Analysis of The Important Aspects and Measures Covered in The Shakespeare’s Play "Taming of The Shrew"

Introduction

There are a number of dramas and other stories that have been written over time and each one of these have their significant position in literature. These stories and plays not only have a great story but there is also substantial material present that helps the general public in better understanding the ways of the world and the particular manner through which they should behave in a certain area or society.

Although there are certain set of rules and regulations that need to be followed however, there are also several important issues that need to be given due attention and time in order to bring long-term improvement and productive. There are better and kind ways through which these measures can be adopted rather than through aggressive and harsh ways that not only make it difficult for the people to live but also behave productively. One such instance has been recorded by Shakespeare in one of his plays named as “Taming of the Shrew”.

As the term ‘shrew’ indicates that the overall training or taming that was brought about of the shrew involved significant harshness and unkind and polite ways. This can be guessed through the fact that one of the most demeaning words has been used to refer to a women. There are different people found in the world and each one of these have their own understanding of the world.

In addition to this, there are different ways through which people behave with others which is particularly influenced by their understanding of the world as well as their past experiences. However, if the attitude or behaviour of a person is not very good or up to the mark, it does not mean that the other person has been given the right to correct him or her.

Inequality

There are a number of elements and aspects of the play that shed light on the ways in which our world and societies are operated. One of the major problems that exist in our world is of inequality. Although this aspect is still present today in several societies and communities however, its prevalence was far more in the previous societies making it almost impossible for people especially women to live a happy and stable life.

Women had to face a number of issues and problems at very instance due to the dominance of men in all areas of their lives. However, there is need to analyse the ways and measures in order to understand that women and men are equal and it is the responsibility of both men as well as women to love and respective one another in order to build a happy and healthy life with one another.

There are a number of scenes that are present throughout the play that are of utmost importance and are indeed an eye-opener for a number of people and the ways through which they function and work. The scene that I would analyse in this essay is the very last one where Katharina lectures both Bianca and the widow regarding the duties of a wife and what they must and should do in order to keep their respective husbands happy and satisfied.

The scene is of utmost importance not only because it is the ending one of the play but major twists and turned occurred throughout the play that ultimately resulted in completely transforming Katharina to become the person that she was not but ultimately became as she had no choice or option in her life. After getting married to her husband, there were a number of changes that came to her life. Katharina was a completely different person but she became completely different due to the treatment of her husband.

The last scene shows that men have so much power and authority over women that they can move them in any direction. Men can make a woman completely change her life and perception as he has more power over her. There are several other elements and aspects that the scene dictates such as will and choice of a woman. Katharina was a tempered and aggressive woman however, she changed completely after her marriage as she was given a number of tortures in her marriage that ultimately resulted in her giving in to all of her attitude and pride. And the extend of the change can be seen in the last scene where she not only becomes as she is told to but also teachers and influences others to take her path or direction and be dutiful to their respective husbands.

Role of Woman

There are a number of roles and responsibilities that are attributed to a woman. The conventional perception of a woman is to be kind, loving, caring and obedient. And in case a woman tends to go against the norms and find a better and productive place for her where she can spend her life as per her will, these are the areas or places where women are severely criticised and have to face the problems that Katharina faced after her marriage and the ways Katharina became as her husband was not accepting her previous ways and forms of life.

The role and responsibility of women have been well explained to them right after their birth. Throughout their childhood, girls are told of their responsibilities towards their elders, their parents, their siblings etc. It becomes an ultimate responsibility of a girl or woman right from her childhood to take care of everyone around her and be submissive in every possible way. However, if a girl tends to be the other way round, she is not only openly criticised by the whole community and society, rather there are different ways and measures that are used by people to bring her back to her position and actual state so that she does not forget where she belongs.

Similar was the state of condition of Katharina when she was lecturing the widow and her younger sister upon becoming better wives. Katharina who was a strong willed as well as independent woman got completely transformed due to her husband who made sure that she acquired the state and position that every other woman was given in their society previously.

Although Petruchio asked Katharina for the marriage himself and was also interested in her however, he could not deal with the fact that Katharina was more empowered than he was and that she would not be like a regular wife that was common previously. Petruchio completely changed himself after marriage and so did his attitude towards Katharina. The woman he claimed to be in love with was treated in the most adverse manner both by himself as well as his workers only to teach Katharina the lesson of behaving well with him in all conditions and states.

Although the marriage of both Petruchio and Katharina was done on mutual consent however, the condition that was exhibited by Petruchio showed the other aspect of it. There were different measures and steps that were taken and adopted by Petruchio in order to demean Katharina and take away all of her confidence so that she could mould herself the way Petruchio wanted her to be. Petruchio loved her but also wanted her to change in order to become the kind of person who would listen to him all her life and spend her life according to his ways and forms. There were different measures that he adopted that ultimately resulted in the surrender of Katharina as it became unbearable for her to tolerate any further. Petruchio, after taking her home treated her in the most disrespectful manner. He not only insulted her on regular basis but also asked his servants to mistreat her.

In addition to all of the mistreatment that she was receiving, another major problem that was faced by Katharina was restriction on food and other freedom. Petruchio completely isolated her from the whole world and also did not provide her with any food or clothes. All of these problems that Katharina was faced with resulted in her acceptance of the terms and conditions of her husband that made her a completely submissive wife.

The torture that Petruchio exercised on her resulted in Katharina becoming a dutiful wife however in this process she completely lost herself and became the shadow of what her husband wanted of her. There are a number of related issues that were faced by Katharina. Even after ensuring her husband of her loyalty and honestly towards him, he did not stop testing her in every state and situation only to find out where she is the way she states or only puts up being nice to him.

