Induction “Am I a lord? and have I such a lady? Or do I dream? or have I dream’d til now? I do not sleep: I see, I hear, I speak; I smell sweet savours and I feel soft things: Upon my life, I am a lord indeed, And not a tinker nor Christophero Sly. Well, bring our lady hither to our slight; And once again, a pot o’ the smallest ale.”
In this quote, Sly has finally accepted that he is a lord and was in a deep sleep or coma for fifteen years. Shakespeare uses repetition, alliteration, and the change in writing style to show how the Lord tricked Sly. He repeats the word “I” in 4 questions as Sly is questioning himself and his sanity. This repetition adds a sense of flow in the beginning of this passage to show how Sly questions himself to confirm this “sleep”. Shakespeare also repeats several different senses, in “I see, I hear, I speak”, to show again how Sly completely accepts his insanity. He also uses alliteration in “smell sweet savours” which could show how Sly is coming to his senses about being a lord. To emphasize the change in opinion, Shakespeare changes the Induction from free verse writing style to blank verse, or iambic pentameter. He does this on purpose to show how Sly’s optimism is gone and the Lord’s “players” have completely changed his mind. Funny enough, Sly changes his opinion once he learns he has a wife. This shows a motif of the questioning of gender roles, which is also a motif which will appear later in the actual story. This also is another motif of the truthfulness of marriage and if the vows between the couple is real or just for their benefit.
“LORD 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?
[THIRD] HUNTSMAN Believe me, lord, I think he cannot choose” (Shakespeare, lines 37-44).
In this passage, the underlying idea is that the way a person perceives themself and the way they behave is determined by the their surroundings, including how they’re treated by others. Christopher Sly, a drunken beggar, catches the eye of a lord, who is feeling just a bit bored with his lavish life. For entertainment, the lord proposes that they spruce up the drunkard and attempt to convince him that he had gone mad, blinded into thinking he had been a drunk through his lifetime. The lord questions the idea that who you are is determined by your environment: “Wrapped in sweet clothes … / Would not the beggar then forget himself?”(39). Compare the style of lives between someone who lives in a mansion, and someone who lives in a ghetto– how are they treated differently? I would assume the person in the ghetto would use colloquial language, and be treated as someone of no importance in the world. Contrast that with someone of high class, and their way of speaking changes, their reputation changes, and they simply are treated with more respect. Now, what if those two people changed places? Would they then learn to speak the language of the area, to accept their roles in society? This is the idea explored by the lord and huntsman. In fact, Christopher Sly does adapt to his environment, as any animal does. This is a fact of life. Sly, when treated as a lord, changes his language and syntax, moving to free verse (as a noble) instead of prose as a commoner would speak.
LORD “Hence comes it that your kindred shuns your house, As beaten hence by your strange lunacy. O noble lord, bethink thee of thy birth, Call home thy ancient thoughts from banishment, And banish hence these abject lowly dreams. Look how thy servants do attend on thee, Each in his office ready at thy beck. Wilt thou have music? Hark! Apollo plays, Music And twenty cagèd nightingales do sing: Or wilt thou sleep? We’ll have thee to a couch Softer and sweeter than the lustful bed On purpose trimmed up for Semiramis. Say thou wilt walk, we will bestrew the ground. Or wilt thou ride? Thy horses shall be trapped, Their harness studded all with gold and pearl. Dost thou love hawking? Thou hast hawks will soar Above the morning lark. Or wilt thou hunt? Thy hounds shall make the welkin answer them And fetch shrill echoes from the hollow earth.”
The induction to this play is telling a story of a lord and his men who are playing a trick on a drunken beggar they found sleeping on the streets named Sly. The lord is trying to convince Sly that he is a rich, lord and that Sly has been in a coma and that’s why he is unable to remember his past. The lord is talking to Sly about his mental state and how it is preventing him from enjoying all the things he used to love. In the first stanza the lord is telling Sly that his family has stopped coming to visit because Sly had frightened them away due to his mental illness. The lord then says, “O noble lord, bethink thee of thy birth, Call home thy ancient thoughts from banishment, And banish hence these abject lowly dreams” (Lines 15-17). Here, The lord is asking Sly to try and remember his past and to try and regain his mental health. The lord then list many riches Sly has waiting for him, riches that Sly has been avoiding for so long due to his “illness”. Shakespeare talks about Apollo the God of music, poetry, art, etc. and tells Apollo to play his music for Sly. He then goes on to talk about nightingales a very popular bird to poets during Shakespeare's era, poets looked at nightingales not only as a poet themselves but as a “master of a superior art that could inspire the human poet”. Nightingales often symbolize beauty and freedom from the world's troubles. He then talks about the bed of lustful Semiramis. Semiramis was an Assyrian queen famous for her active sex life. Shakespeare uses both beautiful, light symbols like nightingales and Apollo’s music in this passage and also uses dark symbols like lust and hunting. These symbols give the idea that riches can be both good and bad and that the brain is complex and twisted and can find pleasure in even the worst things depending on the person.
William Shakespeare uses language, diction, and syntax, to differentiate the social classes of the English Society. In the quotes… “SLY. I’ll pheeze you, in faith. HOST. A pair of stocks you rogue!” (Shakespeare, Induction, Scene 1, Lines 1-2), Shakespeare creates a language/diction barrier, between the two characters. In here Sly clearly has a more aggressive tone, and on top of that even uses words such as pheeze which literally mean beat, and usually only lower classes of society use aggression as a way of gaining what they want. The Hostess a character who seems to above the Sly in the social hierarchy despite being a woman even insults Sly by calling him a rogue. Through this, the tone and mood of the poem is beginning to build a foundation in which Sly could in inferred to as a lowly class citizen who is very aggressive. Later a conversation between Sly and a servant are taking place in scene II of the induction, “SLY. For God’s sake, a pot of small ale. FIRST SERV. Will’t please your lordship to drink a cup of sack?” (SHakespeare, Induction, Scene 2, Lines 1-2). Once again Clearly Sly’s characteristic of society can be observed from the words he uses. Sly uses words such as “For God’s sake”, which uses the Lord's name in vain, and is seen as disrespectful in an Old English society. For Sly however, it does not matter whether he disrespects anyone, because it appears he is already at the bottom of society so, why would he not use these words when he cannot go any lower in society. At this point Sly is even being tricked that he is a Lord, which is probably because of where he is in the social hierarchy(very low). The Servant’s use of words and the order he pleases them seem to better arranged than Sly’s and makes him appear more educated and therefore above Sly in the social hierarchy. Not only that, but the Servant even has to right to join in the fun of tricking sly, because of his higher social status, which is clear when juxtaposing his language with Sly’s.
“SLY Y’ are a baggage: the Slys are no rogues; look in the chronicles; we came in with Richard Conqueror. Therefore paucas pallabris; let the world slide: sessa!” (Shakespeare, lines 3-5).
This line occurs near the start of the play, when a bar host comes out and threatens to get Sly put into the stocks. In response, Sly pretends to be better than he is by proclaiming that his family line came into England with a great ‘conqueror’ and even tosses in some foreign terms. However, these foreign words aren’t pronounced correctly, nor is the man’s name even correct. Instead of Richard Conqueror, in English history there was a man titled William the Conqueror, who became the first Norman king of England. This quote near the very beginning foreshadows the upcoming events of change and pretending to be something one is not. However, while here Sly is forcibly attempting to fabricate a past greater than his current self, later on in the induction he is duped by the Lord and the Lord’s servants that he, Sly, is actually a lord who had been living in a state of illness for the past fifteen years of his life. Also, later on once he has been fooled into believing the lie that he is a lord, Sly’s pattern of speech starts changing to assimilate that of the upper class and the writing style shifts from free verse to iambic pentameter to demonstrate Sly growing into this role that was fabricated for him by the Lord. Yet, this ruse created by the lord can only last for so long, meaning that in the end Sly will still be a tinker as he never was a lord in the first place. This can also foreshadow for later on in the play about how, despite their best efforts of disguise and going against their socially constructed roles, in the end the characters/people still are expected to fulfill that role and no matter the disguise worn or what they pretend to be, they are still the same person underneath/inside.
“Signor Hortensio, ‘twixt such friends as we Few words suffice; and therefore, if thou know One rich enough to be Petruchio’s wife— As wealth is burden of my wooing dance— Be she as foul as was Florentius’ love, As old as Sibyl, and as curst and shrewd As Socrates’ Xanthippe or a worse, She moves me not—or not removes at least Affection’s edge in me, were she as rough As are the swelling Adriatic seas. I come to wive it wealthily in Padua; If wealthily, then happily in Padua.” (I.ii.62-73)
In this passage in Act I of Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare uses allusions and similes to describe Petruchio as he banters on about a woman with money. Petruchio is introduced in the passage as a rich man looking to marry a rich woman, regardless of looks or personality. Shakespeare purposely has several different suitors for both girls with different outlooks on marriage, which is one of the main motifs of the story. Petruchio is looks at marriage as an “economic activity” or almost like his wife is an investment. This idea is emphasized in this passage when he says several similes relating to real life allusions. For example, Shakespeare writes, “Be she as foul as was Florentius’ love” (66). Florentius was a knight who sought to marry an old hag to solve a riddle, just like Petruchio is looking to marry Katharina. Both of these people are accepting the “challenge” of marrying someone so imperfect that it could be considered a challenge. Petruchio continues to describe that he doesn’t care what a girl looks like, saying, “As old as Sibyl, and as curst and shrewd/As Socrates’ Xanthippe” (67-68). Shakespeare uses the allusion to Sibyl, who gave Apollo many years of life, to describe truly how old a lady could be, but if she has money, Petruchio is attracted to her. The last two lines of the passage really sums up what his real intention is in Padua, which is “to wive it wealthily in Padua;/If wealthily, then happily in Padua” (72-73) He compares “wealth” to “happiness”, again emphasizing the fact that he just wants to marry a girl for her money.
I agree completely with your analysis however I had a different reaction to this passage the first thing that jumped out to me when I read this passage was how materialistic Petruchio was for only wanting a girl for her money and how open he was about it. This speech exemplifies Petruchio’s arrogant, powerful manner of speaking. He is very honest about his materialism and selfishness, and he also straightforwardly acknowledges the economic aspect of marriage unlike anyone else so far in this play.
“Lucento: Tranio, since for the greatest desire I had To see fair Padua, nursery of arts, I am arrived for fruitful Lombardy, The pleasant garden of great Italy” (I.i.1-24).
“Tranio: Nay then, ‘t is time to stir him from his trance. I pray, awake, sir: if you love the maid, Bend thoughts and wits to achieve her. Thus it stands: Her elder sister is so curst and shrewd… And therefore has he closely mew’d her p Because she will not be annoy’d with suitors” (I.i. 177-184)
William Shakespeare uses different word choice, syntax, and jargon per each different character in the novel. Two contrasting characters in the novel are Tranio and Lucento. Lucento is portrayed as a proper, educated, and rich son of Vincentio, and Tranio is one of his two servants. Comparing these two large portions of text, Shakespeare portrayed each character to show/act like their social class. For example, since Lucento is well-educated, it is rare that he ever speaks improperly combining words together or leaving out syllables. He emphasizes each word the way one is “suppose to” such as “I am arrived” and “It shall become”. Little to never does Lucento mumble his speech like Tranio. Contradicting to Lucento, Tranio combines/cuts off syllables very often. His speech patterns consist of many contracted words such as “’t”, “mew’d”, and “annoy’d”. This shows that Tranio is not educated (especially not at a university level like Lucento). Similarly, this connects to present day where teens use slang and say “wanna”, “gotta”, etc in casual conversations without being aware of it. Additionally, the amount said by each character portrays their personality. Tranio tends to speak with short, few sentence lines, where as Lucento speaks generally with monologues. This supports that Tranio’s job is to listen and obey, where Lucento is in charge of giving orders.
That's interesting that Shakespeare uses different manners of speech for his different characters– it creates a whole new depth to the play, although it is only a slight change in language. Although Lucento and Tranio are such different characters of varying classes, it will be fascinating to view how Tranio changes his way of speaking through the play– as he must pretend to be Lucento. This will potentially bring character development, and we can analyze this through his speech.
“TRANIO: I pray, sir, tell me, is it possible That love should of a sudden take such hold? LUCENTIO: O Tranio, till I found it to be true, I never thought it possible or likely. But see, while idly I stood looking on, I found the effect of love in idleness And now in plainness do confess to thee That art to me as secret and as dear As Anna to the Queen of Carthage was, Tranio, I burn, I pine, I perish, Tranio, If I achieve not this young modest girl. Counsel me, Tranio, for I know thou canst. Assist me, Tranio, for I know thou wilt.” (I.i. 117-129)
In this passage Shakespeare uses punctuation, repetition and exaggeration to show Lucentio’s new found love for Bianca. Shakespeare is focusing on a question that is still looked at today, is there such thing as love at first sight? Lucentio answers back saying that he did not believe it to be true until he saw the beautiful Bianca. Lucentio says to Tranio, “Tranio, I burn, I pine, I perish, Tranio, If I achieve not this young modest girl” (Lines 126-127). Shakespeare uses the repetition of “Tranio” to give a serious tone to his words and to make the audience feel like Tranio is the only person in the room as Lucentio pours out his love for the lovely Bianca. Shakespeare also uses the repetition of “I” and comas in between each adjective in these lines to emphasize his emotions and make them more personal and dramatic. The commas give the sentence a certain rhythm that allows the reader, or the actor to speak out the adjectives one by one with a brief pause in between each. The actor usually reads each word with more excitement than the word previous thus giving the words more passion and making the words feel more real and convincing. With all this I also noticed that the same foolish act of falling for a fair maiden at first sight is seen in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Your analysis is great, as you rescribed the syntax pretty well, but I think it would also help if you talked more about the diction of this passage. Perhaps you could talk about how Luciento uses a passionate form of diction where he describes how he feels with words such as "burn" "pine" "perish" if he were to not be able to woo Bianca. While you did mention these specific words, I just thought that explaining it more in depth would help with your overall claim. Despite that suggestion I made, it is overall a good claim with good observation on Shakespear's use of syntax for Lucineto's Dialogue.
William Shakespeare has the character Katharina use vulgar diction, and hyperboles to make her appear as a wicked, disliked character. This is clear when Bianca's suitors speak ill of Katharina, and she retaliates with very threatening language, especially in this passage:
“GRE. To cart her, rather. She’s too rough for me.— There, there, Hortensio, will you any wife? KATH. I pray you, sir, is it your will To make a stale of me amongst these mates? HOR. Mates, maid? How mean you that? No mates for you, Unless you were of gentler, milder mold. KATH. 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. HOR. From all such devils, good Lord, deliver us! GRE. And me too, good Lord!” (I. i. 55-68).
In here, it is clear Katharina’s words prove to be vulgar, because in no society should one person insult another by threatening to harm and humiliate them. Katharina says she has no interest in these men at all, and even if she did, it would be to hurt them. Not only is this vulgar diction as she disrespects potential suitors, but it is a hyperbole as well. This then further exposes her as wicked by making wild claims to humiliate those around her. However she did not get a lot of dialogue in this act, and even if she did, she was portrayed as rude, so as far as the audience knows, Katharina appears ill-mannered. Through her choice of words, and how she expresses what she would like, Katharina is portrayed as a nasty, disliked character.
Shakespeare describes Padua as a virtuous small place full of beauty.. Especially in Lucentio’s description does Padua appear fair and beautiful, because of his tone where words such as “fruitful”, “pleasant”, and “desire” are used. Not only this, but Luciento appears generally happy to be entering Padua. This in turn makes the reader imagine Padua as a flourishing happy little place where only good things happen.
Women are almost portrayed as beings only for marriage in this act. Words such as “woo”, “rough”, and even phrases closely related to “love at first sight” strengthen this theme. Men only wish to woo women in this act and nothing else. All the men ever talk about is just wooing the daughters of Baptista. However, they also describe Katharina as “rough”, but how is it that she is rough when speaking, but they are not when they speak just as rough. Also, building upon this, men fall in love with women upon first sight. This is very clear when Luciento claims he loves Bianca upon first seeing her. This then adds to theme that women are just items that should be delicate and observed so that they may be picked for marriage.
“GREMIO To car her, rather: She’s too rough for me.— There, there, Hortensio, will you any wife?
KATHERINE, [to Baptista] I pray you, sir, is it your will To make a stale of me amongst these mates?
HORTENSIO ‘Mates,’ maid? How mean you that? No mates for you, Unless you were of gentler, milder mold.
KATHERINE 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.
HORTENSIO From such devils, good Lord, deliver us!
GREMIO [aside to Lucentio] Husht, master, here’s some good pastime toward; That wench is stark mad or wonderful forward” (lines 55-70)
In this passage, Shakespeare introduces Katherine, the “shrew,” and uses harsh language to represent her. The suitors, Gremio and Hortensio, perceive Katherine as horrid and unladylike, contrasting her with her sister Bianca. They describe her as “too rough,” suggesting she should be of “gentler, milder mold,” and also speaking of her: “that wench is stark mad.” Throughout the beginning of the act, Katherine is treated poorly and offered as unfavorable as a wife. Further into the act, Shakespeare contrasts the idea of Katherine’s character with her sister, Bianca. Bianca is seen as an “ideal” wife, one that is mild and beautiful. This passage is meant to explore the biases and perceptions of women’s roles in marriage, by Shakespeare’s humorous writing. Gremio and Hortensio, in this setting, represent the view that women’s role in marriage should be submissive and favorable to the man. This is shown through their harsh accusations of Katherine, and their perception of Bianca contrasting with that. Katherine, on the other hand, represents the view that women should not have to sacrifice themselves in order to marry. During this time period, society’s view was very much on the side of Gremio and Hortensio– today, however, things are completely different. Shakespeare taking on this theme in his play could have been very controversial during that time, but very beneficial to the development of society.
