “mad wooer”, is self-pity, and even her father feels that his treatment of her would “vex a saint”. He takes her away from the home she is used to, with servants and maids to wait on her hand and foot, to the country. There she is away from the luxurious town life and is cold, hungry and tired. She somewhat learns to watch her temper and obey Petruchio so that he will feed her so she can survive peacefully rather than miserably. I believe that his method of taming her is not cruel yet very effective. He shows her that she can get much farther and live life a lot happier if she is nice and “entreats” him rather than fighting him.
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The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
972 Words | 2 Pages
"That is, not to bestow my youngest daughter Before I have a husband for the elder. " (Lines 50 and 51) Here we have an example of how the father is dictating the future of his daughter's in a way that would not happen in today’s Western society. In view of the strict rules surrounding love and marriage, such as formal courtship and chaperoning, Lucentio has to pretend to be a schoolteacher in order to get close to Bianca with whom he has fallen in love. "You will be schoolmaster, And undertake the teaching of the maid- That's your device." (Act 1 Scene 1, lines 193-195) Today it is unlikely that a young man would need to go to these lengths in order to woo a girl.
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683 Words | 2 Pages
Petruchio came to Padua. Petruchio could tame Katherine for the right amount of mazuma. Before Petruchio's advent, Katherine, the terrible, feral shrew, caused quandaries with everyone. All that kenned her execrated her. She felt very jealous of her pulchritudinous sister Bianca, because of her suitors and her resplendency. Katherine endeavors to commence fights with Bianca all of the time. She even hit Bianca. No one wanted to espouse Katherine until Petruchio arrives in Padua to find a wife. "I come to wives it affluent in Padua; if affluent, then ecstatically in Padua" (ShakespeareIii76-77). He and one of Bianca's suitors, Luciento had a conversation. As a jape, Luciento mentioned to Petruchio espouse Katherine. Petruchio thought of the profit and thought it could be great. "Petruchio can have no illusions about the fabled shrew, Katherine, for others are expeditious to tell him quite frankly what to expect"(Vaughn27). Petruchio and Katherine's father meet and decide that Petruchio will get twenty-thousand crowns if he weds Katherine. Petruchio and Katherine meet, but they do not start off on the best of terms. But Petruchio decides they should...
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3143 Words | 7 Pages
Over the past 400 or so years since Shakespeare wrote _The Taming of the Shrew_, many writers, painters, musicians and directors have adapted and reformed this play of control and subjugation into timeless pieces of art. In _10 Things I Hate About You_ and Kiss Me Kate from two very different times in the twentieth century, and paintings of Katherina and Bianca from the late nineteenth century, the creators of these adaptations have chosen to focus on the role of the two main female characters in the play. The ideas surrounding these women have changed through the years, from Katherina and Bianca simply being young women who deviated from the norm of Shakespeare’s time to women who embody feminist ideals and stereotypes of the more modern world.
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769 Words | 2 Pages
Shakespeare, sets up a teaching lesson, helping us to see the mistakes of our own judgment. When Baptista announces that Kate must marry before Bianca may take suitors, Gremio describes Kate by saying "She's too rough for me" (1.1.55). Later in the scene, Gremio reiterates his dislike for Kate, claiming she is a "fiend of hell" (88) and offering that "though her father may be very rich, any man is so very a fool to be married to hell" (124–126). He finishes by saying that to marry Kate is worse than to "take her dowry with this condition: to be whipped at the high cross every morning" (132–134). Hortensio, too, is quick to add to the situation, calling Kate a devil (66) and claiming that she is not likely to get a husband unless she is "of gentler, milder mold" (60).
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760 Words | 2 Pages
...is not a normal relationship. Katherine doesn't actually love Petruchio and neither does Petruchio. Petruchio only married Kate for the money and because he wants a challenge, to try to tame Katherine. Their relationship is only for the money, and to prove that Kate can change from being a shrew.
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2988 Words | 6 Pages
The four characters that learn the art of love are Beatrice, Benedick, Claudio and Hero. From the first viewing/reading of the play, Claudio and Hero seem to be the main focus. However, looking deeper into the entire play, and/or if you read any scholarship on Much Ado About Nothing, the true fascinating plotline involves Beatrice and Benedick.
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The least involved woman in Othello is Bianca[2]. Her relationship with Cassio does not appear to be full of commitment.
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735 Words | 2 Pages
...st play, it is not sexist and demeaning towards women. Petruchio, Hortensio, and Lucentio may have bet on their wives compliance in some eyes, but after further analysis, they were actually betting on the trust between the couple. The reader must also take into account the time period the play was written in which was the 16th century, where women were usually not even allowed to go to school to be educated, and Bianca was having private tutors for her education. Kate was changed by Petruchio’s “taming” from the beginning to the end of the play, but at the end of the novel when Kate was called upon and made her speech, she was the happiest she had been in the entire story. There are however some sexist elements in the story, but just because there are certain characteristics of sexism in a play does not mean the play in itself is sexist and demeaning towards women.
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1554 Words | 4 Pages
By charming her with kind words, Petruchio is able to manipulate Katherine into marriage and woo her, but in an unaccustomed way, as Kate is not used to men being so nice and direct with her. Petruchio is able to achieve this end by manipulating Katherine’s words. He twists what Kate says and makes it seem as if she is coming on to him sexually, while in reality he is the one implying the sexual innuendo. This manipulation can be seen when they have an argument about whether or not the wasp carries his sting on his tail or tongue, and Petruchio says “What, with my tongue in your tail? Nay, come again, good Kate. I am a gentleman—” (II, 1; 230-231). By contorting the words he ...
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849 Words | 2 Pages
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1137 Words | 3 Pages
Contrary to the stereotypical woman of the Victorian culture, both female characters Gwendolen and Cecily become instigators of love, from influencing the proposal to composing their own love letters from their lovers. Gwendolen affirms her forwardness in romantic matters when she exclaims to Jack who is hesitant about proposing, “I am afraid you have had very little experience in how to propose” (Powell, 132). Not only do the ladies have a skewed view of marriage and their responsibilities within that relationship, but the men do as well. Algernon says of proposals, “I really don’t see anything romantic in proposing. It is very romantic to be in love. But there is nothing romantic about a definite proposal. Why, one may be accepted” (Ericksen, 150). He clearly has a skewed view of marriage. When it comes to Lady Bracknell, her view of marriage is primarily concerned with money and sometimes concerned with social respectability. When questioning Jack about the potential of marrying Gwendolen, she focuses on typically irrelevant characteristics. Lady Bracknell says of Jack’s confession to his tendency to smoke, “I am glad to hear it. A man should always have an occupation of some kind” (Greenblat, 539-540). She goes on to take interest in such things as his knowledge and education, finances, and family
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The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare

The Taming of the Shrew EssayIn William Shakespeare’s play The Taming of the Shrew, Petruchio acts as a master tamer by depriving Katherine of her...

The Taming of the Shrew Katherine

Petruchio Sexism Analysis

William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew