1. THE TAMING OF THE SHREW
William Shakespeare

2. 1. Shrew
Small mouselike mammal with a long snout; related to moles. Known for its ugly temper 
Also, a woman with a bad temper
(unfortunately, a BeeOtch)

3. Katharina and Petruchio– a marriage made in heaven?

4. 2. shrewd clever, always able to get your way through smarts
Annabelle is so shrewd;she can manipulate her mom to get her whatever she wants at the store.
a shrewd gambler got his money

5. In his strategy soliloquy, Pete shows he’s shrewd.
He knows what he wants.
He wants a happy household--her money is a bonus)
page 109, Act II, sc. i
His strategy is to woo and win Kate by mirroring to her the opposite of each of her behaviors.

6. Reasons she might be shrewish:
furious at the world (unfair era for women)
motherless; perhaps no good guidance?
jealous of Baptista’s overt love and kindness to Bianca.
angry that no one likes her?
“no one ever taught me how to play nice… poor me…”

7. Shrew Vocab #1 1. a.shrew b.shrewd 2. Shakespearean
comedy, as opposed to Shakespearean tragedy
3. pantaloon
4. sarcasm
5. induction
6. irony
7. foil
8. players
9. pedant
10. dowry
11. haberdasher
12. submissive, submit
13. ingrate
14. domineer, (-ing)

8. Sentences for number #2 & #3
The Taming of the Shrew is a Shakespearean comedy.
“I am so glad you could make it”, the teacher said sarcastically to the late student.

9. Definition for “induction” #5
To start something or cause it to start.
When the doctor induced the pregnant lady’s labor, she started to have the baby.

10. Sentences for #6
6. When something happens that is the opposite of what we would expect.
When the dentist got a cavity, that was ironic.
When Jerry the mouse chased Tom the cat, it was ironic.

11. # 7 foil Two items which contrast with one another are foils
Kim Kardashian is a perfect foil for Taylor Swift.
dark hair “skanky”
blondie, “good girl”

12. #8 players actors in a play
Shakespearean “players” can play several parts.

13. Sentences
9. The teacher was so pedantic; she wouldn’t just relax and let us learn. She was just a know-it-all.
11. Men’s Wearhouse is a haberdashery.
10. When the young woman got married, her father had to pay a dowry to the groom’s family.
12.

14. Shrew Vocab #2 1. prose (n.) 2. pun (n.) 3. fret (v.) 4. fume (v.)
5. lineage (n.)
6. nobility (n.)
7. farce (n.)
8. slapstick (n.)
9. a. soliloquy (n.)
b. monologue (n.)
10. daunt
11. prodigy
12. abate
13. delude
14. construe

15. (pretends to be Cambio Bianca’s teacher)
The Foils
Bianca
Kate’s younger and much sweeter sister
Lucentio
(pretends to be Cambio Bianca’s teacher)
…Lucentio really likes Bianca, but…

16. The Dad
Baptista
(the girls’ dad– kind of a hard-nosed guy)
Won’t marry off the younger sister Bianca, until he gets rid of Kate the Shrew.
Bummer for Bianca and Lucentio. 

17. What’s the 1st Conflict?
The dad refuses to “marry off” the younger daughter before the older one gets married
several reasons:
1. he has to give a substantial dowry for each girl– this is expensive.
2. he has to live with Kate forever if Bianca gets married, and he likes Bianca better.

18. What’s the main Conflict?
Petruchio must “tame” wild Kate.
He begins taming her even before their wedding (she has no choice but to marry him). Girls had to do what their fathers told them to do, regardless of their own feelings.

19. Get em straight.
Grumio is Petruchio’s servant. Like a horse’s “groom” in a stable
Gremio is one of several guys who likes Bianca
“Why yes, splendid, Grumio. Thank you so much.”
“Will that be all, Sir?”
Spoiler:
Lucentio gets her, and Hortensio ends up marrying the widow.

20. Servants Tranio--- helps Lucentio by pretending to be Lucentio
Luc’s servants
Tranio--- helps Lucentio by pretending to be Lucentio
Biondello
Grumio--the fool of the play. He provides comic relief by pretending to misunderstand Petruchio and getting into ridiculous arguments with him.
Curtis
Pedant– a man who is a “know-it-all”
Tailor– a guy who makes clothes
Haberdasher– a guy who sells clothing goods
Petruchio’s servants
Baptista’s helpers

21. Imagine the scene where Kate and Petruchio will meet.
At least 2 solid paragraphs
35 points.
Write a dialogue between the two. Will Petruchio charm Kate? Will he still want to marry her after he meets her?
Your dialogue should capture the confident and headstrong nature of both characters.