I agree with your analysis completely. Another literary device that I saw in this passage was the gentle diction Petruchio uses when talking about a women. He uses "light", "comfortable", and "beauty" which shows how Petruchio looked at girls to be obedient, and beautiful and not do much else. This effects the mood of the reader because he is comparing Katherina to something more calm and beautiful rather than the loud, angry women she is which is different from how everyone else views her
“PETRUCHIO Why came I hither but to that intent? Think you a little din can daunt mine ears? Have I not in my time heard lions roar? Have I not heard the sea, puffed up with winds, Rage like an angry boar chafèd with sweat? Have I not heard great ordnance in the field And heaven’s artillery thunder in the skies? Have I not in a pitchèd battle heard Loud ’larums, neighing steeds, and trumpets clang? And do you tell me of a woman’s tongue, That gives not half so great a blow to hear As will a chestnut in a farmer’s fire? Tush, tush, fear boys with bugs!” (Act 1, Scene 2, lines 201-213)
By using a series of rhetorical questions followed by an exclamation, Shakespeare builds Petruchio’s character as one who is prideful. In the play, the character Grumio, one of Petruchio’s own servants, expresses doubt in Petruchio’s abilities with the line “Will he woo her? Ay, or I’ll hang her” (Act 1, Scene 2, line 200), to which Petruchio retorts with the above quote. The first line, “Why came I hither but to that intent”, is put in a questioning tone as if it should be obvious what his objective is because he otherwise he would have no reason for coming to Hortensio’s home and planning to go visit Baptista. In the following sentence, din means “a loud, unpleasant, and prolonged noise” equivalent to that of a racket. The phrasing of the sentence as “Think you a little din can daunt mine ears”, followed by several lines that use auditory imagery, a simile, and a metaphor to describe loud sounds occurring in nature, begins to stress Petruchio’s self-importance. By using the word “mine”, he seems to be emphasizing himself. Also, by the way the question is worded, it sounds almost as if Petruchio at least a bit taken aback that this ‘villainous servant’, as he has referred to Grumio as, is questioning him and thinking that he, the master, would simply be deterred because this woman, Katharina, is loud. Starting at line 207, “And heaven’s artillery thunder in the skies”, Petruchio’s auditory imagery shifts from the sounds of nature to that of the battlefield. This also creates a high sense of nobility and pride concerning Petruchio’s character, as the battlefield not only conjures up visions of danger, but noble victory, since he has supposedly seen battle and lived onward. Lines 210-212 give off a scoffing tone as he wonders if a woman can match those thunderous sounds he has witnessed before, which is only enhanced by line 213. Here, he exclaims, “Tush, tush, fear boys with bugs”, which, according to the translation note at the bottom of the page, means, “frighten boys with bugbears”. Upon further research, bugbears in archaic terms is an imaginary being invoked to frighten children, typically a sort of hobgoblin supposed to devour them. By calling others as boys and bringing up the bugbears, it conveys that he is looking down upon them as if they were children because the others were all frightened away from Katharina simply because she is of harsh tongue.
“Petruchio I pray you do; I will attend her here, And woo her with some spirit when she comes! [Exeunt Baptista, Gremio, Tranio, and Hortensio] Say that she rail; why then I’ll tell her plain She sings as sweetly as a nightingale. Say that she frown, I’ll say she looks as clear As morning roses newly wash’d with dew: Say she be mute and will not speak a word; Then I’ll commend her volubility, And say she uttereth piercing eloquence: If she do bid me pack, I’ll give her thanks As though she bid me stay by her a week. If she deny to wed, I’ll crave the day When I shall ask the banns, and when be married. But here she comes; and now, Petruchio, speak.” (II.i.161-175).
In this passage, Shakespeare uses repetition, alliteration, and similes to show Petruchio’s dedication to meeting and marrying Katharina. Petruchio, Gremio, Tranio, and Hortensio have just arrived to Baptista’s house to meet his daughters and to propose their “tutors” to help teach Katharina and Bianca, so the suitors for Bianca could meet her personally. However, Petruchio must woo Katharina, who is the “curst” and “shrewd” and is highly unlikeable. Now, he is speaking to himself as Baptista sends her down to meet him. He repeats the phrase “Say that she” or “say she” to emphasize no problem in her personality would sway him away from liking her. To describe these characteristics that he would ignore, Petruchio says several similes. One example is “She sings as sweetly as a nightingale” (164). A nightingale bird is known for its strong and beautiful singing voice, so comparing her singing to this bird truly shows his love for her. Also the alliteration in this simile allows the smooth transition from each “s” sound, to sound like the bird singing, or Katharina talking. Another example of simile is “Say that she frown, I’ll say she looks as clear as morning roses newly wash’d with dew:” (165-166). Again, this simile shows his determination to woo Katharina into liking him, even by going to the extent as saying she is “clear as morning roses”, even though it's known to the reader that she is very rude and obnoxious. Throughout the play, Shakespeare includes many similes to help characterize some of his characters and repeats phrases to add emphasis and extra meaning to them.
Bianca: “Good sister, wrong me not, nor wrong yourself, To make a bondmaid and a slave of me. That I disdain” (II.i.1-3).
Kate: “Of all thy suitors here I charge thee tell Whom thou lov’st best. See thou dissemble not” (II.i.8-9).
Bianca and Kate’s relationship connects widely and very similarly to the relationship between Tranio and Lucentio. This is in a sense that there’s one person who’s “better” and “appreciated” more than the other; there’s a hierarchy between the two closely connected characters. There’s also a sense of jealousy and envy between these two different character relationships. William Shakespeare portrays this through syntax and word choice. Bianca is the complete opposite from Kate and that is beginning to show through the second act of the play. For example, Bianca is the loved sister who is prim and proper, therefore, is favored more between the two and is also the reason why she gains more suitors. In the beginning of act two, Kate has tied up Bianca and is forcing her to tell which suitor she is interested in most. Instead of yelling at Kate, Bianca states, “good sister” when asking to be freed, which expresses her controlled and calm personality. Kate’s personality, which is honest and straight forward, is expressed through the fact that she ignores Bianca’s input and continues to ask who she would like to marry. Additionally, the importance of the characters are shown for the fact that when Bianca speaks, it’s generally long monologues. Contradicting that, Kate speaks in short phrases. This shows that people are listening to what Bianca has to say and feels that she is a character of importance compared to Kate.
I really like your analysis of the connections between Bianca and Kate's relationship to Tranio and Lucentio. This idea that one person is "superior" than the other is evident throughout the story. I also agree with your analysis on how Shakespeare uses specific words and phrases to help describe Bianca and Kate's personality.
“PETRUCHIO: Why, that is nothing. For I tell you, father, I am as peremptory as she proud-minded; And where two raging fires meet together, They do consume the thing that feeds their fury. Though little fire grows great with little wind, Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire and all. So I to her and so she yields to me, For I am rough and woo not like a babe” (II.i. 123-130).
In this passage Petruchio uses confident diction, comparisons, and a fire analogy to prove to Baptista that he is the man for Katherina. Petruchio states “I am as peremptory as she proud-minded” (124) he uses confident diction like “peremptory” and “proud-minded” in this comparison of him and Katherina to show that he is superior to Katherina, he is basically saying that he can handle anything she throws at him. Though he is saying this, the use of confident diction for both him and Katherina also shows that they both hold themselves with immense confidence and they both have power and hold strong opinions. The fact that Katherina and Petruchio are similar in some way gives Petruchio a better chance to end up with Katherina. He then goes on with a fire analogy, “And where two raging fires meet together,/ They do consume the thing that feeds their fury./ Though little fire grows great with little wind,/ Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire and all./ So I to her and so she yields to me” (125-129). Petruchio is saying that if you blow on a fire all you do is fan the flames but a great gust of wind will blow the fire out completely and that he is the great gust to her fire. By saying this he means that no one had been able to calm Katherina down before, or in other words tame the shrew, but he is the man that can do so. Petruchio next says, “For I am rough and woo not like a babe” (130). Here Petruchio is saying that he is a tough guy that gets what he wants. He says that he doesn’t woo like a babe, meaning that he doesn’t flirt like a “baby”, he knows how to win a girl over.
“BAP. What, in my sight? Bianca, get thee in. KATH. What, will you not suffer me? Nay, now I see She is your treasure, she must have a husband, I must dance bare-foot on her wedding day And for your love lead apes in hell. Talk not to me: I will go sit and weep Till I can find occasion of revenge.”(II.i.30-36)
In here for the first time, the audience experiences pity for Katharina rather than thinking of her as a shrewd fiery person. Katharina’s use of metaphors invoke pity from the audience in which they have sympathy for her. When she says her younger sister is her father’s treasure it reveals her as the miserable daughter who believes her father does not love her as much he loves Bianca. This is further strengthened when she exposes her emotions of sadness by saying she is going to “sit and weep”.With this new background of Katharina actually feeling some sort of internal problem it could be concluded that she is not the wicked bitter sister everyone perceives her to be.
Katharina does not envy Bianca in any way at all. This is because she can be like Bianca in any way, but she chooses not be like her at all. Bianca is seen as a delicate young girl who has many suitors. Katharina though is seen as more rough and refuses to be delicate like her younger sister. This is the only difference between the sisters and if Katharina really wanted to, she could be like her sister and have many suitors. Even some of Bianca’s suitors claimed that if Katharina were to act more like her sister she would be a potential wife for them.
Petruchio uses many puns with “Kate” in order to create sexual innuendos. By using puns he hopes to make an effect of possibly wooing her. Petruchio is very good with the words he uses and by putting them in the right context such as this one he is slowly winning Katharina’s love.
I find it interesting that you say that Katherine could be like Bianca, but she simply doesn't want to... This ties back into the class discussion we had, about sacrificing for your loved one. Is it necessary for Katherine to sacrifice herself and her integrity to marry?
Agreeing with your analysis, it seems that the audience starts to portray Katherine as a human being in that passage, rather than a wild animal that curses and shouts. If Katherine is seen as a real person, could she feel guilt? Do you think it's possible that Katherine feels that she is letting down Bianca, and caves to Petruchio for this? It could be a possibility, and the audience now seeing that she has feelings aids in this realization.
“PETRUCHIO … And, will you, nill you, I will marry you. Now, Kate, I am a husband for your turn, For by this light, whereby I see thy beauty, Thy beauty that doth make me like thee well, Thou must be married to no man but me. For I am he am born to tame you, Kate, And bring you from the wild Kate to a Kate Conformable as other household Kates (Shakespeare, 286-291).
In this passage, Shakespeare adds on to the theme of social roles (in marriage) through Petruchio’s final dialogue. Petruchio, a man, shows his dominance in the passage, suggesting that Katherine have no choice in choosing if they marry or not: “will you, nill you, I will marry you” (286). His straightforwardness and honesty in this passage is so out of ordinary to Katherine, an unpleasant woman, and it leaves her utterly speechless– something uncharacteristic of her quick-witted mouth. Along with this, in the passage Shakespeare mentions the title to the play: “For I am he am born to tame you, Kate” (291). This emphasizes the plot, and reminds the reader that the story is developing right before their eyes. Finally, in this passage, Shakespeare uses repetition of Katherine’s name as “Kate,” in order for Petruchio to make an impact on Katherine, reminding her that it is she he wants. Petruchio says, “bring you from the wild Kate to a Kate / Conformable as other household Kates” (290-291). Petruchio uses the shortened “Kate” rather than Katherine to show that she is something special to him, that he should call her something different than the rest of the characters. Also in lines 290-291, Petruchio is suggesting that wives should be changed in marriage to suit the husband. This is a theme through the play, and portrayed through comedy. Specifically, Petruchio is saying that Kate is out of the ordinary and should be “conformable as other household Kates,” or should be milder as other wives are.
I agree with your analysis completely. Another literary device that I saw in this passage was the gentle diction Petruchio uses when talking about a women. He uses "light", "comfortable", and "beauty" which shows how Petruchio looked at girls to be obedient, and beautiful and not do much else. This effects the mood of the reader because he is comparing Katherina to something more calm and beautiful rather than the loud, angry women she is which is different from how everyone else views her
“PETRUCHIO Did ever Dian so become a grove As Kate this chamber with her princely gait? O, be thou Dian and let her be Kate, And then let Kate be chaste and Dian sportful” (Act II, Scene I, lines 273-276).
Within this quote, the Dian that Petruchio refers to is Diana, the Roman goddess chastity, wild animals, and the hunt. She is often associated with the Greek goddess Artemis, and also later took over Luna’s role as being goddess of the moon. Even though she was considered a goddess of fertility and childbirth, Diana swore never to marry and forever remained a maiden. In this excerpt, Petruchio is comparing Katharina to the goddess Diana, which is quite the fitting due to Katharina’s nature. Neither of them hold back and often express their wrath openly, such as how Katharina slapped her sister or bashed the lute over Hortensio’s head when provoked while Diana/Artemis once turned a man into a deer and had her dogs hunt/kill him because he accidentally stumbled across her whilst she was bathing. However, in this sense Petruchio is comparing Diana to Katharina in order to compliment and flatter her, something that was a part of his plans to woo her over. Earlier in this Act, Petruchio has a soliloquy in which he states: “Say that she rail; why then I’ll tell her plain / She sings as sweetly as a nightingale: / Say that she frown, I’ll say she looks as clear / As morning roses newly wash’d with dew: / Say she be mute and will not speak a word; / Then I’ll commend her volubility, / And say she uttereth piercing eloquence: / If she do bid me pack, I’ll give her thanks / As though she bid me stay by her a week. / If she deny to wed, I’ll crave the day / When I shall ask the banns, and when be married. / But here she comes; and now, Petruchio, speak” (Act II, Scene I, 161-175). In this soliloquy, he informs the audience of his plans that no matter what Katharina says or does, whether it be yelling or muteness, he will compliment her all the same and win her favor through flattery. He is then seen carrying this plan out as he banters back and forth with Katharina, turning her words and insults into sexual innuendo and flattery. One of these examples is the quote above, with Petruchio’s intention of comparing Katharina to Diana being to say that Katharina’s beauty is like that of a goddess. With the soliloquy, the play on words, and the reference to Roman mythology in this Act, Shakespeare builds Petruchio’s character to be that of a cunning and suave young man who is willing to go to great lengths to achieve what he desires.
Your analysis is really good, and I agree with the points you make about Petruchio. I would like to also add in other examples of him using her negative qualities as compliments. For an example when she insults him by calling him a stool(II. i.), he simply replied back with a pun. If I were you, I would also go more in depth with then puns he countered her insults with, as it strengthens your argument that Petruchio is truly a cunning keen character.
PETRUCHIO “I will be master of what is mine own: She is my goods, my chattels; she is my house, My household stuff, my field, my farm, my barn, My horse, my ox, my ass, my any thing; And here she stands, touch her whoever dare; I’ll bring mine action on the proudest he That stops my way in Padua. Grumio, Draw forth thy weapon, we are beset with thieves; Rescue thy mistress, if thou be a man. Fear not, sweet wench, they shall not touch thee, Kate: I’ll buckler thee against a million.” (III.ii.235-246)
In this passage, Petruchio is speaking to the crowd about his soon to be wife, Katharina. In the beginning of Petruchio’s commentary, he is saying to follow the bride's orders. But then the tone of the passage changes once he says “I will be master of what is mine own” (235). This sentence shows Petruchio’s opinion on his role in marriage, which is the man definitely rules the wife. He repeats the word “nor” to show his denial of any doubt that she is Petruchio’s possession. To show more evidence for this, he repeats the word “my” to show his ownership of Katharina, and mentions several things that he “owns”. he even goes as far as saying she is animals, including “my ass”. To go as far as using vulgar language for his wife shows this marriage inequality further. He also that he will fight “against a million” for her, which seems romantic but sounds more like Petruchio is just protecting his property. Ironically, Katharina’s personality was very selfish and she didn’t like being controlled by authority, or more specifically her father. But now, she is “owned” by Petruchio, who treats her like dirt and a superior figure. There is a very obvious change in tone from Act II to Act III. In Act II, Petruchio seemed like a kind gentleman who was trying to woo Katharina into actually liking him. But in Act III, it seems that Petruchio has just accepted that Katharina is marrying him and is now expressing his wanting for her money indirectly by saying that he “owns” her. This passage expresses the common motif of marriage inequality during this era, especially that the woman was just used for her dowry and/or bearing children.
I agree with your analysis and about how each character perceives gender roles. Do you think that the change Petruchio is having in each act is going to foreshadow how successful their marriage is going to be? How happy do you think Kate is with the marriage at the time of act three? I also agree with the fact that you mentioned Petruchio only wants Kate for property even though it may sound romantic.
I also picked this passage and I also agree with your analysis. I also thought that through the repetition, Petruchio claimed Katherine as his "property". He only married her for the money and wealth that he could gain. I also thought it was interesting how, before in the scene. he was not really dressed formal for a wedding and seemed to not really care. Could this also foreshadow how their marriage will be in the later acts? (No one blogged theirs in my group and I don't want to stay up to wait for them.)
