...Katherina – Shrew or Not So Shrew? According to Merriam-Webster (n.d.), a shrew can be defined as an unpleasant, bad-tempered woman. From the moment we are introduced to Katherina in Act I, Scene I, we see that she lives up to her reputation as a shrew through her exchange of words with her father when two suitors, Gremio and Hortensio, come to call upon Bianca for their wife. Baptista tells the two gentlemen not to look at his youngest daughter, before he has a husband for his elder daughter. He asks the gentlemen if either of them love Katherina. Gremio states “To cart her rather. She’s too rough for me.” (Shakespeare, trans. 2009, 1.1.55-56). Katherina sharply responds to her father: “I pray you, sir, it is your will to make a stale of me amongst these mates?” (Shakespeare, trans. 2009, 1.1.57-58). Hortensio responds by stating; “Mates, maid? How mean you that? No mates for you unless you were of gentler, milder mold.” (Shakespeare, trans. 2009, 1.1.59-60). Kate quickly responds to his harsh criticism by stating “I’faith sir, you shall never need to fear; iwis it is not halfway to her heart. But if it were, doubt not her care should be to comb your noddle with a three-legged stool and paint your face, and use you like a fool.” (Shakespeare, trans. 2009, 1.1.60-65), and in the movie throws a stool down at him. This is our first indication that Katherina is not the usual woman of this time period. As the play and movie progresses, we see that Katherina is a very...
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...Skyler Conklin Dr. Boecherer 04/09/15 The Taming of the Shrew The concept of someone telling you are something that you are not is one thing and the chances of you believing them right away are not very high. But if that person repeatedly tells you enough times that you are one thing, you will begin question yourself and eventually believe that it is reality. The idea of appearance in The Taming of the Shrew is performed with the same idea. Focusing on the essence of appearance, Shakespeare uses the story of Christopher Sly’s taming and its correlatives, and Kate’s taming to show that appearance becomes reality. Eventually, the characters in The Taming of the Shrew obscure the lines between reality and illusion, making them the same. In the beginning of the play, the induction with Christopher Sly shows the phenomenon of illusion becoming reality with the help of appearance. A rich lord kidnaps Sly, a drunken beggar, and decided to play a trick on him. “Sirs, I will practice on this drunken man. What think you, if he were conveyed to bed, Wrapped in sweet clothes, rings put upon his fingers, A most delicious banquet by his bed, And brave attendants near him when he wakes, Would not the beggar then forget himself?”(Ind.1.36-41). When Sly awakens in an unfamiliar setting, he begins to question the truth of his circumstance, but after a while, Sly he begins to accept the illusion that he is the lord he appears to be. “Upon my life, I am a lord indeed, And not a tinker...
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...Smith is agreeable because of the reason that when authors are writing their novels they always have a deeper and more significant meaning added to it to provide a lasting thought or idea that could be impactful to someones life in the future. Two works of literature that support this quote by Logan Pearsall Smith is The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare and “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker. Both works of literature use the literary element of theme in their stories that help support the quote by Smith. In the play The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare, he uses the literary element of theme to help support the quote. One theme in particular that Shakespeare uses in his play is the transformation of characters throughout the story. For example, the quote from act five, scene two, “Now, fair befal thee, good Petruchio! The wager thou hast won; and I will add Unto their losses twenty thousand crowns; Another dowry to another daughter, For she is changed, as she had never been” by Babtista clearly illustrates how the theme of disguises is being used by the playwriter. Baptista describes Kate's outward transformation from shrew to ideal wife as though the change in his daughter's behavior is so dramatic that she is unrecognizable. We are reminded of the fact that Baptista never really knew his daughter, which doesn’t place him in a position to judge her change of attitude and personality. His inability to look beyond appearances leaves him open...
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...The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy play that was written by William Shakespeare in the fifteen hundreds. The play was written by a man’s perspective in a stereotypical way that would make any women that spoke their mind seem immoral. Katherine Mineola is the main character in the play, and she is a shrew because of her sharp words. Katherine is intelligent and is not afraid to express her thoughts and feelings. Although, Katherine is seen as a shrew in the play it also shows Kate’s perspective of men and she demonstrates to be very intelligent. Katherine does not fit the role status of an upper middle class women in the fifteenth century that is husband pleasing. Unlike, her sister Bianca she proves to stand up for what she feels is wrong...
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...comedy flows from an old society to the green world in response to a recognizable central conflict created by the power holding characters of the play. Once in the green world, there is a lack of societal rules and the conflict can resolve leading to the formation of a new society, indicated by some kind of party or festival (Frye 163). Frye further explains that this structural component of comedy is the origin of comedic form. At first William Shakespeare’s play, The Taming of the Shrew seems to have a clear message that the green world theory does not define the structure of the play and that Petruchio tames Katherine. While this could be an interpretation of the play, I find it unlikely that this is the case. The analysis of the film, 10 Things I Hate About You, opens the door visually to see the green world theory in action, which allows the reader to appreciate The Taming of the Shrew as a comedy as well as reinterpret its conclusion. The green world theory is the structural backbone of The Taming of the Shrew, and commands that Katherine and Petruchio change over the course of the play and ultimately both are tamed. The green world theory can be seen in 10 Things by analyzing Frye’s key elements of comedy, such as form, character type, and repetition. The movie opens in an old society where Kat and Bianca’s father, who plays the role of the senex (as Frye suggests, a character in charge of the plays society) and strictly controls the environment in a way that is not fitting...
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...BBC adaptation of ‘Taming of the Shrew’ Sally Wainwright’s updated adaptation of this classic Shakespeare play was ingeniously done from beginning to end, reflecting the significant social change brought about by a new surge of feminism. Although it has been significantly modernised to assimilate the modern audience of the twenty-first century, it still keeps the authenticity of the original play so Shakespeare lovers are able to enjoy it as well as a new, younger generation. When adapting classic plays to appeal to a modern audience, things can quite often go wrong and come across as clichéd, however in the ‘Taming of the Shrew’ it was expertly done. Wainwright managed to capture the true spirit of Shakespeare’s original play effortlessly, including plenty of dramatic scenes throughout leaving the audience feeling sufficiently satisfied. One scene in particular which stood out for me was the honeymoon scene where Kate is stranded with Petruchio in a secluded villa right out in the countryside. The mix of sexual tension between Kate and Petruchio plus the frustration and anger creates a very heated atmosphere as well as a strong and powerful scene as the audience sees Kate’s façade beginning to falter as her truer feelings towards Petruchio start to show. The dark lighting and orange and red tones help aid this scene, enhancing the passion between the two and enabling the audience to feel the sexual desire. Widely loved actress Shirley Henderson, known to many as Moaning...
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...The main character of the play's name is kathrine. Katherine is said to the the ‘shrew’ in the title of the play ‘The Taming of the Shrew’. Shakespeare defines a shrew as a woman who is very outspoken, and in that time period women were not allowed to be outspoken. When relating to a woman being called a shrew is viewed as negative. If you were called a shrew people looked down upon you. ‘Shrews’ were usually extremely open and public when expressing what or how they felt, they said anything they wanted to. It was almost unheard of for a woman to be outspoken especially in this time era. Renaissance society highly disapproved of women who were like that. During that time only men were allowed to express what they felt, to say anything they wanted, to be expressive. In ‘The Taming of the Shrew’, the main character Katherine, is an especially terrible shrew. The words she used were harsh and degrading, and her actions were violent. Katherine was a highly abusive woman. Nobody liked her. No one approved of her being a woman and being outspoken and rude. The problem of the play was finding someone to ‘tame’ her, except nobody wanted to. Nobody wanted to go near her or deal with her that is until...
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...history depending on when it is written and leafing through pages of even a fictional story gives us ripe and supple knowledge of how maybe life would be at that given time. William Shakespeare, an author most high schoolers dread and professors squeal upon, allows us a glimpse of what life would be like in his time through his numerous plays. In a specific comedy, The Taming of the Shrew, he paints out a portrait of what love, marriage and the treatment of women were like in the Elizabethan period. There have been thousands of readings of this play, reproductions, analyzations and even controversy...
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...Equality can be defined as the state of being equal, especially in status, rights, and opportunities. There is much in literature, film, and in reality that tells us equality is not an easy opportunity to be given to someone or something. Katharina, the protagonist in the play The Taming of The Shrew, was not treated fairly and was controlled by her husband Petruchio. Even back in the days, when slavery was a thing, slaves were denied access to freedom, did not have much opportunities, and did not have their own rights. My personal experience is yet another example of not being treated fairly. I was picked on based upon my race and skin colour. Despite best efforts, equality can be difficult to achieve. In the Shakespearean play, ‘The Taming of The...