22. Setting (time and place)
Padua, Italy (Kate and Bianca’s house)
Verona Petruchio’s country house
Time could be medieval, Elizabethan, or modern (see BBC’s newest version!)
Kiss Me Kate is set in 1953 America

23. Elizabethan Attitude Toward Women
The Elizabethan era was named after
Queen Elizabeth ( )
Elizabethan Attitude Toward Women
Wives are to be “obedient, humble,
and modest” (like Bianca)
They shouldn’t go tearing up the house (like Kate) and disobeying fathers, brothers, husbands. They certainly shouldn’t have minds of their own.

24. 1 Peter 3:1-6
“Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, even if some do not obey the word, they, without a word, may be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear (respect).”

25. 1 Peter continued
“Do not let your adornment be merely outward– arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel,-- rather let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.”

26. The husband verse which follows:
“Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.” (v. 7)

27. Journal Entry #1 for Shrew:
All students answer this.
What is your opinion of the verse commanding women to be submissive to their husbands?
Girls, are you willing to obey this command? Why? Think about problems that come up in marriages--- lack of money, kids giving trouble (or just babies crying!), or living situations. .
Girls answer.

28. Elizabethans took Bible commands very literally
Guys answer.
Guys, as husbands, do you believe that men should be the heads of the household and the woman should defer to you?
Why? Think about problems that come up in marriages--- lack of money, kids giving trouble (or just babies crying!), or living situations.
Give at least 3 solid reasons

29. Symbolism of Bianca’s name
Meaning: “white”– inference: pure, good, blameless

30. Animal allusions in Taming of the Shrew
“I can haz cheezburger now?”
1. CAT: Punning on the name "Kate" and "cat," Petruchio threatens to turn Kate from a "wild Kate" to a "household Kate" (2.1.39)

31. Continued comparisons of people to animals
2. “cart her rather” (like a horse)
3. “shrew”
4. “Wasp”
5. “buzzard” (Kate to Petruchio)
6. Petruchio later compares her to a falcon, a bird of prey that he must starve and deprive of sleep in order to break or tame.
7. the Lord refers to Sly as a "swine" and a "beast"
8. numerous references to Kate as the devil (also thought of as a beast) .

32. ANIMALS,continued Subhuman status and romantic insults?
Why do people who love each other insult each other?
Roberts also notes that "a great deal of the humor of the first meeting between Kate and her suitor […] depends on the determination of each to reduce the other to subhuman status."
“…You never bring me fresh meat any more, you big, lazy, hairy, animal…..!!!!”

33. Petruchio's wedding getup and Kate's dirty old dress
Petruchio's ridiculous wedding digs are just one kind of disguise we see in the play. Petruchio doesn't normally dress this way – it's all part of his strategy to "tame" Kate by playing the role of erratic and excessively domineering husband. (You can read more about the other kinds of disguises in our discussion of the theme "Art and Culture.") When Petruchio arrives at the wedding ceremony late and dressed like Rainbow Brite's twin brother, he demonstrates his ability to embarrass and publicly humiliate his bride (and her father). Petruchio's outrageous getup makes it perfectly clear that Kate has absolutely no control over what Petruchio wears or how he behaves. Baptista doesn't have any control over Petruchio either. When the old man asks Petruchio to change into something more appropriate, Petruchio replies that Kate is marrying the man, not his clothes. Petruchio is being a jerk, of course, but there's a whole lot of truth in what he says. Outward appearances are not necessarily indicative of a person's true identity, a lesson we learn over and over throughout the play. This point is lost on Baptista when Petruchio follows it up by saying something like: "By the way, dad, I can't wait for your daughter to wear me out in the sack tonight. Wink, wink." Petruchio also exercises his control over Kate by controlling what she wears later on in the play. Before the pair set off for Bianca's wedding in Act 4, Petruchio causes a big ruckus over the clothes and hat that have been custom made for Katherine. Petruchio claims they're not up to snuff and insists that he and Kate wear old rags to Bianca's wedding. Kate is livid – like a toddler, she's not even allowed to pick out her own clothes. She's also not allowed to complain about this because Petruchio tells her to zip it, or else they're not going to Padua.
A. Disguise
B Appearance
vs.
Reality
C. Control