“Katherine: No shame but mine. I must, forsooth, be forced To give my hand, opposed against my heart…” (III.ii.9-20).
In Kathrine’s monologue, the audience see’s Kate’s feminism shine through as she mocks the gender stereotypes. Originally, most of her phrases and lines are short and concise, however, this time, Shakespeare allows this passage to be remembered by making it long and emotional. Kate is tired of being pressured into getting married (and married soon) and the fact that she doesn’t get a say in the marriage at all because of the fact that she’s a woman. With the phrase “no shame but mine”, Shakespeare allows audiences to understand that the women were blamed for all the issues when it came to relationships. On line fifteen to seventeen, Katherine proclaims, “He’ll woo a thousand, ’point the day of marriage,/ Make friends, invite, and proclaim the banns,/Yet never means to wed where he hath wooed” to suggest that she does not really want to be married. It’s fine for men to be single and “date around”, but when it comes to women, there’s the connotation that they must be married, settling, and beginning to start a family at a young age for that is all of their “worth”. Katherine is tired of this stereotype and refuses to be Petruchio’s “property”. Additionally, this portrays Katherine as an independent woman and as very bold, especially for her time period. She’s feisty and stubborn, which makes her different from Bianca and the rest of society. Especially when people are pressuring her to be the “norm” when it comes to “acting like a female”.
I completely agree with your analysis– Shakespeare's input of a monologue in this point of the story really allows the audience to connect with Katherine, and see her as a true person, even somewhat of a victim. It takes on a very controversial idea in society, that men can date around and women should stay loyal... interesting that this idea was being explored by Shakespeare during this time period. I'm curious if Shakespeare received criticism for this play, for suggesting that women could be more independent and mocking the idea of marriage through a comedy.
“Katherina: Gentlemen, forward to the bridal dinner. I see a woman may be made a fool If she had not a spirit to resist.” (III.ii.192-194) This quote completely embodies everything Katherina stands for. Katherina is independent, making her feel out of place in her society. Due to her intelligence and independence she is unwilling to pleasing her society's beliefs of how a perfect women should act. She clearly abhors society’s expectations because she does not fit them. Being the feminist and independent women Katherina is she does not understand why girls must act the way they do to be looked at as attractive by men in her society. Katherina is more common to what an american girl in this day and age is like; she believes that men and women are more equal than society makes them out to be and she sticks up for what she believes in, she understands that she has to be more than just a beautiful face to have the man of her dreams because the man she is truly looking for is not a shallow man like Petruchio. Instead he is a man who can truly treat a women with respect rather than as a possession. However she does not know if a man like that exist where she is from. What Katherina is saying here is, “if a women does not have the nerve to stand up for herself then she will forever be made a fool of rather than respected”. However instead of being respected for standing up for what she believes in Katherina is looked at as a beast. I thought this sentence was powerful and relatable to every girl, in even our society today, it also really helped with the development of Katharina’s character in this story.
I like your analysis on how Katharina is independent in societal standards and differs from a typical woman during this time period. I also agree with your connection to society today, and how women are now becoming more independent and wanting independence and showing their feminism publicly. I like how you also emphasize the point that she is a symbol of equality for men and women, and that Petruchio only proves this inequality during the Elizabethan time period to be true. Overall, great analysis.
TRANIO [as LUCENTIO] See not your bride in these unreverent robes. Go to my chamber, put on clothes of mine.
PETRUCHIO Not I, believe me. Thus I’ll visit her.
BAPTISTA But thus, I trust, you will not marry her.
PETRUCHIO Good sooth, even thus. Therefore, ha’ done with words. To me she’s married, not unto my clothes. Could I repair what she will wear in me, As I can change these poor accoutrements, ‘Twere well for Kate and better for myself.”
This passage occurs shortly after Petruchio arrives late, dressed in his ridiculous outfit. Tranio suggests Petruchio to go change, though he refuses and gives off an interesting idea, especially for the time period in which this play was made. Petruchio say, “’To me she’s married, not unto my clothes. / Could I repair what she will wear in me, / As I can change these poor accoutrements, / ‘Twere well for Kate and better for myself’” (lines 119-122). Here, Petruchio describes how the materialism of clothes are unimportant in marriage, for Kate is marrying to him and not his clothes. Along with this, he claims that Kate will wear him out faster than his worn out clothes will tear– suggesting that Kate does have independence and power in their relationship, something he contradicts with in the next scene. In the next scene, Petruchio says things such as “I will be master of what is mine own.— / She is my goods, my chattels” (lines 235-236). This contrasts with his previous idea, suggesting that women are possessions, and that he owns Kate in the marriage. This idea that women have liberty in a relationship is also foreign to the time period. While Shakespeare was alive, women were solely for homemaking, encouraged to be passive and listen to the men of the household. Kate is an anomaly in the play, completely different from the normal, passive women. I find it interesting that Petruchio puts on this show of opposite extremes, telling Baptista, Katherine’s father, that she will have independence, and in front of the entire community he belittles her and “tames” her. Perhaps his view is somewhere in the middle, instead of these differing perspectives on marriage.
Your idea of interpreting this passage in very interesting, and I completely agree with your point of Petruchio slowly taming Katharina. I myself view this as Katharina the "shrew" is becoming a slave to social customs strongly because of Petruchio's influence on her. I think this could also be a message that women will always serve the same role in society no matter how independent they may seem. Clearly today this idea would never be supported with any solid evidence, but back in Shakespeare's time it would have been the most popular idea. Although we may have the same interpretations of this passage, the evidence you have used was very strong and enlightening to support your idea of Katharina becoming tamed.
In this passage Katharina, is given more human qualities and the dialogue that follows this even gives her pity as well as sympathy for the humiliation she has just faced.
“KAT. No shame but mine. I must, forsooth, be forced. To give my hand opposed against my heart. Unto a mad-brain rudesby, full of spleen, Who wooed in haste and means to wed at leisure. I told you, I, he was a frantic fool, Hiding his bitter jests in blunt behavior. And to be noted for a merry man, He’ll woo a thousand, ‘point the day of marriage, Make friends, invite, and proclaim the banns, Yet never means to wed where he hath wooed. Now must the world point at poor Katherine And say, “Lo, there is mad Petruchio’s wife, If it would please him come and marry her.” (III.ii.8-20).
Shakespeare has Katharina use metaphors to express the pain and humiliation she must have felt from Petruchio not arriving, which gives her sympathy as well as human qualities and leaves a more profound effect of her appearing less of a shrew. Katharina says “Hiding her bitter jests in blunt behavior”, which is a metaphor of Petruchio hiding his insanity behind a subtle behavior. This then leaves the audience feeling sympathy for the way Katharina was just treated and the situation she is placed in. Along with expression of Katharina’s feelings and her sadness, she then runs off weeping, which not only gives her even more sympathetic qualities, but gathers her father’s condolences as well. With this a connection could be made between the audience and Katharina, with the addition of establishing Katharina as a prime character to them as well.
“BIONDELLO Why, Petruchio is coming in a new hat and an old jerkin, a pair of old breeches thrice turned, a pair of boots that have been candle-cases, one buckled, another laced; an old rusty sword ta’en out of the town armory, with a broken hilt, and chapeless; with two broken points; his horse hipped, with an old mothy saddle and stirrups of no kindred, besides possessed with the glanders and like to mose in the chine, troubled with the lampass, infected with the fashions, full of windgalls, sped with spavins, rayed with the yellows, past cure of the fives, stark spoiled with the staggers, begnawn with the bots, swayed in the back and shoulder-shotten, near-legged before, and with a half-checked bit and a headstall of sheep’s leather, which, being restrained to keep him from stumbling, hath been often burst, and now repaired with knots; one girth six times pieced, and a woman’s crupper of velour, which hath two letters for her name fairly set down in studs, and here and there pieced with packthread.” (III. ii. 42-62)
In this excerpt, Biondello is describing in detail the attire that Petruchio has donned for this supposedly very important event and by what transportation the groom arrives. Given by how the others react, such as Tranio (disguised as Lucentio) saying, “See not your bride in these unreverent robes. / Go to my chamber, put on clothes of mine” (III. ii. 113-114), Petruchio’s chosen style of dress isn’t well-suited for the occasion. He’s dressed in a rather odd assortment of clothes, wearing mostly olden and worn-down clothing, but then with a new hat perched upon his head. The fact that Petruchio, this wealthy and cunning young man who was brought up among nobility, wore such ill-fitting clothes to his own wedding portrays a slight sense of apathy, as if he just doesn’t all that much about the ceremony. Another example to support that conclusion is that Gremio tells of how, during the ceremony, “…he; and swore so loud, / That, all amazed, the priest let fall the book; / And, as he stoop’d again to take it up, / This mad-brain’d bridegroom took him such a cuff, / That down fell the priest and book, and book and priest”. Or even his, Petruchio’s, behavior afterwards in wanting to leave so suddenly despite all the others asking for him to tarry longer, all show more of his irreverent and frankly rude personality. These behaviors portray him as pompous and uncaring, seeing everything else as a game and getting irritated when things don’t go his way.
“NATHANIEL: Peter, didst ever see the like? PETER: He kills her in her own humor.” (IV.i.179-180). “HORTENSIO [to KATHERINE]: Say as he says, or we shall never go.” (IV.v.13).
A prominent factor of Shakespeare’s writing is his use of many minor characters. In this case, this relates to the many slaves and servants who seem to have little relevance due to their short and few lines spoken along with their little appearance. However, in both scenes one and scene five of act four they have a hidden yet deep importance. For starters, these characters create a relationship between the audience and the actors/ main characters of this play. They tend to create dramatic irony due to the information given to the audience by “breaking the fourth wall” as people in the theatre say. When the servants prepare for Petruchio and Kate to come home, they work hard to prepare everything nicely and well for their masters. This all changes when Petruchio criticizes the food and bed and tells Kate she should avoid sleeping and eating. Later the servants Nathaniel and Peter acknowledge this and discuss if they’ve ever seen a relationship as odd as them. However Peter reassures Nathaniel that the purpose of Petruchio acting this way is to “tame” Kate. From the help of the minor characters, the audience is able to understand the actions of the main characters through the perspective of a narrator. They process the events happening so the audience does not have to. Additionally, the same scenario happens with Hortensio in scene five when he tells Kate to just agree with everything Petruchio says. Minor characters like Hortensio, Nathaniel, and Peter are not interacted with very much by the main characters, however they show the direction of the plot (in a positive or negative manner) and add to the characterization of the main characters. In both scenarios, the characters support the fact that Petruchio feels a need to be dominant and has a purpose for marrying Kate.
Enter one with water. 154 Come, Kate, and wash, and welcome heartily. 155 You whoreson villain! will you let it fall? [Strikes him.] KATHARINA 156 Patience, I pray you; 'twas a fault unwilling. PETRUCHIO 157 A whoreson beetle-headed, flap-ear'd knave! 158 Come, Kate, sit down; I know you have a stomach. 159 Will you give thanks, sweet Kate; or else shall I? 160 What's this? mutton? First Servant 160 Ay. PETRUCHIO 160 Who brought it? PETER 160 I. PETRUCHIO 161 'Tis burnt; and so is all the meat. 162 What dogs are these! Where is the rascal cook? 163 How durst you, villains, bring it from the dresser, 164 And serve it thus to me that love it not? 165 There, take it to you, trenchers, cups, and all; [Throws the trenchers, etc. at them.] 166 You heedless joltheads and unmanner'd slaves! 167 What, do you grumble? I'll be with you straight. KATHARINA 168 I pray you, husband, be not so disquiet: 169 The meat was well, if you were so contented. PETRUCHIO 170 I tell thee, Kate, 'twas burnt and dried away; 171 And I expressly am forbid to touch it, 172 For it engenders choler, planteth anger; 173 And better 'twere that both of us did fast, 174 Since, of ourselves, ourselves are choleric, 175 Than feed it with such over-roasted flesh. 176 Be patient; tomorrow 't shall be mended, 177 And, for this night, we'll fast for company: 178 Come, I will bring thee to thy bridal chamber. This passage show the control that Petruchio wants to exhibit over Kate. In this excerpt Kate is trying to get a meal, but Petruchio has decided he is going to tame like a bird and control her food intake in order to break her will. He denies Kate’s food by enforcing his authority over his servants and sends the food back saying that it isn’t perfect enough for her (177-178). By doing this he puts on a facade of a loving husband while in reality he is trying to “tame” the “shrew” that is Kate. His view of this being the best way to deal with her behavior enforces the view that women were possessions and were supposed to be obedient to their husbands’ wishes. This view of women conflicts with Kate’s character and is the main reason why Petruchio is bent on “taming” her. He punishes the servants very harshly for any mistake so Kate will be more worn out by trying to calm down Petruchio in his outbursts. It also allows him to exhibit the fact that he has control over his household, which includes Kate. It is also used a mild form of a scare tactic by showing Kate that disobedience is not tolerated at all. Later Petruchio tell the audience, in his monologue, that his objective is to “kill” Kate’s spirit and will to resist with “kindness” and through wearing her down by denying her basic resources. This further solidifies Petruchio's characters being chauvinistic and further solidifies the view of women in this time period.
Completely agree with your analysis. Petruchio even compares his plan to tame Kate to that of a man domesticating a falcon. It is interesting, because through research I've found that raptors (birds of prey) are not affectionate beings. Kate, which is the bird of prey in this instance, has been shown throughout the play that she is harsh and rough towards others, relating to the raptors inability to show affection. Petruchio saw this, and thought that the only way to tame a wild animal is to weaken them, as you said, and then offer his kindness.
Petruchio: “Thus have I politicly begun my reign, And ‘t is my hope to end successfully. My falcon now is sharp and passing empty; And till she stoop she must not be full-gorged, For then she never looks upon her lure. Another way I have to man my haggard, To make her come and know her keeper’s call, That is, to watch her, as we watch these kites That bate and beat and will not be obedient. She eat no meat to-day, nor none shall eat; Last night she slept not, nor to-night she shall not; As with the meat, some undeserved fault I’ll find about the making of the bed; And here I’ll fling the pillow, there the bolster, This way the coverlet, another way the sheets: Ay, and amid this hurly I intend That all is done in reverend care of her; And in conclusion she shall watch all night; And if she chance to nod, I’ll rail and brawl, And with the clamour keep her still awake. This is the way to kill a wife with kindness; And thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humour. He that knows better how to tame a shrew, Now let him speak: ‘t is charity to show.” (IV.i.169-192)
In the end of Act VI scene i, there is a soliloquy by Petruchio describing his intent on “taming” his new bride, Katharina. During the scene, he does not allow her to eat any food, even though she is hungry. He relates to this action in his monologue, as she is the falcon, and cannot eat “her lure” or food. The first line of the passage introduces the idea that Petruchio is planning on “ruling” Katharina’s life. Shakespeare uses the word “politicly” to show how much intent Petruchio put into his plan on beginning his “reign.” This again references to the theme in the story of male dominance in marriage at that time, and how completely controlling the male was over his wife. Petruchio goes on to say he will also prevent her from sleeping. However, amid all the madness, he says “that all is done in reverend care of her”. He says this to the audience because he in fact truly cares about her. He wants to “kill a wife with kindness” and “curb her mad and headstrong humour” to become a more fitting wife for himself. Petruchio also says “‘t is charity to show’”, which could mean that he believes that he is doing Katharina a favor by making her more womanly and like Bianca. Also in the passage, it can be clearly shown how Shakespeare wants the iambic pentameter of the play to stay consistent by changing some of the spelling in the words. In this passage specifically, it helps not disrupt the flow of Petruchio’s speech and shows Petruchio’s persistence on trying to “tame” Katharina.
Yes your analysis/interpretation of Petruchio's soliloquy is very good, and I agree with it however, there are some parts I would to it. The whole point of this passage is Petruchio revealing his true intentions as to how he would Katharina. In here he compares Kate to more of a pet than a wife as he uses words such as he says he is the keeper, she is the falcon, and he will tame her. With this in mind, we the audience learn he greatly dehumanizes his wife, and wishes to make her a fit wife in his eyes. On top of this, we learn that Petruchio sees a fit wife as a wife who obeys and succumbs to her husband's every command, and I would add that this was the social norm of the time. Although I would have added these smaller details into your interpretation's evidence of Petruchio's characterization, I see you have other great pieces of evidence and that goes nicely with your claim.
“PETRUCHIO Thus have I politicly begun my reign, And ‘tis my hope to end successfully. My falcon now is sharp and passing empty, And, till she stoop, she must not be full-gorged, For then she never looks upon her lure. Another way I have to man my haggard, To make her come and know her keeper’s call. That is, to watch her, as we watch these kites That bate and beat and will not be obedient. She ate no meat today, nor none shall eat. Last night she slept not, nor tonight she shall not. As with the meat, some undeserved fault I’ll find about the making of the bed, And here I’ll fling the pillow, there the bolster, This way the coverlet, another way the sheets. Ay, and amid this hurly I intend That all is done in reverend care of her. And, in conclusion, she shall watch all night. And, if she chance to nod, I’ll rail and brawl, And with the clamor keep her still awake. This is a way to kill a wife with kindness. And thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humor. He that knows better how to tame a shrew, Now let him speak; ‘tis charity to shrew” (lines 188-211).