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...The Biggest Shrew of All Little did people know, William Shakespeare was a mastermind of his time. A man that has created countless works of literature that are still being read, but not given nearly enough credit they deserve. Shakespeare’s plays have gone down in history along side him. We recognize Shakespeare’s work and appreciate it for something not only educational but inspiring. One of Shakespeare’s plays that has been reenacted on multiple occasions, and is amazing to read in the comedy sense: The Taming of the Shrew. “The Shrew,” being the whole purpose of the play. A shrew is a simple yet strong term that in this play, describes three foolish people: Katherina, Bianca, and Petruchio. Katherina, daughter of Baptista Minola, is...
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...What is a shrew? A shrew is a bad tempered or aggressively assertive woman. An example of a shrew is Kate, from William Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew. This intriguing play leans towards the idea that men should control and overpower their wives. Petruchio expressed his like for her and his desire to meet her by saying “Now, by the world, it is a lusty wench. I love her ten times more than e’er I did. Oh, how I long to have some chat with her” (Shakespeare 88). However, when women are taught to obey men, it restricts them. Men controlling their wives often leads to marital problems and complications. If you were to control everybody, you would most likely feel like you have the upperhand, and you’d abuse the power you have, which is what...
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...A real depiction of life is what William Shakespeare dimonstartated in the Taming of the Shrew. This book shows a women with her guard up and the fight a guy has to go through to truly become one with her. To gain access to a barricaded heart there are many methods tried some normal and many questionable. Life isn’t perfect and there will be ups and downs, it's all about finding the balance between independence and influence. Independence is good for a person to a point. The point in which it doesn’t become such a positive thing is when emotions are blocked thus preventing people from being able to grow close. This is the point that Kate has reached “Of all thy suitors, here I charge thee, tell whom thou lovest best: see thou dissemble not.” (Shakespeare 28). Kate was upset with the fact that her sister was the center of attention. Living in the shadow of her younger sister had taken a toll on her self-esteem but this shows that she isn’t totally blocked up. She wants to keep her sister out of trouble and help her but it still pains her. A life of small but tragic events caused her walls to be build, a wall put up as protection are tough to break down for anyone....
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...Victor Vernick Mr. Kupersmith 1st Period Sunday 18, March 2018 Taming of the Shrew Essay Bianca is a worse person than Kate because she manipulates people without them even knowing it and, unlike Kate, isn’t honest about her feelings and thoughts. For example, Bianca’s teachers, Hortensio and Luciento, are competing for her attention. She realizes that they both want her and breaks the ice by saying, “Why, gentleman, you do me double wrong. To strive for that which reseth in my choice. I am no breeding scholar in the schools: I’ll not be tied to hours nor’ pointed times. But learn my lessons as I please myself” (iii.i.16-20). This verbatim evidence shows that Bianca is being manipulative because she sees that Hortensio and Luciento are interested...
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...Femininity and Masculinity views have changed rapidly over time. The Taming of the Shrew is a 1967 film directed by Franco Zeffirelli. It is based of a play by William Shakespeare. 10 Things I Hate About You, is a 1999 comedy directed by Gil Junger. Back in the Elizabethan time, males were the Rough and Tough workers and the females were the ones who stayed at home and were considered weak. According to Dictionary.com Mysogyny is the dislike or hatred of women. I felt like these films represent misogyny in very different ways but yet also very similar. Masculinity and Femininity are very important themes in both movies. I thought that The Taming of the Shrew contained more masculinity than 10 things. In both films Femininity is demonstrated...
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...Within William Shakespeare’s play “The Taming of the Shrew”, the usage of different comedic devices provided the plot to have an aloof and rolling feel to it . Comedic devices surrounded many of the characters, and a variety of different things in which occured. They often push the plot forward, and keep it rolling while also giving heavy topics a light corner. In the text of “The Taming of the Shrew”, comedic devices are found littered throughout. One comedic device used is mistaken identity. Petruchio and Lucentio end up taking up different identities to trick Kate and Bianca into marrying them. Tricking someone into marriage is clearly a very dark and twisted subject since it traps the two women in an intimate and strong arrangement to the...
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