34. Allusions, Act 1, scene i To Minerva (goddess wisdom)
Contrasting animals to gods or civil, classically - educated human beings with manners
To Minerva (goddess wisdom)
To Aristotle, Ovid (classical lit)
“as Anna to the Queen of Carthage was”
“great Jove”

35. 3 characteristics of a Shakespearean Comedy
1. Happy Ending
2. Love
3. Mistaken
Identities
The would-be lovers must overcome obstacles, before they have a harmonious union (often a wedding).
The theme of love is prevalent in every Shakespeare comedy.
In Shrew, Tranio becomes Lucentio and Lucentio becomes “Cambio”, Bianca’s teacher, in order to get close to her.

36. 4. The most significant characteristic of Shakespeare’s mature comedies:
4. A philosophical aspect involving weightier issues and themes
In Shrew, Kate’s personal identity changes…
…She recognizes the importance of love in human existence, and changes her behavior.
She experiences a total “turnaround” in her character
from “wild woman” … … to “obedient wife.”

37. 2. pun-- a form of word play which suggests two or more meanings
An example of a “pun” is:
“Wild Kate”– instead of a “wild cat”

38. more puns
The guitarist passed out on stage…he must have rocked himself to sleep.

39. 7. farce
a comedy that is full of coincidence and ridiculous events. Coincidence is where things happen together randomly.
An example of a “farce” is:
“The Taming of the Shrew”, a farcical play.
Bugs Bunny cartoons are farcical.

40. 8. slapstick -- a form of comedy with
8. slapstick -- a form of comedy with obvious physical play literally “you slap the actor with a stick!”
Examples of “slapstick comedy” are:
“The 3 Stooges” or “Tom and Jerry”.
Slapstick is when Petruchio kisses Kate so loudly it is heard throughout
the church

41. Homework due Tuesday Read all of Act 5, pp. to 279
do page 238, #’s 1, 6, 8.
do #2, An extended metaphor. Write a long paragraph for this
do page 239, #4, soliloquy
do page 239, #4, Pretend that women had the upper hand.

42. The DADS VINCENTIO BAPTISTA father to the girls “venerable father”
(old man on the road)
father to Lucentio, who is pretending to be a teacher
he knows that Tranio is just a servant
BAPTISTA
father to the girls

43. theme: ORDER VS. DISORDER
Kate’s home in Padua
(Not in order)
Directions: For Acts 1-3, write at least 7 Act, Scene, and line examples in which you find Kate misbehaving.
Disorderly home
Kate throwing dishes, chairs
Kate screaming and disrespecting Pet and Dad
hitting Bianca and tying her hands (bullying

44. Pete’s country home in Verona
Orderly home
not at all in Verona!
Disorderly home
Petruchio shouting at his servants (Act 4.)

45. theme: ORDER VS. DISORDER
Orderly home
Kate begins to plea for order
“Husband, be patient.”
Husband, have a little understanding” (the meat was fine)
“Thank you.”
Acceptance
Manners
Disorderly home
things begin to come “into line” as Pete keeps up his “abuse” of Kate.
Directions: next to each in the left column, write the Act, scene, and line in which you find them

46. Shrew # 2 vocab 1. Prose 2. Pun 3. fret
1. basic talking or writing, NO rhyming
2. A play on words
3. The spaces on a guitar or stringed instrument BUT it also means “to worry”

47. Shrew vocab #2, continued
4. fume
5. lineage
6. nobility
4. to be very angry
5. the bloodline from great grandparents, to parent, to you, on to your children and grandchildren
6. people who are born high-ranking, like princes and lords.

48. Shrew vocab #2 continued
7. farce
8. slapstick
9. soliloquy, monologue
9. Hamlet’s famous soliloquy begins with “To be, or not to be…”
*solus: alone
*loqu, to speak (L.)
*mono: one
*logy, logue: word study, speech (Gr.)

49. Copyright Debora B. Schwartz, 1996-2002
Some information taken from
Copyright Debora B. Schwartz,