This passage features Petruchio’s true intentions behind his outrageous behavior seen immediately before. He had been complaining and shouting at his servants, all with an ulterior motive. These actions all serve as his plan to “tame a shrew.” In the passage, Petruchio refers to Kate, the shrew, as a “falcon,” comparing the art of domesticating birds for hunting to fixing his wife’s wild behavior. The art of training falcons for hunting is known as “falconry.” Petruchio says various phrases related to falconry: “My falcon now is sharp and passing empty” (190), “To make her come and know her keeper’s call” (194), “as we watch these kites / That bate and beat and will not be obedient” (195-196). Something to note about this practice, is that it is incredibly difficult and time consuming, requiring patience and skill. The bird you train must be able fly freely and willingly return to the master. This is what Petruchio is after– he intends to train Katherine in this way, attempting to tame her personality: “thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humor” (209). The way he plans to tame his shrew, in this sense, is by depriving her of her necessities (food, sleep) and acting as Kate had before (wildly), while claiming that those actions are out of love. Petruchio relates this as “a way to kill a wife with kindness” (line 208). He has claimed that nothing is good enough for his wife, so she should get nothing at all. This is Petruchio’s plan to tame Kate, like a hawk, and he proudly presents it to all of the servants around.
HORTENSIO (to KATHERINE) Say as he says, or we shall never go.
KATHERINE Forward, I pray, since we have come so far, And be it moon, or sun, or what you please. An if you please to call it a rush candle, Henceforth I vow it shall be so for me.
PETRUCHIO I say it is the moon KATHERINE I know it is the moon. PETRUCHIO Nay, then you lie. It is the blessèd sun KATHERINE 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. It is the blessèd sun. (IV.V.13-23)
In this passage Katherina is being tamed for the first time. Petruchio, Katherina, and Hortensio are on a journey back to Padua when Petruchio continues his relentless attempts to persuade Katharina to accept his authority as her husband. Every other attempt Petruchio has used to tame Katherina, previous to this one, she has fought back and spoke her word and held true to it. However in this scene, even though she fights back at first, Katherina has no more energy or patience to put up with Petruchio’s silly games. She finally obeys his crazy, stupid wish for the sun to be the moon, even though it is the middle of the day. Shortly after this incident in the play Petruchio tests Katherina again when he sees and old man on the streets of Padua and claims that this man is a young, fair maiden. This time Katherina immediately obeys Petruchio but then Petruchio tells Katherine that she is mistaken. Though Petruchio is now just being unnecessarily irritating Katherina still continues to play along. This goes to show that Petruchio is finally beginning to tame Katherina and make her obey his every command no matter how ridiculous. Petruchio might as well define reality for her from this point forward. After this victory, Katherina can only resist Petruchio’s authority halfheartedly, and her taming is nearly complete. Katherina is not just being “tamed” Petruchio is training her to never think for herself and instead follow his every command. It is sickening and shows how in this time women were treated and expected to be like mindless animals that would follow a man's every wish because men were always right. Shakespeare shows the intensity of Petruchio’s taming by having him say such irritable, stupid request that even the women in the audience would not obey.
I really like your analysis of this passage of the play. This is indeed the turning point of trying to tame Katharina. No matter how ridiculous the command that Petruchio says, Katharina is now starting to listen and change. I like to compare Katharina in this stage of her taming as a stereotypical wife during this era, as most wives had to obey every order given by their male counterparts. I would also add that some of these commands make Katharina look really stupid, which could show how woman were considered "stupider" during this time.
“Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak, And speak I will. I am no child, no babe. Your betters have endured me say my mind, And if you cannot, best you stop your ears. My tongue will tell the anger of my heart, Or else my heart concealing it will break, And rather than it shall, I will be free Even to the uttermost, as I please, in words” (IV.i.78-85).
Katharina uses metaphors, and a different tone when speaking to Grumio in this quote in order to reveal her emotions. In short this passage is Katharina explaining how she wants to speak what on her mind, because if she is unable to then she would suffer. She expresses this using metaphors such as claiming how her heart would break if she stays quiet. On top of this she has a different tone when speaking to Grumio. This tone is more of a pitiful, longing tone, in her greatest wish is just to have people listen to her. This is different from her other tones, such as the rebellious yet more understanding tone when speaking to Petruchio, and her savage tone when speaking to her younger sister’s suitors. By understanding Katharina’s usage of metaphors and tone, her personality as a character is further revealed as a word deprived woman who only wishes to speak what she wants, and not succumb to the orders of others.
Later on in this act, it is revealed that Katharina has finally succumbed to Petruchio’s commands/claims and it appears Katharina has been tamed, which I agree with. By using the previous passage, it is logical to piece together that if Katharina were not to be tamed at this time, it would be visible for the audience to see that she is struggling. That is because she does say that if she does not speak what is true to her in her mind she would be hurt, but on the road to Padua with Petruchio she agrees with all of his false claims, which she knows to be true.
“KATHERINE Fie, fie! Unknit that threat'ning unkind brow And dart not scornful glances from those eyes To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor. It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads, Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds, And in no sense is meet or amiable. A woman moved is like a fountain troubled, Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty, And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it. Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper, Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee, And for thy maintenance commits his body To painful labor both by sea and land, To watch the night in storms, the day in cold, Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe, And craves no other tribute at thy hands But love, fair looks and true obedience— Too little payment for so great a debt. Such duty as the subject owes the prince, Even such a woman oweth to her husband. And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour, And not obedient to his honest will, What is she but a foul contending rebel And graceless traitor to her loving lord? I am ashamed that women are so simple To offer war where they should kneel for peace; Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway When they are bound to serve, love, and obey. Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth, Unapt to toil and trouble in the world, But that our soft conditions and our hearts Should well agree with our external parts? Come, come, you froward and unable worms! My mind hath been as big as one of yours, My heart as great, my reason haply more, To bandy word for word and frown for frown. But now I see our lances are but straws, Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare, That seeming to be most which we indeed least are. Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot, And place your hands below your husband’s foot: In token of which duty, if he please, My hand is ready, may it do him ease.” (V.ii.145–189)
If someone were to tell me that Katherina said this speech when I first began reading this book, I would have laughed in their face. This quote really shows how much of a dynamic character Katherina is. Katherina stands out as a very unique, powerful woman figure at the beginning of this play, she begins with the same ideas a typical American woman would have today or even with the ideas of a modern day feminist. She stays true to her beliefs and doesn’t let anyone tell her what is right from wrong. However, in this time period, this indepent, know-it-all, confident type of women was very unique, outspoken, frowned upon, and was even looked at as unattractive by men. One thing this speech really shows, now bear with me here, is the power of love. Love can truly blind someone and make them act completely different when they are around their loved one compared to when they are alone. Shakespeare often portrays the theme that love can blind a person and veer them away from their normal self. Examples of this are seen through the changes of Katherina due to her love for Petruchio. However, this is also seen in many other characters in this play like Lucentio, Lucentio came to Padua with the intent to study, he has his life goals set and is ready to take them on step by step. However, once Lucentio stumbles upon the fair maiden Bianca he is instantly lovestruck and becomes blinded by love. After seeing Bianca, Lucentio completely forgets about his studies and his only motifs in life all become centered around Bianca. This passage really shows how much of an impact love can make on a person and how it can truly blind them from everything they once lived for,
I thought that your take on love being blinding/changing people's perspectives was very captivating. Especially when you connected Petruchio and Kate's relationship to Bianca and Lucentio's relationship, when the sisters have never had anything in common. I'm still not sure if this scene proves that Kate was tamed, or whether or not she was mocking Petruchio and the rest of the men. I think that the speech is a little too much of a drastic quick change. It's possible that she she was just stating when Petruchio said in order to please him when in reality she knows better such as with the sun and the moon.
“PETRUCHIO: First kiss me, Kate, and we will. KATE: What, in the midst of the street? PETRUCHIO: What, art thou ashamed of me? KATE: No, sir, God forbid, but ashamed to kiss. PETRUCHIO: Why, then, let’s home again. (to GRUMIO) Come, sirrah, let’s away. KATHERINE: Nay, I will give thee a kiss. She kisses him. Now pray thee, love, stay. PETRUCHIO: Is not this well? Come, my sweet Kate. Better once than never, for never too late” (V.ii.146-156).
In this scene, there is a drastic change between Kate’s character development from the beginning of the play to the end of the play that is emphasized. It’s the most prominent in this scene to focus the end of the play and the “final transformation” of Kate. When Petruchio tells Kate to kiss him, it is initially shocking that she does not give a sassy, bold, and over-whelming response like she usually would with anyone (even her father). In fact, she responds to this statement as a prim and proper young lady would. Then, Kate expresses that she refuses to kiss him because she’s “ashamed” to kiss. Throughout this play Kate has not expressed that she is ashamed in any form, for that is more something Bianca, her foil, would do. For the first time, Petruchio has made Kate feel (or at least express) an emotion she never has before, which supports that Petruchio was “successful” in taming her and making her change her personality. Additionally, the same goes for Kate and questioning her morals. When Kate refuses to kiss Petruchio out of being uncomfortable, he is insensitive and threatens to leave. This threat makes Kate take back her words and do as he wants (as Petruchio planned). Similarly, to a domesticated pet, Kate follows orders based on what Petruchio wants, and her obedience to him proves that in their relationship, Kate is not considered equal in Petruchio’s eyes. When Petruchio states, “Better once than never, for never too late,” he means that it’s never too late to change, referring to Kate’s attitude. Even though she has been a certain way all her life, Petruchio is still confident that he can make her “better”.
I agree that Kate follows orders based on Petruchio's wants, but I also think it's dependent on her wishes, as well. The way that Petruchio planned to "tame" Katherine was quite extreme. He deprived her of food, clothing, and sleep, all claiming it was out of love. It seemed that Katherine could never get anything she wanted, because Petruchio was always taking it away out of "love." In this scene, Katherine wants to stay, but Petruchio will not unless he receives a kiss. So, in order for Katherine to get what she wants, she must obey, otherwise he will deprive her of her needs (and she knows he can do that). As you said, it is similar to a domesticated pet. Think of teaching a dog how to do the command "sit." Does the dog learn to sit eventually out of love for its owner, or does the dog learn to sit because it knows its owner will give it what it wants (a treat)? If you look at it in this way, Katherine could be only "obeying" Petruchio because it is a way for her to get what she wants. Perhaps she appears to be submissive, but that is only her way to ensure that she stays happy.
“KATHERINE … Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper, Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee, And for thy maintenance commits his body To painful labor both by sea and land, To watch the night in storms, the day in cold, Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe, And craves no other tribute at thy hands But love, fair looks and true obedience— Too little payment for so great a debt” (155-163).
Katherine’s speech not only shows her dramatic evolution as a character, but it also brings to light the various social roles in marriage during the time period (the 16th century). Her speech showed off her intelligence, first of all– Katherine was able to recognize that Petruchio was treating Kate poorly as part of a bet, and in turn she follows every order given to her, throwing away her pride. Also, Katherine completely contrasts her character from the beginning of the play. In the first act, Katherine was striking her peers, spitting in their faces and insulting everyone around her. As the play progressed, she grew more passive and submissive to Petruchio, all part of his plan to “tame” her. For example, in this excerpt, Katherine lectures the other women on how they should treat their husbands, seemingly throwing away her beliefs from Act I. Katherine says, “Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper, / Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee, / And for thy maintenance commits his body / To painful labor both by sea and land” (lines 155-159). Here, Katherine is explaining the superiority of men over the women– that because they work hard for them, it is the least that women can do to treat them with respect and listen to their wishes. This was a common belief in the 16th century, and continued all the way to the 20th century, where women gained various rights and more independence. All throughout history, women have relied on men to support them and care for them– women simply giving love in return. This is how Katherine explains marriage to her peers, as a relationship between a king and servant, the man working for his wife and the woman obeying her husband in return. Though it’s very different to today’s beliefs, this is how it was in history!
Pedant 30 Thou liest: his father is come from Padua and here 31 looking out at the window. VINCENTIO 32 Art thou his father? Pedant 33 Ay, sir; so his mother says, if I may believe 34 her. PETRUCHIO [To VINCENTIO.] 35 Why, how now, gentleman! Why, 36 this is flat knavery, to take upon you 37 another man's name. This is the part in the play where the disguises that the characters put on are stripped away when faced with their true counterpart. This forces the characters to reveal their true identities and come to terms with what has gone on in secret. The actions that happen whilst the disguises hold up end up binding people together. This is especially true in Lucentio, Bianca and Baptista’s case since they become related by marriage. This stripping of the disguise also forces the characters to start the process of rediscovering themselves through the wearing of another’s face. It also signals the end of falsehood in the play. An example of this can be seen in Kate’s speech where she shows that she has softened as a character and isn’t as harsh to others. This is also the point where Petruchio’s visage of a harsh, cruel man is stripped and the Petruchio that was evident at the start of the play is back. This point in the play is also the point where the “shrews” are supposed to be ”tamed” changing their character. It also juxtaposes the men’s disguises with one of their own. After the men reveal themselves the women must conceal their true personalities with one contrary to their own. So while the men are freed the women are trapped under society.
(V.ii.196-206) Petruchio: Why, there’s a wench! Come on, and kiss me, Kate. Lucentio: Well, go thy ways, old lad, for thou shalt ha ’t. Vincentio: ’Tis a good hearing when children are toward. Lucentio: But a harsh hearing when women are froward. Petruchio: Come, Kate, we’ll to bed. We three are married, but you two are sped. ’Twas I won the wager, though you hit the white; And being a winner, God give you good night! Hortensio: Now, go thy ways, thou hast tamed a curst shrow. Lucentio:’Tis a wonder, by your leave, she will be tamed so.
In this passage, it shows the summary of events in Act V. Shakespeare uses a rhyming scheme and repetition to help share the theme of marriage inequality and the misogyny that is present throughout the story. Katharina just presented a dramatic monologue on how women should kneel down to their husbands and listen to whatever they say. This shows her indefinite change of personality from the beginning to the end of the play. To help emphasize this conclusion of the play, Shakespeare purposely added a couplet rhyme scheme. Especially in the last two sentences, both Hortensio and Lucentio say that “the shrew” is tamed. Both were surprised that Petruchio won the bet, and that Katharina actually follows what he says. It’s also ironic how Petruchio wins the bet that his wife responds to him, and also Lucentio wins the wager to get Bianca to marry him. But, Bianca doesn’t answer when he calls for her. This theme of male dominance and how during this time women were seen as objects and used in the interest of their husband is completely emphasized in this conclusion to the play. Another ironic thing is Petruchio asked Katharina to kiss her earlier in play when they were bantering between each other, and she seemed unwilling to kiss back. However, it seems obvious that Kate will kiss him back (does not say so in the stage notes).
I really like your analysis/interpretation of this passage, and your realization of the dominant effect left, especially because it was the final passage of the whole play. However, there always are certain little subtleties people do not always spot, and I would have revealed the reason they may have been used. You briefly explain the couplet rhymes, but you should also give out a more detailed explanation as to why you think they were there. Also, on your final sentence could it possibly be a symbol that Katharina becomes less resistant to Petruchio by the second. There is a lot of evidence to support this claim, and I believe that the final command he gives Katharina greatly concludes this idea as well. Thanks
“KATHERINE Fie, fie! Unknit that threat'ning unkind brow And dart not scornful glances from those eyes To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor. It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads, Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds, And in no sense is meet or amiable. A woman moved is like a fountain troubled, Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty, And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it. Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper, Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee, And for thy maintenance commits his body To painful labor both by sea and land, To watch the night in storms, the day in cold, Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe, And craves no other tribute at thy hands But love, fair looks and true obedience— Too little payment for so great a debt. Such duty as the subject owes the prince, Even such a woman oweth to her husband. And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour, And not obedient to his honest will, What is she but a foul contending rebel And graceless traitor to her loving lord? I am ashamed that women are so simple To offer war where they should kneel for peace; Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway When they are bound to serve, love, and obey. Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth, Unapt to toil and trouble in the world, But that our soft conditions and our hearts Should well agree with our external parts? Come, come, you froward and unable worms! My mind hath been as big as one of yours, My heart as great, my reason haply more, To bandy word for word and frown for frown. But now I see our lances are but straws, Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare, That seeming to be most which we indeed least are. Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot, And place your hands below your husband’s foot: In token of which duty, if he please, My hand is ready, may it do him ease.” (V.ii.145–189)
In this passage, it is clear now to not only the eyes of the audience, but to all of the characters that Katharina has truly been tamed to Petruchio’s standards. This is a major change for Katharina, and clearly pronounces her dynamic change throughout this whole entire play. Initially the audience all knows Katharina as the shrew who would only be rude, however at this point of the play she has became a completely obedient tool that only serves to satisfy Petruchio. To further expand upon Katharina’s dedication to serving Petruchio’s demands she uses misogynistic diction, and a tone of servitude. Juxtaposing her language here with her language in Act 1 greatly reveals the change she went in which she spoke with a fiery tone and cursed out any men she saw. Her language here is very different as she degrades women by calling them “weak”, and in debt to their husbands. This language she uses not only raises the power of men, but she sets a standard for women to obey every command a husband orders, which is very clear with her tone of servitude where she constantly says a women must always owe her man. Furthermore, on top of her great change, as well as her standards of gender roles, Katharina ends her dialogue with this specific passage leaving a dominant effect of her goal in life is to only please her husband.
Induction
ReplyDelete“Am I a lord? and have I such a lady?
Or do I dream? or have I dream’d til now?
I do not sleep: I see, I hear, I speak;
I smell sweet savours and I feel soft things:
Upon my life, I am a lord indeed,
And not a tinker nor Christophero Sly.
