The Taming of the Shrew and The Shakespearean Mirror of Marriage Annmicha Blugh College

The Taming of the Shrew gives the reflection of marriage in Shakespearean society. Ideas of patriarchy, female domestication and submission, economic interest, and the employment of noise and love all unite in the plot of the play according to the roles by which the shrew, husband and paterfamilias are defined. The husband’s patriarchal control is pitted against the shrew. In The Taming of the Shrew, Petruchio embodies male dominance in the marriage while Kate represents the female rebellion. Petruchio’s imperious control exercised in the courtship and marriage is represented as the accepted standard typical of the lover and husband. One must override the other yet there is continuous war and friction between both sexes in the said war of attrition however it is the wife who must finally cede to her husband and submit.

Taming and systematic domestication of the woman feature prominently in the Taming of the Shrew as they break down the will of the woman other to resist, rebel and retaliate. Given Kate’s disposition, she fits the criteria of one who needs taming. In spite of Kate's submission to marriage, she undermines the system for although Petruchio has her outward allegiance and deference, she still questions the...