However, the last part of the play shows that Katharina did become the way her husband wanted her to become so that he can have a dutiful life while Katharina on the other hand can have food. These are all of the processes and measures that were adopted by Petruchio in order to train or tame Katharina and although she as very strong headed and willed initially. However, was unable to keep for long due to the demands of her body for food resulting in Katharina accepting all of the terms and conditions of her husband and promising to become a dutiful wife.

This is the part of the play which is most tragic one as it is shown that Petruchio does not allow Katharina to be the way that she was all her life and had so much power over her that she changed or completely transformed herself for him. She changed so much that even started telling her sister and the widow the ways they should adopt in order to take care of their husbands and please them in every form and way so that they always remain happy and content with the devotion and working of their respective wives.

True Face of Society

There are a number of aspects and measures that are covered in the play however, one of the most important element that it talks about is the attitude of our society towards women and their independence. Shakespeare, through his play, pointed out that it is not only easy to trick women into believing men but it is also very easy to completely change and mould them as they wish.

Women have little control over both the society and the societal norms which is why they easily give in making their own lives hell. However, they do not care much about themselves as for them what matters is how they are treated and in order to get the basic necessities of life, women would completely give up on whatever they have or had. The behaviour of Petruchio with Katharina in the public would be good so that everyone would think of his as a high and understanding husband however, he would completely change himself into somewhere harsh and heartless only to teach her the lesson.

Disguise has been repeated used in the in the film by different actors and this is one of the major and significant element that made the plot twist of the movie. There were several actors who played their role in the completion of the play and all of these disguised themselves as someone else only to win the appreciation or love of one person or the other. However, it was shown that there was not much reaction shown from the side of women or ladies in the play regarding the disguise.

Rather, the women adapted themselves as they were asked to do making the situation even more complicated for themselves. However, it is also shown that women are more compromising and would ultimately give in despite all the problems or betrayal that they face at the hand of men and will become the best and most appropriate versions of themselves only to impress their husbands.

Type of Women Shown in the Play

There are different types of women that are shown in the play. Katharina was initially a very stubborn woman who was not agreeing upon marrying anyone as she did not consider anyone around her worthy of her hand. There were several suitors for her however, she did not want anyone of them. However, Petruchio came into her life and changed the whole scenario. He tricked her into believing that he was completely in love with her. Not only this, he also made her believe in his love so much so that she agreed upon marrying him.

Katharina considered Petruchio as the perfect suitor and lover for her however, it was only later that the truth opened up to her. The changed attitude of Petruchio was something Katharina could not believe in however, she had no other option as well. Petruchio not only tortured her through his words but he also made sure that she was not getting any food supply that would make her come to her knees and break away easily. And he succeeded in his attempt as he was able to bring her to her knees and made her the way she never was.

The change that came in Katharina was not because she accepted her fate but because there was no other option available to her but to compromise and leave her previous self back and start a new life in the society where she had little options and choices of her own and most of these were made by men who dominate our society. This perception or flaw of the society that Shakespeare brought into limelight is of utmost importance. He was able to analyse the ways through which people can attain a better life and also to bring more tolerance in societies and communities regarding women. Even if Katharina was a spoilt lady, there were a number of different ways that could have been used to change her attitude rather than depriving her from food and her freedom only to tame her life some circus animal.

The other woman in the play is Bianca who is loved and admired by a number of people due to her sound manners as well as beauty. There are a number of people ready to marry her off however, the adamant nature of Katharina comes on the way who refuses to get married. Nonetheless, Bianca succeeds in marrying the person she loves and admires and lives her life happily although she is not as respectful towards her husband as Katharina becomes at the end.

Other Plays

There are several other plays of the previous as well as current times that show a number of issues and problems that women face on a regular basis. These issues and problems that are stated in the plays are not only the ones that women of the previous era used to face but also the ones that are faced by many of the current times.

Despite improvements and transformation that has come in this part of the world. There are still several issues that are present in relation to the women and these issues and problems need to be sorted out so that collective betterment and advancement can be achieved for all rather than just one. The aim of all such plays is to bring awareness among people regarding these issues and problems so that they can work in a better way and also treat women with more respect and tolerance so that they can achieve more in life rather than just making compromises over everything in their lives.

It is important for women to be strong and independent so that no one can rule over them or change them as was done by Petruchio. Women should have their own voice and stance regarding every matter and they should also have authority to make changes or additions in their lives without any external influence.

Cinematic Interpretation

There are a number of elements and constituents that have been used in the play in order to make it more effective. From the setting of the stage to the background music and sound effect throughout the play, everything was spot on and on point. Many of the schemes were particularly more impactful due to the background sound that proved to be a very important element of the play.

In addition to this, the overall acting of all of the actors was very good. The play took me back to the previous era that was thoroughly enjoyed by the audience. The clear dialogue delivery of the actors as well as the dresses that they wore made it difficult to analyse which the play was in. In addition to this, there were several other factors that played a crucial role in making the whole play more effective and impactful.

The direction of the play was done in a very elaborative and conducive manner making it easier for the audience to follow through. There were pamphlets regarding the play, its brief story and history were distributed among the audience so that everyone would have a rough idea of what the play was about. This was beneficial gesture from the side of the producers as many of the people were able to relate to the play and enjoy it more due to the summary that they read initially.

Hence, in addition to several elements that the production team was able to perform well, another one was their insightfulness regarding the expectations of the audience about the play and their significant need to know about the story and basic information of the play so that they can easily follow through.