Well, bring our lady hither to our slight;
And once again, a pot o’ the smallest ale.”
In this quote, Sly has finally accepted that he is a lord and was in a deep sleep or coma for fifteen years. Shakespeare uses repetition, alliteration, and the change in writing style to show how the Lord tricked Sly. He repeats the word “I” in 4 questions as Sly is questioning himself and his sanity. This repetition adds a sense of flow in the beginning of this passage to show how Sly questions himself to confirm this “sleep”. Shakespeare also repeats several different senses, in “I see, I hear, I speak”, to show again how Sly completely accepts his insanity. He also uses alliteration in “smell sweet savours” which could show how Sly is coming to his senses about being a lord. To emphasize the change in opinion, Shakespeare changes the Induction from free verse writing style to blank verse, or iambic pentameter. He does this on purpose to show how Sly’s optimism is gone and the Lord’s “players” have completely changed his mind. Funny enough, Sly changes his opinion once he learns he has a wife. This shows a motif of the questioning of gender roles, which is also a motif which will appear later in the actual story. This also is another motif of the truthfulness of marriage and if the vows between the couple is real or just for their benefit.
Induction
ReplyDelete“LORD
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?
[THIRD] HUNTSMAN
Believe me, lord, I think he cannot choose” (Shakespeare, lines 37-44).
In this passage, the underlying idea is that the way a person perceives themself and the way they behave is determined by the their surroundings, including how they’re treated by others. Christopher Sly, a drunken beggar, catches the eye of a lord, who is feeling just a bit bored with his lavish life. For entertainment, the lord proposes that they spruce up the drunkard and attempt to convince him that he had gone mad, blinded into thinking he had been a drunk through his lifetime. The lord questions the idea that who you are is determined by your environment: “Wrapped in sweet clothes … / Would not the beggar then forget himself?”(39). Compare the style of lives between someone who lives in a mansion, and someone who lives in a ghetto– how are they treated differently? I would assume the person in the ghetto would use colloquial language, and be treated as someone of no importance in the world. Contrast that with someone of high class, and their way of speaking changes, their reputation changes, and they simply are treated with more respect. Now, what if those two people changed places? Would they then learn to speak the language of the area, to accept their roles in society? This is the idea explored by the lord and huntsman. In fact, Christopher Sly does adapt to his environment, as any animal does. This is a fact of life. Sly, when treated as a lord, changes his language and syntax, moving to free verse (as a noble) instead of prose as a commoner would speak.
LORD
ReplyDelete“Hence comes it that your kindred shuns your house,
As beaten hence by your strange lunacy.
O noble lord, bethink thee of thy birth,
Call home thy ancient thoughts from banishment,
And banish hence these abject lowly dreams.
Look how thy servants do attend on thee,
Each in his office ready at thy beck.
Wilt thou have music? Hark! Apollo plays,
Music
And twenty cagèd nightingales do sing:
Or wilt thou sleep? We’ll have thee to a couch
Softer and sweeter than the lustful bed
On purpose trimmed up for Semiramis.
Say thou wilt walk, we will bestrew the ground.
Or wilt thou ride? Thy horses shall be trapped,
Their harness studded all with gold and pearl.
Dost thou love hawking? Thou hast hawks will soar
Above the morning lark. Or wilt thou hunt?
Thy hounds shall make the welkin answer them
And fetch shrill echoes from the hollow earth.”
The induction to this play is telling a story of a lord and his men who are playing a trick on a drunken beggar they found sleeping on the streets named Sly. The lord is trying to convince Sly that he is a rich, lord and that Sly has been in a coma and that’s why he is unable to remember his past. The lord is talking to Sly about his mental state and how it is preventing him from enjoying all the things he used to love. In the first stanza the lord is telling Sly that his family has stopped coming to visit because Sly had frightened them away due to his mental illness. The lord then says, “O noble lord, bethink thee of thy birth, Call home thy ancient thoughts from banishment, And banish hence these abject lowly dreams” (Lines 15-17). Here, The lord is asking Sly to try and remember his past and to try and regain his mental health. The lord then list many riches Sly has waiting for him, riches that Sly has been avoiding for so long due to his “illness”. Shakespeare talks about Apollo the God of music, poetry, art, etc. and tells Apollo to play his music for Sly. He then goes on to talk about nightingales a very popular bird to poets during Shakespeare's era, poets looked at nightingales not only as a poet themselves but as a “master of a superior art that could inspire the human poet”. Nightingales often symbolize beauty and freedom from the world's troubles. He then talks about the bed of lustful Semiramis. Semiramis was an Assyrian queen famous for her active sex life. Shakespeare uses both beautiful, light symbols like nightingales and Apollo’s music in this passage and also uses dark symbols like lust and hunting. These symbols give the idea that riches can be both good and bad and that the brain is complex and twisted and can find pleasure in even the worst things depending on the person.
William Shakespeare uses language, diction, and syntax, to differentiate the social classes of the English Society. In the quotes…
ReplyDelete“SLY. I’ll pheeze you, in faith.
HOST. A pair of stocks you rogue!”
(Shakespeare, Induction, Scene 1, Lines 1-2),
Shakespeare creates a language/diction barrier, between the two characters. In here Sly clearly has a more aggressive tone, and on top of that even uses words such as pheeze which literally mean beat, and usually only lower classes of society use aggression as a way of gaining what they want. The Hostess a character who seems to above the Sly in the social hierarchy despite being a woman even insults Sly by calling him a rogue. Through this, the tone and mood of the poem is beginning to build a foundation in which Sly could in inferred to as a lowly class citizen who is very aggressive. Later a conversation between Sly and a servant are taking place in scene II of the induction,
“SLY. For God’s sake, a pot of small ale.
FIRST SERV. Will’t please your lordship to drink a cup of sack?”
(SHakespeare, Induction, Scene 2, Lines 1-2).
Once again Clearly Sly’s characteristic of society can be observed from the words he uses. Sly uses words such as “For God’s sake”, which uses the Lord's name in vain, and is seen as disrespectful in an Old English society. For Sly however, it does not matter whether he disrespects anyone, because it appears he is already at the bottom of society so, why would he not use these words when he cannot go any lower in society. At this point Sly is even being tricked that he is a Lord, which is probably because of where he is in the social hierarchy(very low). The Servant’s use of words and the order he pleases them seem to better arranged than Sly’s and makes him appear more educated and therefore above Sly in the social hierarchy. Not only that, but the Servant even has to right to join in the fun of tricking sly, because of his higher social status, which is clear when juxtaposing his language with Sly’s.
“SLY
ReplyDeleteY’ are a baggage: the Slys are no rogues; look in the chronicles; we came in with Richard Conqueror. Therefore paucas pallabris; let the world slide: sessa!” (Shakespeare, lines 3-5).
This line occurs near the start of the play, when a bar host comes out and threatens to get Sly put into the stocks. In response, Sly pretends to be better than he is by proclaiming that his family line came into England with a great ‘conqueror’ and even tosses in some foreign terms. However, these foreign words aren’t pronounced correctly, nor is the man’s name even correct. Instead of Richard Conqueror, in English history there was a man titled William the Conqueror, who became the first Norman king of England. This quote near the very beginning foreshadows the upcoming events of change and pretending to be something one is not. However, while here Sly is forcibly attempting to fabricate a past greater than his current self, later on in the induction he is duped by the Lord and the Lord’s servants that he, Sly, is actually a lord who had been living in a state of illness for the past fifteen years of his life. Also, later on once he has been fooled into believing the lie that he is a lord, Sly’s pattern of speech starts changing to assimilate that of the upper class and the writing style shifts from free verse to iambic pentameter to demonstrate Sly growing into this role that was fabricated for him by the Lord. Yet, this ruse created by the lord can only last for so long, meaning that in the end Sly will still be a tinker as he never was a lord in the first place. This can also foreshadow for later on in the play about how, despite their best efforts of disguise and going against their socially constructed roles, in the end the characters/people still are expected to fulfill that role and no matter the disguise worn or what they pretend to be, they are still the same person underneath/inside.
“Signor Hortensio, ‘twixt such friends as we
ReplyDeleteFew words suffice; and therefore, if thou know
One rich enough to be Petruchio’s wife—
As wealth is burden of my wooing dance—
Be she as foul as was Florentius’ love,
As old as Sibyl, and as curst and shrewd
As Socrates’ Xanthippe or a worse,
She moves me not—or not removes at least
Affection’s edge in me, were she as rough
As are the swelling Adriatic seas.
I come to wive it wealthily in Padua;
If wealthily, then happily in Padua.” (I.ii.62-73)
In this passage in Act I of Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare uses allusions and similes to describe Petruchio as he banters on about a woman with money. Petruchio is introduced in the passage as a rich man looking to marry a rich woman, regardless of looks or personality. Shakespeare purposely has several different suitors for both girls with different outlooks on marriage, which is one of the main motifs of the story. Petruchio is looks at marriage as an “economic activity” or almost like his wife is an investment. This idea is emphasized in this passage when he says several similes relating to real life allusions. For example, Shakespeare writes, “Be she as foul as was Florentius’ love” (66). Florentius was a knight who sought to marry an old hag to solve a riddle, just like Petruchio is looking to marry Katharina. Both of these people are accepting the “challenge” of marrying someone so imperfect that it could be considered a challenge. Petruchio continues to describe that he doesn’t care what a girl looks like, saying, “As old as Sibyl, and as curst and shrewd/As Socrates’ Xanthippe” (67-68). Shakespeare uses the allusion to Sibyl, who gave Apollo many years of life, to describe truly how old a lady could be, but if she has money, Petruchio is attracted to her. The last two lines of the passage really sums up what his real intention is in Padua, which is “to wive it wealthily in Padua;/If wealthily, then happily in Padua” (72-73) He compares “wealth” to “happiness”, again emphasizing the fact that he just wants to marry a girl for her money.
I agree completely with your analysis however I had a different reaction to this passage the first thing that jumped out to me when I read this passage was how materialistic Petruchio was for only wanting a girl for her money and how open he was about it. This speech exemplifies Petruchio’s arrogant, powerful manner of speaking. He is very honest about his materialism and selfishness, and he also straightforwardly acknowledges the economic aspect of marriage unlike anyone else so far in this play.
Delete“Lucento: Tranio, since for the greatest desire I had
ReplyDeleteTo see fair Padua, nursery of arts,
I am arrived for fruitful Lombardy,
The pleasant garden of great Italy” (I.i.1-24).
“Tranio: Nay then, ‘t is time to stir him from his trance.
I pray, awake, sir: if you love the maid,
Bend thoughts and wits to achieve her. Thus it stands:
Her elder sister is so curst and shrewd…
And therefore has he closely mew’d her p
Because she will not be annoy’d with suitors” (I.i. 177-184)
William Shakespeare uses different word choice, syntax, and jargon per each different character in the novel. Two contrasting characters in the novel are Tranio and Lucento. Lucento is portrayed as a proper, educated, and rich son of Vincentio, and Tranio is one of his two servants. Comparing these two large portions of text, Shakespeare portrayed each character to show/act like their social class. For example, since Lucento is well-educated, it is rare that he ever speaks improperly combining words together or leaving out syllables. He emphasizes each word the way one is “suppose to” such as “I am arrived” and “It shall become”. Little to never does Lucento mumble his speech like Tranio. Contradicting to Lucento, Tranio combines/cuts off syllables very often. His speech patterns consist of many contracted words such as “’t”, “mew’d”, and “annoy’d”. This shows that Tranio is not educated (especially not at a university level like Lucento). Similarly, this connects to present day where teens use slang and say “wanna”, “gotta”, etc in casual conversations without being aware of it. Additionally, the amount said by each character portrays their personality. Tranio tends to speak with short, few sentence lines, where as Lucento speaks generally with monologues. This supports that Tranio’s job is to listen and obey, where Lucento is in charge of giving orders.
That's interesting that Shakespeare uses different manners of speech for his different characters– it creates a whole new depth to the play, although it is only a slight change in language. Although Lucento and Tranio are such different characters of varying classes, it will be fascinating to view how Tranio changes his way of speaking through the play– as he must pretend to be Lucento. This will potentially bring character development, and we can analyze this through his speech.
Delete“TRANIO: I pray, sir, tell me, is it possible
ReplyDeleteThat love should of a sudden take such hold?
LUCENTIO: O Tranio, till I found it to be true,
I never thought it possible or likely.
But see, while idly I stood looking on,
I found the effect of love in idleness
And now in plainness do confess to thee
That art to me as secret and as dear
As Anna to the Queen of Carthage was,
Tranio, I burn, I pine, I perish, Tranio,
If I achieve not this young modest girl.
Counsel me, Tranio, for I know thou canst.
Assist me, Tranio, for I know thou wilt.” (I.i. 117-129)
In this passage Shakespeare uses punctuation, repetition and exaggeration to show Lucentio’s new found love for Bianca. Shakespeare is focusing on a question that is still looked at today, is there such thing as love at first sight? Lucentio answers back saying that he did not believe it to be true until he saw the beautiful Bianca. Lucentio says to Tranio, “Tranio, I burn, I pine, I perish, Tranio, If I achieve not this young modest girl” (Lines 126-127). Shakespeare uses the repetition of “Tranio” to give a serious tone to his words and to make the audience feel like Tranio is the only person in the room as Lucentio pours out his love for the lovely Bianca. Shakespeare also uses the repetition of “I” and comas in between each adjective in these lines to emphasize his emotions and make them more personal and dramatic. The commas give the sentence a certain rhythm that allows the reader, or the actor to speak out the adjectives one by one with a brief pause in between each. The actor usually reads each word with more excitement than the word previous thus giving the words more passion and making the words feel more real and convincing. With all this I also noticed that the same foolish act of falling for a fair maiden at first sight is seen in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
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DeleteYour analysis is great, as you rescribed the syntax pretty well, but I think it would also help if you talked more about the diction of this passage. Perhaps you could talk about how Luciento uses a passionate form of diction where he describes how he feels with words such as "burn" "pine" "perish" if he were to not be able to woo Bianca. While you did mention these specific words, I just thought that explaining it more in depth would help with your overall claim. Despite that suggestion I made, it is overall a good claim with good observation on Shakespear's use of syntax for Lucineto's Dialogue.
DeleteWilliam Shakespeare has the character Katharina use vulgar diction, and hyperboles to make her appear as a wicked, disliked character. This is clear when Bianca's suitors speak ill of Katharina, and she retaliates with very threatening language, especially in this passage:
ReplyDelete“GRE. To cart her, rather. She’s too rough for me.— There, there, Hortensio, will you any wife?
KATH. I pray you, sir, is it your will To make a stale of me amongst these mates?
HOR. Mates, maid? How mean you that? No mates for you, Unless you were of gentler, milder mold.
KATH. 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.
HOR. From all such devils, good Lord, deliver us!
GRE. And me too, good Lord!” (I. i. 55-68).
In here, it is clear Katharina’s words prove to be vulgar, because in no society should one person insult another by threatening to harm and humiliate them. Katharina says she has no interest in these men at all, and even if she did, it would be to hurt them. Not only is this vulgar diction as she disrespects potential suitors, but it is a hyperbole as well. This then further exposes her as wicked by making wild claims to humiliate those around her. However she did not get a lot of dialogue in this act, and even if she did, she was portrayed as rude, so as far as the audience knows, Katharina appears ill-mannered. Through her choice of words, and how she expresses what she would like, Katharina is portrayed as a nasty, disliked character.
Shakespeare describes Padua as a virtuous small place full of beauty.. Especially in Lucentio’s description does Padua appear fair and beautiful, because of his tone where words such as “fruitful”, “pleasant”, and “desire” are used. Not only this, but Luciento appears generally happy to be entering Padua. This in turn makes the reader imagine Padua as a flourishing happy little place where only good things happen.
Women are almost portrayed as beings only for marriage in this act. Words such as “woo”, “rough”, and even phrases closely related to “love at first sight” strengthen this theme. Men only wish to woo women in this act and nothing else. All the men ever talk about is just wooing the daughters of Baptista. However, they also describe Katharina as “rough”, but how is it that she is rough when speaking, but they are not when they speak just as rough. Also, building upon this, men fall in love with women upon first sight. This is very clear when Luciento claims he loves Bianca upon first seeing her. This then adds to theme that women are just items that should be delicate and observed so that they may be picked for marriage.
“GREMIO
ReplyDeleteTo car her, rather: She’s too rough for me.—
There, there, Hortensio, will you any wife?
KATHERINE, [to Baptista]
I pray you, sir, is it your will
To make a stale of me amongst these mates?
HORTENSIO
‘Mates,’ maid? How mean you that? No mates for
you,
Unless you were of gentler, milder mold.
KATHERINE
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.
HORTENSIO
From such devils, good Lord, deliver us!
GREMIO [aside to Lucentio]
Husht, master, here’s some good pastime toward;
That wench is stark mad or wonderful forward” (lines 55-70)
In this passage, Shakespeare introduces Katherine, the “shrew,” and uses harsh language to represent her. The suitors, Gremio and Hortensio, perceive Katherine as horrid and unladylike, contrasting her with her sister Bianca. They describe her as “too rough,” suggesting she should be of “gentler, milder mold,” and also speaking of her: “that wench is stark mad.” Throughout the beginning of the act, Katherine is treated poorly and offered as unfavorable as a wife. Further into the act, Shakespeare contrasts the idea of Katherine’s character with her sister, Bianca. Bianca is seen as an “ideal” wife, one that is mild and beautiful. This passage is meant to explore the biases and perceptions of women’s roles in marriage, by Shakespeare’s humorous writing. Gremio and Hortensio, in this setting, represent the view that women’s role in marriage should be submissive and favorable to the man. This is shown through their harsh accusations of Katherine, and their perception of Bianca contrasting with that. Katherine, on the other hand, represents the view that women should not have to sacrifice themselves in order to marry. During this time period, society’s view was very much on the side of Gremio and Hortensio– today, however, things are completely different. Shakespeare taking on this theme in his play could have been very controversial during that time, but very beneficial to the development of society.
I agree with your analysis completely. Another literary device that I saw in this passage was the gentle diction Petruchio uses when talking about a women. He uses "light", "comfortable", and "beauty" which shows how Petruchio looked at girls to be obedient, and beautiful and not do much else. This effects the mood of the reader because he is comparing Katherina to something more calm and beautiful rather than the loud, angry women she is which is different from how everyone else views her
Delete“PETRUCHIO
ReplyDeleteWhy came I hither but to that intent?
Think you a little din can daunt mine ears?
Have I not in my time heard lions roar?
Have I not heard the sea, puffed up with winds,
Rage like an angry boar chafèd with sweat?
Have I not heard great ordnance in the field
And heaven’s artillery thunder in the skies?
Have I not in a pitchèd battle heard
Loud ’larums, neighing steeds, and trumpets clang?
And do you tell me of a woman’s tongue,
That gives not half so great a blow to hear
As will a chestnut in a farmer’s fire?
Tush, tush, fear boys with bugs!” (Act 1, Scene 2, lines 201-213)
By using a series of rhetorical questions followed by an exclamation, Shakespeare builds Petruchio’s character as one who is prideful. In the play, the character Grumio, one of Petruchio’s own servants, expresses doubt in Petruchio’s abilities with the line “Will he woo her? Ay, or I’ll hang her” (Act 1, Scene 2, line 200), to which Petruchio retorts with the above quote. The first line, “Why came I hither but to that intent”, is put in a questioning tone as if it should be obvious what his objective is because he otherwise he would have no reason for coming to Hortensio’s home and planning to go visit Baptista. In the following sentence, din means “a loud, unpleasant, and prolonged noise” equivalent to that of a racket. The phrasing of the sentence as “Think you a little din can daunt mine ears”, followed by several lines that use auditory imagery, a simile, and a metaphor to describe loud sounds occurring in nature, begins to stress Petruchio’s self-importance. By using the word “mine”, he seems to be emphasizing himself. Also, by the way the question is worded, it sounds almost as if Petruchio at least a bit taken aback that this ‘villainous servant’, as he has referred to Grumio as, is questioning him and thinking that he, the master, would simply be deterred because this woman, Katharina, is loud. Starting at line 207, “And heaven’s artillery thunder in the skies”, Petruchio’s auditory imagery shifts from the sounds of nature to that of the battlefield. This also creates a high sense of nobility and pride concerning Petruchio’s character, as the battlefield not only conjures up visions of danger, but noble victory, since he has supposedly seen battle and lived onward. Lines 210-212 give off a scoffing tone as he wonders if a woman can match those thunderous sounds he has witnessed before, which is only enhanced by line 213. Here, he exclaims, “Tush, tush, fear boys with bugs”, which, according to the translation note at the bottom of the page, means, “frighten boys with bugbears”. Upon further research, bugbears in archaic terms is an imaginary being invoked to frighten children, typically a sort of hobgoblin supposed to devour them. By calling others as boys and bringing up the bugbears, it conveys that he is looking down upon them as if they were children because the others were all frightened away from Katharina simply because she is of harsh tongue.
“Petruchio
ReplyDeleteI pray you do; I will attend her here,
And woo her with some spirit when she comes!
[Exeunt Baptista, Gremio, Tranio, and Hortensio]
Say that she rail; why then I’ll tell her plain
She sings as sweetly as a nightingale.
Say that she frown, I’ll say she looks as clear
As morning roses newly wash’d with dew:
Say she be mute and will not speak a word;
Then I’ll commend her volubility,
And say she uttereth piercing eloquence:
If she do bid me pack, I’ll give her thanks
As though she bid me stay by her a week.
If she deny to wed, I’ll crave the day
When I shall ask the banns, and when be married.
But here she comes; and now, Petruchio, speak.” (II.i.161-175).
In this passage, Shakespeare uses repetition, alliteration, and similes to show Petruchio’s dedication to meeting and marrying Katharina. Petruchio, Gremio, Tranio, and Hortensio have just arrived to Baptista’s house to meet his daughters and to propose their “tutors” to help teach Katharina and Bianca, so the suitors for Bianca could meet her personally. However, Petruchio must woo Katharina, who is the “curst” and “shrewd” and is highly unlikeable. Now, he is speaking to himself as Baptista sends her down to meet him. He repeats the phrase “Say that she” or “say she” to emphasize no problem in her personality would sway him away from liking her. To describe these characteristics that he would ignore, Petruchio says several similes. One example is “She sings as sweetly as a nightingale” (164). A nightingale bird is known for its strong and beautiful singing voice, so comparing her singing to this bird truly shows his love for her. Also the alliteration in this simile allows the smooth transition from each “s” sound, to sound like the bird singing, or Katharina talking. Another example of simile is “Say that she frown, I’ll say she looks as clear as morning roses newly wash’d with dew:” (165-166). Again, this simile shows his determination to woo Katharina into liking him, even by going to the extent as saying she is “clear as morning roses”, even though it's known to the reader that she is very rude and obnoxious. Throughout the play, Shakespeare includes many similes to help characterize some of his characters and repeats phrases to add emphasis and extra meaning to them.
Bianca: “Good sister, wrong me not, nor wrong yourself,
ReplyDeleteTo make a bondmaid and a slave of me.
That I disdain” (II.i.1-3).
Kate: “Of all thy suitors here I charge thee tell Whom thou lov’st best. See thou dissemble not” (II.i.8-9).
Bianca and Kate’s relationship connects widely and very similarly to the relationship between Tranio and Lucentio. This is in a sense that there’s one person who’s “better” and “appreciated” more than the other; there’s a hierarchy between the two closely connected characters. There’s also a sense of jealousy and envy between these two different character relationships. William Shakespeare portrays this through syntax and word choice. Bianca is the complete opposite from Kate and that is beginning to show through the second act of the play. For example, Bianca is the loved sister who is prim and proper, therefore, is favored more between the two and is also the reason why she gains more suitors. In the beginning of act two, Kate has tied up Bianca and is forcing her to tell which suitor she is interested in most. Instead of yelling at Kate, Bianca states, “good sister” when asking to be freed, which expresses her controlled and calm personality. Kate’s personality, which is honest and straight forward, is expressed through the fact that she ignores Bianca’s input and continues to ask who she would like to marry. Additionally, the importance of the characters are shown for the fact that when Bianca speaks, it’s generally long monologues. Contradicting that, Kate speaks in short phrases. This shows that people are listening to what Bianca has to say and feels that she is a character of importance compared to Kate.
I really like your analysis of the connections between Bianca and Kate's relationship to Tranio and Lucentio. This idea that one person is "superior" than the other is evident throughout the story. I also agree with your analysis on how Shakespeare uses specific words and phrases to help describe Bianca and Kate's personality.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete“PETRUCHIO: Why, that is nothing. For I tell you, father,
ReplyDeleteI am as peremptory as she proud-minded;
And where two raging fires meet together,
They do consume the thing that feeds their fury.
Though little fire grows great with little wind,
Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire and all.
So I to her and so she yields to me,
For I am rough and woo not like a babe” (II.i. 123-130).
In this passage Petruchio uses confident diction, comparisons, and a fire analogy to prove to Baptista that he is the man for Katherina. Petruchio states “I am as peremptory as she proud-minded” (124) he uses confident diction like “peremptory” and “proud-minded” in this comparison of him and Katherina to show that he is superior to Katherina, he is basically saying that he can handle anything she throws at him. Though he is saying this, the use of confident diction for both him and Katherina also shows that they both hold themselves with immense confidence and they both have power and hold strong opinions. The fact that Katherina and Petruchio are similar in some way gives Petruchio a better chance to end up with Katherina. He then goes on with a fire analogy, “And where two raging fires meet together,/ They do consume the thing that feeds their fury./ Though little fire grows great with little wind,/ Yet extreme gusts will blow out fire and all./ So I to her and so she yields to me” (125-129). Petruchio is saying that if you blow on a fire all you do is fan the flames but a great gust of wind will blow the fire out completely and that he is the great gust to her fire. By saying this he means that no one had been able to calm Katherina down before, or in other words tame the shrew, but he is the man that can do so. Petruchio next says, “For I am rough and woo not like a babe” (130). Here Petruchio is saying that he is a tough guy that gets what he wants. He says that he doesn’t woo like a babe, meaning that he doesn’t flirt like a “baby”, he knows how to win a girl over.
“BAP. What, in my sight? Bianca, get thee in.
ReplyDeleteKATH. What, will you not suffer me? Nay, now I see She is your treasure, she must have a husband, I must dance bare-foot on her wedding day And for your love lead apes in hell. Talk not to me: I will go sit and weep Till I can find occasion of revenge.”(II.i.30-36)
In here for the first time, the audience experiences pity for Katharina rather than thinking of her as a shrewd fiery person. Katharina’s use of metaphors invoke pity from the audience in which they have sympathy for her. When she says her younger sister is her father’s treasure it reveals her as the miserable daughter who believes her father does not love her as much he loves Bianca. This is further strengthened when she exposes her emotions of sadness by saying she is going to “sit and weep”.With this new background of Katharina actually feeling some sort of internal problem it could be concluded that she is not the wicked bitter sister everyone perceives her to be.
Katharina does not envy Bianca in any way at all. This is because she can be like Bianca in any way, but she chooses not be like her at all. Bianca is seen as a delicate young girl who has many suitors. Katharina though is seen as more rough and refuses to be delicate like her younger sister. This is the only difference between the sisters and if Katharina really wanted to, she could be like her sister and have many suitors. Even some of Bianca’s suitors claimed that if Katharina were to act more like her sister she would be a potential wife for them.
Petruchio uses many puns with “Kate” in order to create sexual innuendos. By using puns he hopes to make an effect of possibly wooing her. Petruchio is very good with the words he uses and by putting them in the right context such as this one he is slowly winning Katharina’s love.
I find it interesting that you say that Katherine could be like Bianca, but she simply doesn't want to... This ties back into the class discussion we had, about sacrificing for your loved one. Is it necessary for Katherine to sacrifice herself and her integrity to marry?
DeleteAgreeing with your analysis, it seems that the audience starts to portray Katherine as a human being in that passage, rather than a wild animal that curses and shouts. If Katherine is seen as a real person, could she feel guilt? Do you think it's possible that Katherine feels that she is letting down Bianca, and caves to Petruchio for this? It could be a possibility, and the audience now seeing that she has feelings aids in this realization.
“PETRUCHIO
ReplyDelete… And, will you, nill you, I will marry you.
Now, Kate, I am a husband for your turn,
For by this light, whereby I see thy beauty,
Thy beauty that doth make me like thee well,
Thou must be married to no man but me.
For I am he am born to tame you, Kate,
And bring you from the wild Kate to a Kate
Conformable as other household Kates (Shakespeare, 286-291).
In this passage, Shakespeare adds on to the theme of social roles (in marriage) through Petruchio’s final dialogue. Petruchio, a man, shows his dominance in the passage, suggesting that Katherine have no choice in choosing if they marry or not: “will you, nill you, I will marry you” (286). His straightforwardness and honesty in this passage is so out of ordinary to Katherine, an unpleasant woman, and it leaves her utterly speechless– something uncharacteristic of her quick-witted mouth. Along with this, in the passage Shakespeare mentions the title to the play: “For I am he am born to tame you, Kate” (291). This emphasizes the plot, and reminds the reader that the story is developing right before their eyes. Finally, in this passage, Shakespeare uses repetition of Katherine’s name as “Kate,” in order for Petruchio to make an impact on Katherine, reminding her that it is she he wants. Petruchio says, “bring you from the wild Kate to a Kate / Conformable as other household Kates” (290-291). Petruchio uses the shortened “Kate” rather than Katherine to show that she is something special to him, that he should call her something different than the rest of the characters. Also in lines 290-291, Petruchio is suggesting that wives should be changed in marriage to suit the husband. This is a theme through the play, and portrayed through comedy. Specifically, Petruchio is saying that Kate is out of the ordinary and should be “conformable as other household Kates,” or should be milder as other wives are.
I agree with your analysis completely. Another literary device that I saw in this passage was the gentle diction Petruchio uses when talking about a women. He uses "light", "comfortable", and "beauty" which shows how Petruchio looked at girls to be obedient, and beautiful and not do much else. This effects the mood of the reader because he is comparing Katherina to something more calm and beautiful rather than the loud, angry women she is which is different from how everyone else views her
Delete“PETRUCHIO
ReplyDeleteDid ever Dian so become a grove
As Kate this chamber with her princely gait?
O, be thou Dian and let her be Kate,
And then let Kate be chaste and Dian sportful” (Act II, Scene I, lines 273-276).
Within this quote, the Dian that Petruchio refers to is Diana, the Roman goddess chastity, wild animals, and the hunt. She is often associated with the Greek goddess Artemis, and also later took over Luna’s role as being goddess of the moon. Even though she was considered a goddess of fertility and childbirth, Diana swore never to marry and forever remained a maiden. In this excerpt, Petruchio is comparing Katharina to the goddess Diana, which is quite the fitting due to Katharina’s nature. Neither of them hold back and often express their wrath openly, such as how Katharina slapped her sister or bashed the lute over Hortensio’s head when provoked while Diana/Artemis once turned a man into a deer and had her dogs hunt/kill him because he accidentally stumbled across her whilst she was bathing. However, in this sense Petruchio is comparing Diana to Katharina in order to compliment and flatter her, something that was a part of his plans to woo her over. Earlier in this Act, Petruchio has a soliloquy in which he states: “Say that she rail; why then I’ll tell her plain / She sings as sweetly as a nightingale: / Say that she frown, I’ll say she looks as clear / As morning roses newly wash’d with dew: / Say she be mute and will not speak a word; / Then I’ll commend her volubility, / And say she uttereth piercing eloquence: / If she do bid me pack, I’ll give her thanks / As though she bid me stay by her a week. / If she deny to wed, I’ll crave the day / When I shall ask the banns, and when be married. / But here she comes; and now, Petruchio, speak” (Act II, Scene I, 161-175). In this soliloquy, he informs the audience of his plans that no matter what Katharina says or does, whether it be yelling or muteness, he will compliment her all the same and win her favor through flattery. He is then seen carrying this plan out as he banters back and forth with Katharina, turning her words and insults into sexual innuendo and flattery. One of these examples is the quote above, with Petruchio’s intention of comparing Katharina to Diana being to say that Katharina’s beauty is like that of a goddess. With the soliloquy, the play on words, and the reference to Roman mythology in this Act, Shakespeare builds Petruchio’s character to be that of a cunning and suave young man who is willing to go to great lengths to achieve what he desires.
Your analysis is really good, and I agree with the points you make about Petruchio. I would like to also add in other examples of him using her negative qualities as compliments. For an example when she insults him by calling him a stool(II. i.), he simply replied back with a pun. If I were you, I would also go more in depth with then puns he countered her insults with, as it strengthens your argument that Petruchio is truly a cunning keen character.
DeletePETRUCHIO
ReplyDelete“I will be master of what is mine own:
She is my goods, my chattels; she is my house,
My household stuff, my field, my farm, my barn,
My horse, my ox, my ass, my any thing;
And here she stands, touch her whoever dare;
I’ll bring mine action on the proudest he
That stops my way in Padua. Grumio,
Draw forth thy weapon, we are beset with thieves;
Rescue thy mistress, if thou be a man.
Fear not, sweet wench, they shall not touch thee, Kate:
I’ll buckler thee against a million.” (III.ii.235-246)
In this passage, Petruchio is speaking to the crowd about his soon to be wife, Katharina. In the beginning of Petruchio’s commentary, he is saying to follow the bride's orders. But then the tone of the passage changes once he says “I will be master of what is mine own” (235). This sentence shows Petruchio’s opinion on his role in marriage, which is the man definitely rules the wife. He repeats the word “nor” to show his denial of any doubt that she is Petruchio’s possession. To show more evidence for this, he repeats the word “my” to show his ownership of Katharina, and mentions several things that he “owns”. he even goes as far as saying she is animals, including “my ass”. To go as far as using vulgar language for his wife shows this marriage inequality further. He also that he will fight “against a million” for her, which seems romantic but sounds more like Petruchio is just protecting his property. Ironically, Katharina’s personality was very selfish and she didn’t like being controlled by authority, or more specifically her father. But now, she is “owned” by Petruchio, who treats her like dirt and a superior figure. There is a very obvious change in tone from Act II to Act III. In Act II, Petruchio seemed like a kind gentleman who was trying to woo Katharina into actually liking him. But in Act III, it seems that Petruchio has just accepted that Katharina is marrying him and is now expressing his wanting for her money indirectly by saying that he “owns” her. This passage expresses the common motif of marriage inequality during this era, especially that the woman was just used for her dowry and/or bearing children.
I agree with your analysis and about how each character perceives gender roles. Do you think that the change Petruchio is having in each act is going to foreshadow how successful their marriage is going to be? How happy do you think Kate is with the marriage at the time of act three? I also agree with the fact that you mentioned Petruchio only wants Kate for property even though it may sound romantic.
DeleteI also picked this passage and I also agree with your analysis. I also thought that through the repetition, Petruchio claimed Katherine as his "property". He only married her for the money and wealth that he could gain. I also thought it was interesting how, before in the scene. he was not really dressed formal for a wedding and seemed to not really care. Could this also foreshadow how their marriage will be in the later acts? (No one blogged theirs in my group and I don't want to stay up to wait for them.)
Delete“Katherine: No shame but mine. I must, forsooth, be forced To give my hand, opposed against my heart…” (III.ii.9-20).
ReplyDeleteIn Kathrine’s monologue, the audience see’s Kate’s feminism shine through as she mocks the gender stereotypes. Originally, most of her phrases and lines are short and concise, however, this time, Shakespeare allows this passage to be remembered by making it long and emotional. Kate is tired of being pressured into getting married (and married soon) and the fact that she doesn’t get a say in the marriage at all because of the fact that she’s a woman. With the phrase “no shame but mine”, Shakespeare allows audiences to understand that the women were blamed for all the issues when it came to relationships. On line fifteen to seventeen, Katherine proclaims, “He’ll woo a thousand, ’point the day of marriage,/ Make friends, invite, and proclaim the banns,/Yet never means to wed where he hath wooed” to suggest that she does not really want to be married. It’s fine for men to be single and “date around”, but when it comes to women, there’s the connotation that they must be married, settling, and beginning to start a family at a young age for that is all of their “worth”. Katherine is tired of this stereotype and refuses to be Petruchio’s “property”. Additionally, this portrays Katherine as an independent woman and as very bold, especially for her time period. She’s feisty and stubborn, which makes her different from Bianca and the rest of society. Especially when people are pressuring her to be the “norm” when it comes to “acting like a female”.
I completely agree with your analysis– Shakespeare's input of a monologue in this point of the story really allows the audience to connect with Katherine, and see her as a true person, even somewhat of a victim. It takes on a very controversial idea in society, that men can date around and women should stay loyal... interesting that this idea was being explored by Shakespeare during this time period. I'm curious if Shakespeare received criticism for this play, for suggesting that women could be more independent and mocking the idea of marriage through a comedy.
Delete“Katherina: Gentlemen, forward to the bridal dinner.
ReplyDeleteI see a woman may be made a fool
If she had not a spirit to resist.” (III.ii.192-194)
This quote completely embodies everything Katherina stands for. Katherina is independent, making her feel out of place in her society. Due to her intelligence and independence she is unwilling to pleasing her society's beliefs of how a perfect women should act. She clearly abhors society’s expectations because she does not fit them. Being the feminist and independent women Katherina is she does not understand why girls must act the way they do to be looked at as attractive by men in her society. Katherina is more common to what an american girl in this day and age is like; she believes that men and women are more equal than society makes them out to be and she sticks up for what she believes in, she understands that she has to be more than just a beautiful face to have the man of her dreams because the man she is truly looking for is not a shallow man like Petruchio. Instead he is a man who can truly treat a women with respect rather than as a possession. However she does not know if a man like that exist where she is from. What Katherina is saying here is, “if a women does not have the nerve to stand up for herself then she will forever be made a fool of rather than respected”. However instead of being respected for standing up for what she believes in Katherina is looked at as a beast. I thought this sentence was powerful and relatable to every girl, in even our society today, it also really helped with the development of Katharina’s character in this story.
I like your analysis on how Katharina is independent in societal standards and differs from a typical woman during this time period. I also agree with your connection to society today, and how women are now becoming more independent and wanting independence and showing their feminism publicly. I like how you also emphasize the point that she is a symbol of equality for men and women, and that Petruchio only proves this inequality during the Elizabethan time period to be true. Overall, great analysis.
DeleteTRANIO [as LUCENTIO]
ReplyDeleteSee not your bride in these unreverent robes.
Go to my chamber, put on clothes of mine.
PETRUCHIO
Not I, believe me. Thus I’ll visit her.
BAPTISTA
But thus, I trust, you will not marry her.
PETRUCHIO
Good sooth, even thus. Therefore, ha’ done with
words.
To me she’s married, not unto my clothes.
Could I repair what she will wear in me,
As I can change these poor accoutrements,
‘Twere well for Kate and better for myself.”
This passage occurs shortly after Petruchio arrives late, dressed in his ridiculous outfit. Tranio suggests Petruchio to go change, though he refuses and gives off an interesting idea, especially for the time period in which this play was made. Petruchio say, “’To me she’s married, not unto my clothes. / Could I repair what she will wear in me, / As I can change these poor accoutrements, / ‘Twere well for Kate and better for myself’” (lines 119-122). Here, Petruchio describes how the materialism of clothes are unimportant in marriage, for Kate is marrying to him and not his clothes. Along with this, he claims that Kate will wear him out faster than his worn out clothes will tear– suggesting that Kate does have independence and power in their relationship, something he contradicts with in the next scene. In the next scene, Petruchio says things such as “I will be master of what is mine own.— / She is my goods, my chattels” (lines 235-236). This contrasts with his previous idea, suggesting that women are possessions, and that he owns Kate in the marriage. This idea that women have liberty in a relationship is also foreign to the time period. While Shakespeare was alive, women were solely for homemaking, encouraged to be passive and listen to the men of the household. Kate is an anomaly in the play, completely different from the normal, passive women. I find it interesting that Petruchio puts on this show of opposite extremes, telling Baptista, Katherine’s father, that she will have independence, and in front of the entire community he belittles her and “tames” her. Perhaps his view is somewhere in the middle, instead of these differing perspectives on marriage.
Your idea of interpreting this passage in very interesting, and I completely agree with your point of Petruchio slowly taming Katharina. I myself view this as Katharina the "shrew" is becoming a slave to social customs strongly because of Petruchio's influence on her. I think this could also be a message that women will always serve the same role in society no matter how independent they may seem. Clearly today this idea would never be supported with any solid evidence, but back in Shakespeare's time it would have been the most popular idea. Although we may have the same interpretations of this passage, the evidence you have used was very strong and enlightening to support your idea of Katharina becoming tamed.
DeleteIn this passage Katharina, is given more human qualities and the dialogue that follows this even gives her pity as well as sympathy for the humiliation she has just faced.
ReplyDelete“KAT.
No shame but mine. I must, forsooth, be forced. To give my hand opposed against my heart. Unto a mad-brain rudesby, full of spleen, Who wooed in haste and means to wed at leisure.
I told you, I, he was a frantic fool, Hiding his bitter jests in blunt behavior. And to be noted for a merry man, He’ll woo a thousand, ‘point the day of marriage, Make friends, invite, and proclaim the banns, Yet never means to wed where he hath wooed. Now must the world point at poor Katherine And say, “Lo, there is mad Petruchio’s wife, If it would please him come and marry her.” (III.ii.8-20).
Shakespeare has Katharina use metaphors to express the pain and humiliation she must have felt from Petruchio not arriving, which gives her sympathy as well as human qualities and leaves a more profound effect of her appearing less of a shrew. Katharina says “Hiding her bitter jests in blunt behavior”, which is a metaphor of Petruchio hiding his insanity behind a subtle behavior. This then leaves the audience feeling sympathy for the way Katharina was just treated and the situation she is placed in. Along with expression of Katharina’s feelings and her sadness, she then runs off weeping, which not only gives her even more sympathetic qualities, but gathers her father’s condolences as well. With this a connection could be made between the audience and Katharina, with the addition of establishing Katharina as a prime character to them as well.
“BIONDELLO
ReplyDeleteWhy, Petruchio is coming in a new hat and
an old jerkin, a pair of old breeches thrice turned,
a pair of boots that have been candle-cases, one
buckled, another laced; an old rusty sword ta’en
out of the town armory, with a broken hilt, and
chapeless; with two broken points; his horse
hipped, with an old mothy saddle and stirrups of no
kindred, besides possessed with the glanders and
like to mose in the chine, troubled with the lampass,
infected with the fashions, full of windgalls,
sped with spavins, rayed with the yellows, past cure
of the fives, stark spoiled with the staggers, begnawn
with the bots, swayed in the back and shoulder-shotten,
near-legged before, and with a half-checked
bit and a headstall of sheep’s leather,
which, being restrained to keep him from stumbling,
hath been often burst, and now repaired with
knots; one girth six times pieced, and a woman’s
crupper of velour, which hath two letters for her
name fairly set down in studs, and here and there
pieced with packthread.” (III. ii. 42-62)
In this excerpt, Biondello is describing in detail the attire that Petruchio has donned for this supposedly very important event and by what transportation the groom arrives. Given by how the others react, such as Tranio (disguised as Lucentio) saying, “See not your bride in these unreverent robes. / Go to my chamber, put on clothes of mine” (III. ii. 113-114), Petruchio’s chosen style of dress isn’t well-suited for the occasion. He’s dressed in a rather odd assortment of clothes, wearing mostly olden and worn-down clothing, but then with a new hat perched upon his head. The fact that Petruchio, this wealthy and cunning young man who was brought up among nobility, wore such ill-fitting clothes to his own wedding portrays a slight sense of apathy, as if he just doesn’t all that much about the ceremony. Another example to support that conclusion is that Gremio tells of how, during the ceremony, “…he; and swore so loud, / That, all amazed, the priest let fall the book; / And, as he stoop’d again to take it up, / This mad-brain’d bridegroom took him such a cuff, / That down fell the priest and book, and book and priest”. Or even his, Petruchio’s, behavior afterwards in wanting to leave so suddenly despite all the others asking for him to tarry longer, all show more of his irreverent and frankly rude personality. These behaviors portray him as pompous and uncaring, seeing everything else as a game and getting irritated when things don’t go his way.
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Delete“NATHANIEL: Peter, didst ever see the like?
ReplyDeletePETER: He kills her in her own humor.” (IV.i.179-180).
“HORTENSIO [to KATHERINE]: Say as he says, or we shall never go.” (IV.v.13).
A prominent factor of Shakespeare’s writing is his use of many minor characters. In this case, this relates to the many slaves and servants who seem to have little relevance due to their short and few lines spoken along with their little appearance. However, in both scenes one and scene five of act four they have a hidden yet deep importance. For starters, these characters create a relationship between the audience and the actors/ main characters of this play. They tend to create dramatic irony due to the information given to the audience by “breaking the fourth wall” as people in the theatre say. When the servants prepare for Petruchio and Kate to come home, they work hard to prepare everything nicely and well for their masters. This all changes when Petruchio criticizes the food and bed and tells Kate she should avoid sleeping and eating. Later the servants Nathaniel and Peter acknowledge this and discuss if they’ve ever seen a relationship as odd as them. However Peter reassures Nathaniel that the purpose of Petruchio acting this way is to “tame” Kate. From the help of the minor characters, the audience is able to understand the actions of the main characters through the perspective of a narrator. They process the events happening so the audience does not have to. Additionally, the same scenario happens with Hortensio in scene five when he tells Kate to just agree with everything Petruchio says. Minor characters like Hortensio, Nathaniel, and Peter are not interacted with very much by the main characters, however they show the direction of the plot (in a positive or negative manner) and add to the characterization of the main characters. In both scenarios, the characters support the fact that Petruchio feels a need to be dominant and has a purpose for marrying Kate.
Enter one with water.
ReplyDelete154 Come, Kate, and wash, and welcome heartily.
155 You whoreson villain! will you let it fall?
[Strikes him.]
KATHARINA
156 Patience, I pray you; 'twas a fault unwilling.
PETRUCHIO
157 A whoreson beetle-headed, flap-ear'd knave!
158 Come, Kate, sit down; I know you have a stomach.
159 Will you give thanks, sweet Kate; or else shall I?
160 What's this? mutton?
First Servant
160 Ay.
PETRUCHIO
160 Who brought it?
PETER
160 I.
PETRUCHIO
161 'Tis burnt; and so is all the meat.
162 What dogs are these! Where is the rascal cook?
163 How durst you, villains, bring it from the dresser,
164 And serve it thus to me that love it not?
165 There, take it to you, trenchers, cups, and all;
[Throws the trenchers, etc. at them.]
166 You heedless joltheads and unmanner'd slaves!
167 What, do you grumble? I'll be with you straight.
KATHARINA
168 I pray you, husband, be not so disquiet:
169 The meat was well, if you were so contented.
PETRUCHIO
170 I tell thee, Kate, 'twas burnt and dried away;
171 And I expressly am forbid to touch it,
172 For it engenders choler, planteth anger;
173 And better 'twere that both of us did fast,
174 Since, of ourselves, ourselves are choleric,
175 Than feed it with such over-roasted flesh.
176 Be patient; tomorrow 't shall be mended,
177 And, for this night, we'll fast for company:
178 Come, I will bring thee to thy bridal chamber.
This passage show the control that Petruchio wants to exhibit over Kate. In this excerpt Kate is trying to get a meal, but Petruchio has decided he is going to tame like a bird and control her food intake in order to break her will. He denies Kate’s food by enforcing his authority over his servants and sends the food back saying that it isn’t perfect enough for her (177-178). By doing this he puts on a facade of a loving husband while in reality he is trying to “tame” the “shrew” that is Kate. His view of this being the best way to deal with her behavior enforces the view that women were possessions and were supposed to be obedient to their husbands’ wishes. This view of women conflicts with Kate’s character and is the main reason why Petruchio is bent on “taming” her. He punishes the servants very harshly for any mistake so Kate will be more worn out by trying to calm down Petruchio in his outbursts. It also allows him to exhibit the fact that he has control over his household, which includes Kate. It is also used a mild form of a scare tactic by showing Kate that disobedience is not tolerated at all. Later Petruchio tell the audience, in his monologue, that his objective is to “kill” Kate’s spirit and will to resist with “kindness” and through wearing her down by denying her basic resources. This further solidifies Petruchio's characters being chauvinistic and further solidifies the view of women in this time period.
Completely agree with your analysis. Petruchio even compares his plan to tame Kate to that of a man domesticating a falcon. It is interesting, because through research I've found that raptors (birds of prey) are not affectionate beings. Kate, which is the bird of prey in this instance, has been shown throughout the play that she is harsh and rough towards others, relating to the raptors inability to show affection. Petruchio saw this, and thought that the only way to tame a wild animal is to weaken them, as you said, and then offer his kindness.
DeletePetruchio: “Thus have I politicly begun my reign,
ReplyDeleteAnd ‘t is my hope to end successfully.
My falcon now is sharp and passing empty;
And till she stoop she must not be full-gorged,
For then she never looks upon her lure.
Another way I have to man my haggard,
To make her come and know her keeper’s call,
That is, to watch her, as we watch these kites
That bate and beat and will not be obedient.
She eat no meat to-day, nor none shall eat;
Last night she slept not, nor to-night she shall not;
As with the meat, some undeserved fault
I’ll find about the making of the bed;
And here I’ll fling the pillow, there the bolster,
This way the coverlet, another way the sheets:
Ay, and amid this hurly I intend
That all is done in reverend care of her;
And in conclusion she shall watch all night;
And if she chance to nod, I’ll rail and brawl,
And with the clamour keep her still awake.
This is the way to kill a wife with kindness;
And thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humour.
He that knows better how to tame a shrew,
Now let him speak: ‘t is charity to show.” (IV.i.169-192)
In the end of Act VI scene i, there is a soliloquy by Petruchio describing his intent on “taming” his new bride, Katharina. During the scene, he does not allow her to eat any food, even though she is hungry. He relates to this action in his monologue, as she is the falcon, and cannot eat “her lure” or food. The first line of the passage introduces the idea that Petruchio is planning on “ruling” Katharina’s life. Shakespeare uses the word “politicly” to show how much intent Petruchio put into his plan on beginning his “reign.” This again references to the theme in the story of male dominance in marriage at that time, and how completely controlling the male was over his wife. Petruchio goes on to say he will also prevent her from sleeping. However, amid all the madness, he says “that all is done in reverend care of her”. He says this to the audience because he in fact truly cares about her. He wants to “kill a wife with kindness” and “curb her mad and headstrong humour” to become a more fitting wife for himself. Petruchio also says “‘t is charity to show’”, which could mean that he believes that he is doing Katharina a favor by making her more womanly and like Bianca. Also in the passage, it can be clearly shown how Shakespeare wants the iambic pentameter of the play to stay consistent by changing some of the spelling in the words. In this passage specifically, it helps not disrupt the flow of Petruchio’s speech and shows Petruchio’s persistence on trying to “tame” Katharina.
Yes your analysis/interpretation of Petruchio's soliloquy is very good, and I agree with it however, there are some parts I would to it. The whole point of this passage is Petruchio revealing his true intentions as to how he would Katharina. In here he compares Kate to more of a pet than a wife as he uses words such as he says he is the keeper, she is the falcon, and he will tame her. With this in mind, we the audience learn he greatly dehumanizes his wife, and wishes to make her a fit wife in his eyes. On top of this, we learn that Petruchio sees a fit wife as a wife who obeys and succumbs to her husband's every command, and I would add that this was the social norm of the time. Although I would have added these smaller details into your interpretation's evidence of Petruchio's characterization, I see you have other great pieces of evidence and that goes nicely with your claim.
Delete“PETRUCHIO
ReplyDeleteThus have I politicly begun my reign,
And ‘tis my hope to end successfully.
My falcon now is sharp and passing empty,
And, till she stoop, she must not be full-gorged,
For then she never looks upon her lure.
Another way I have to man my haggard,
To make her come and know her keeper’s call.
That is, to watch her, as we watch these kites
That bate and beat and will not be obedient.
She ate no meat today, nor none shall eat.
Last night she slept not, nor tonight she shall not.
As with the meat, some undeserved fault
I’ll find about the making of the bed,
And here I’ll fling the pillow, there the bolster,
This way the coverlet, another way the sheets.
Ay, and amid this hurly I intend
That all is done in reverend care of her.
And, in conclusion, she shall watch all night.
And, if she chance to nod, I’ll rail and brawl,
And with the clamor keep her still awake.
This is a way to kill a wife with kindness.
And thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humor.
He that knows better how to tame a shrew,
Now let him speak; ‘tis charity to shrew” (lines 188-211).
This passage features Petruchio’s true intentions behind his outrageous behavior seen immediately before. He had been complaining and shouting at his servants, all with an ulterior motive. These actions all serve as his plan to “tame a shrew.” In the passage, Petruchio refers to Kate, the shrew, as a “falcon,” comparing the art of domesticating birds for hunting to fixing his wife’s wild behavior. The art of training falcons for hunting is known as “falconry.” Petruchio says various phrases related to falconry: “My falcon now is sharp and passing empty” (190), “To make her come and know her keeper’s call” (194), “as we watch these kites / That bate and beat and will not be obedient” (195-196). Something to note about this practice, is that it is incredibly difficult and time consuming, requiring patience and skill. The bird you train must be able fly freely and willingly return to the master. This is what Petruchio is after– he intends to train Katherine in this way, attempting to tame her personality: “thus I’ll curb her mad and headstrong humor” (209). The way he plans to tame his shrew, in this sense, is by depriving her of her necessities (food, sleep) and acting as Kate had before (wildly), while claiming that those actions are out of love. Petruchio relates this as “a way to kill a wife with kindness” (line 208). He has claimed that nothing is good enough for his wife, so she should get nothing at all. This is Petruchio’s plan to tame Kate, like a hawk, and he proudly presents it to all of the servants around.
HORTENSIO
ReplyDelete(to KATHERINE) Say as he says, or we shall never go.
KATHERINE
Forward, I pray, since we have come so far,
And be it moon, or sun, or what you please.
An if you please to call it a rush candle,
Henceforth I vow it shall be so for me.
PETRUCHIO
I say it is the moon
KATHERINE
I know it is the moon.
PETRUCHIO
Nay, then you lie. It is the blessèd sun
KATHERINE
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.
It is the blessèd sun. (IV.V.13-23)
In this passage Katherina is being tamed for the first time. Petruchio, Katherina, and Hortensio are on a journey back to Padua when Petruchio continues his relentless attempts to persuade Katharina to accept his authority as her husband. Every other attempt Petruchio has used to tame Katherina, previous to this one, she has fought back and spoke her word and held true to it. However in this scene, even though she fights back at first, Katherina has no more energy or patience to put up with Petruchio’s silly games. She finally obeys his crazy, stupid wish for the sun to be the moon, even though it is the middle of the day. Shortly after this incident in the play Petruchio tests Katherina again when he sees and old man on the streets of Padua and claims that this man is a young, fair maiden. This time Katherina immediately obeys Petruchio but then Petruchio tells Katherine that she is mistaken. Though Petruchio is now just being unnecessarily irritating Katherina still continues to play along. This goes to show that Petruchio is finally beginning to tame Katherina and make her obey his every command no matter how ridiculous. Petruchio might as well define reality for her from this point forward. After this victory, Katherina can only resist Petruchio’s authority halfheartedly, and her taming is nearly complete. Katherina is not just being “tamed” Petruchio is training her to never think for herself and instead follow his every command. It is sickening and shows how in this time women were treated and expected to be like mindless animals that would follow a man's every wish because men were always right. Shakespeare shows the intensity of Petruchio’s taming by having him say such irritable, stupid request that even the women in the audience would not obey.
I really like your analysis of this passage of the play. This is indeed the turning point of trying to tame Katharina. No matter how ridiculous the command that Petruchio says, Katharina is now starting to listen and change. I like to compare Katharina in this stage of her taming as a stereotypical wife during this era, as most wives had to obey every order given by their male counterparts. I would also add that some of these commands make Katharina look really stupid, which could show how woman were considered "stupider" during this time.
Delete“Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak,
ReplyDeleteAnd speak I will. I am no child, no babe.
Your betters have endured me say my mind,
And if you cannot, best you stop your ears.
My tongue will tell the anger of my heart,
Or else my heart concealing it will break,
And rather than it shall, I will be free
Even to the uttermost, as I please, in words” (IV.i.78-85).
Katharina uses metaphors, and a different tone when speaking to Grumio in this quote in order to reveal her emotions. In short this passage is Katharina explaining how she wants to speak what on her mind, because if she is unable to then she would suffer. She expresses this using metaphors such as claiming how her heart would break if she stays quiet. On top of this she has a different tone when speaking to Grumio. This tone is more of a pitiful, longing tone, in her greatest wish is just to have people listen to her. This is different from her other tones, such as the rebellious yet more understanding tone when speaking to Petruchio, and her savage tone when speaking to her younger sister’s suitors. By understanding Katharina’s usage of metaphors and tone, her personality as a character is further revealed as a word deprived woman who only wishes to speak what she wants, and not succumb to the orders of others.
Later on in this act, it is revealed that Katharina has finally succumbed to Petruchio’s commands/claims and it appears Katharina has been tamed, which I agree with. By using the previous passage, it is logical to piece together that if Katharina were not to be tamed at this time, it would be visible for the audience to see that she is struggling. That is because she does say that if she does not speak what is true to her in her mind she would be hurt, but on the road to Padua with Petruchio she agrees with all of his false claims, which she knows to be true.
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ReplyDelete“KATHERINE
ReplyDeleteFie, fie! Unknit that threat'ning unkind brow
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor.
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty,
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body
To painful labor both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience—
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince,
Even such a woman oweth to her husband.
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will,
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
I am ashamed that women are so simple
To offer war where they should kneel for peace;
Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway
When they are bound to serve, love, and obey.
Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,
Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,
But that our soft conditions and our hearts
Should well agree with our external parts?
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!
My mind hath been as big as one of yours,
My heart as great, my reason haply more,
To bandy word for word and frown for frown.
But now I see our lances are but straws,
Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare,
That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.
Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,
And place your hands below your husband’s foot:
In token of which duty, if he please,
My hand is ready, may it do him ease.” (V.ii.145–189)
If someone were to tell me that Katherina said this speech when I first began reading this book, I would have laughed in their face. This quote really shows how much of a dynamic character Katherina is. Katherina stands out as a very unique, powerful woman figure at the beginning of this play, she begins with the same ideas a typical American woman would have today or even with the ideas of a modern day feminist. She stays true to her beliefs and doesn’t let anyone tell her what is right from wrong. However, in this time period, this indepent, know-it-all, confident type of women was very unique, outspoken, frowned upon, and was even looked at as unattractive by men. One thing this speech really shows, now bear with me here, is the power of love. Love can truly blind someone and make them act completely different when they are around their loved one compared to when they are alone. Shakespeare often portrays the theme that love can blind a person and veer them away from their normal self. Examples of this are seen through the changes of Katherina due to her love for Petruchio. However, this is also seen in many other characters in this play like Lucentio, Lucentio came to Padua with the intent to study, he has his life goals set and is ready to take them on step by step. However, once Lucentio stumbles upon the fair maiden Bianca he is instantly lovestruck and becomes blinded by love. After seeing Bianca, Lucentio completely forgets about his studies and his only motifs in life all become centered around Bianca. This passage really shows how much of an impact love can make on a person and how it can truly blind them from everything they once lived for,
I thought that your take on love being blinding/changing people's perspectives was very captivating. Especially when you connected Petruchio and Kate's relationship to Bianca and Lucentio's relationship, when the sisters have never had anything in common. I'm still not sure if this scene proves that Kate was tamed, or whether or not she was mocking Petruchio and the rest of the men. I think that the speech is a little too much of a drastic quick change. It's possible that she she was just stating when Petruchio said in order to please him when in reality she knows better such as with the sun and the moon.
Delete“PETRUCHIO: First kiss me, Kate, and we will.
ReplyDeleteKATE: What, in the midst of the street?
PETRUCHIO: What, art thou ashamed of me?
KATE: No, sir, God forbid, but ashamed to kiss.
PETRUCHIO: Why, then, let’s home again. (to GRUMIO) Come, sirrah, let’s away.
KATHERINE: Nay, I will give thee a kiss.
She kisses him.
Now pray thee, love, stay.
PETRUCHIO: Is not this well? Come, my sweet Kate. Better once than never, for never too late” (V.ii.146-156).
In this scene, there is a drastic change between Kate’s character development from the beginning of the play to the end of the play that is emphasized. It’s the most prominent in this scene to focus the end of the play and the “final transformation” of Kate. When Petruchio tells Kate to kiss him, it is initially shocking that she does not give a sassy, bold, and over-whelming response like she usually would with anyone (even her father). In fact, she responds to this statement as a prim and proper young lady would. Then, Kate expresses that she refuses to kiss him because she’s “ashamed” to kiss. Throughout this play Kate has not expressed that she is ashamed in any form, for that is more something Bianca, her foil, would do. For the first time, Petruchio has made Kate feel (or at least express) an emotion she never has before, which supports that Petruchio was “successful” in taming her and making her change her personality. Additionally, the same goes for Kate and questioning her morals. When Kate refuses to kiss Petruchio out of being uncomfortable, he is insensitive and threatens to leave. This threat makes Kate take back her words and do as he wants (as Petruchio planned). Similarly, to a domesticated pet, Kate follows orders based on what Petruchio wants, and her obedience to him proves that in their relationship, Kate is not considered equal in Petruchio’s eyes. When Petruchio states, “Better once than never, for never too late,” he means that it’s never too late to change, referring to Kate’s attitude. Even though she has been a certain way all her life, Petruchio is still confident that he can make her “better”.
I agree that Kate follows orders based on Petruchio's wants, but I also think it's dependent on her wishes, as well. The way that Petruchio planned to "tame" Katherine was quite extreme. He deprived her of food, clothing, and sleep, all claiming it was out of love. It seemed that Katherine could never get anything she wanted, because Petruchio was always taking it away out of "love." In this scene, Katherine wants to stay, but Petruchio will not unless he receives a kiss. So, in order for Katherine to get what she wants, she must obey, otherwise he will deprive her of her needs (and she knows he can do that). As you said, it is similar to a domesticated pet. Think of teaching a dog how to do the command "sit." Does the dog learn to sit eventually out of love for its owner, or does the dog learn to sit because it knows its owner will give it what it wants (a treat)? If you look at it in this way, Katherine could be only "obeying" Petruchio because it is a way for her to get what she wants. Perhaps she appears to be submissive, but that is only her way to ensure that she stays happy.
Delete“KATHERINE
ReplyDelete…
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body
To painful labor both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience—
Too little payment for so great a debt” (155-163).
Katherine’s speech not only shows her dramatic evolution as a character, but it also brings to light the various social roles in marriage during the time period (the 16th century). Her speech showed off her intelligence, first of all– Katherine was able to recognize that Petruchio was treating Kate poorly as part of a bet, and in turn she follows every order given to her, throwing away her pride. Also, Katherine completely contrasts her character from the beginning of the play. In the first act, Katherine was striking her peers, spitting in their faces and insulting everyone around her. As the play progressed, she grew more passive and submissive to Petruchio, all part of his plan to “tame” her. For example, in this excerpt, Katherine lectures the other women on how they should treat their husbands, seemingly throwing away her beliefs from Act I. Katherine says, “Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper, / Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee, / And for thy maintenance commits his body / To painful labor both by sea and land” (lines 155-159). Here, Katherine is explaining the superiority of men over the women– that because they work hard for them, it is the least that women can do to treat them with respect and listen to their wishes. This was a common belief in the 16th century, and continued all the way to the 20th century, where women gained various rights and more independence. All throughout history, women have relied on men to support them and care for them– women simply giving love in return. This is how Katherine explains marriage to her peers, as a relationship between a king and servant, the man working for his wife and the woman obeying her husband in return. Though it’s very different to today’s beliefs, this is how it was in history!
Pedant
ReplyDelete30 Thou liest: his father is come from Padua and here
31 looking out at the window.
VINCENTIO
32 Art thou his father?
Pedant
33 Ay, sir; so his mother says, if I may believe
34 her.
PETRUCHIO [To VINCENTIO.]
35 Why, how now, gentleman! Why,
36 this is flat knavery, to take upon you
37 another man's name.
This is the part in the play where the disguises that the characters put on are stripped away when faced with their true counterpart. This forces the characters to reveal their true identities and come to terms with what has gone on in secret. The actions that happen whilst the disguises hold up end up binding people together. This is especially true in Lucentio, Bianca and Baptista’s case since they become related by marriage. This stripping of the disguise also forces the characters to start the process of rediscovering themselves through the wearing of another’s face. It also signals the end of falsehood in the play. An example of this can be seen in Kate’s speech where she shows that she has softened as a character and isn’t as harsh to others. This is also the point where Petruchio’s visage of a harsh, cruel man is stripped and the Petruchio that was evident at the start of the play is back. This point in the play is also the point where the “shrews” are supposed to be ”tamed” changing their character. It also juxtaposes the men’s disguises with one of their own. After the men reveal themselves the women must conceal their true personalities with one contrary to their own. So while the men are freed the women are trapped under society.
(V.ii.196-206)
ReplyDeletePetruchio: Why, there’s a wench! Come on, and kiss me, Kate.
Lucentio: Well, go thy ways, old lad, for thou shalt ha ’t.
Vincentio: ’Tis a good hearing when children are toward.
Lucentio: But a harsh hearing when women are froward.
Petruchio: Come, Kate, we’ll to bed.
We three are married, but you two are sped.
’Twas I won the wager, though you hit the white;
And being a winner, God give you good night!
Hortensio: Now, go thy ways, thou hast tamed a curst shrow.
Lucentio:’Tis a wonder, by your leave, she will be tamed so.
In this passage, it shows the summary of events in Act V. Shakespeare uses a rhyming scheme and repetition to help share the theme of marriage inequality and the misogyny that is present throughout the story. Katharina just presented a dramatic monologue on how women should kneel down to their husbands and listen to whatever they say. This shows her indefinite change of personality from the beginning to the end of the play. To help emphasize this conclusion of the play, Shakespeare purposely added a couplet rhyme scheme. Especially in the last two sentences, both Hortensio and Lucentio say that “the shrew” is tamed. Both were surprised that Petruchio won the bet, and that Katharina actually follows what he says. It’s also ironic how Petruchio wins the bet that his wife responds to him, and also Lucentio wins the wager to get Bianca to marry him. But, Bianca doesn’t answer when he calls for her. This theme of male dominance and how during this time women were seen as objects and used in the interest of their husband is completely emphasized in this conclusion to the play. Another ironic thing is Petruchio asked Katharina to kiss her earlier in play when they were bantering between each other, and she seemed unwilling to kiss back. However, it seems obvious that Kate will kiss him back (does not say so in the stage notes).
I really like your analysis/interpretation of this passage, and your realization of the dominant effect left, especially because it was the final passage of the whole play. However, there always are certain little subtleties people do not always spot, and I would have revealed the reason they may have been used. You briefly explain the couplet rhymes, but you should also give out a more detailed explanation as to why you think they were there. Also, on your final sentence could it possibly be a symbol that Katharina becomes less resistant to Petruchio by the second. There is a lot of evidence to support this claim, and I believe that the final command he gives Katharina greatly concludes this idea as well. Thanks
Delete“KATHERINE
ReplyDeleteFie, fie! Unknit that threat'ning unkind brow
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor.
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty,
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body
To painful labor both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience—
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince,
Even such a woman oweth to her husband.
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will,
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
I am ashamed that women are so simple
To offer war where they should kneel for peace;
Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway
When they are bound to serve, love, and obey.
Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,
Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,
But that our soft conditions and our hearts
Should well agree with our external parts?
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!
My mind hath been as big as one of yours,
My heart as great, my reason haply more,
To bandy word for word and frown for frown.
But now I see our lances are but straws,
Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare,
That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.
Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,
And place your hands below your husband’s foot:
In token of which duty, if he please,
My hand is ready, may it do him ease.” (V.ii.145–189)
In this passage, it is clear now to not only the eyes of the audience, but to all of the characters that Katharina has truly been tamed to Petruchio’s standards. This is a major change for Katharina, and clearly pronounces her dynamic change throughout this whole entire play. Initially the audience all knows Katharina as the shrew who would only be rude, however at this point of the play she has became a completely obedient tool that only serves to satisfy Petruchio. To further expand upon Katharina’s dedication to serving Petruchio’s demands she uses misogynistic diction, and a tone of servitude. Juxtaposing her language here with her language in Act 1 greatly reveals the change she went in which she spoke with a fiery tone and cursed out any men she saw. Her language here is very different as she degrades women by calling them “weak”, and in debt to their husbands. This language she uses not only raises the power of men, but she sets a standard for women to obey every command a husband orders, which is very clear with her tone of servitude where she constantly says a women must always owe her man. Furthermore, on top of her great change, as well as her standards of gender roles, Katharina ends her dialogue with this specific passage leaving a dominant effect of her goal in life is to only please her husband.