English coursework essay- the taming of the shrew By Sugra Butt 10CMG

Wedding:

       Petruchio and Katherine’s wedding turns out to be a disaster. It is against Katherine’s wishes. We never actually see the wedding take place because Shakespeare wants us to make our own judgement. We hear from Grumio, a rich old man who tells us about how humiliating it was to be attending the wedding, Petruchio arrives really late to church making a mockery of Katherine, he also comes drunk, dressed up as a tramp.

“No shame but mine…….against my heart”. This language of Katherine shows self pity and disappointment towards her self and this is said before Petruchio enters. The family and guests enter the church they insist he goes of and gets changed but Petruchio insists to get married as he is.

Grumio describes the wedding as “Such a mad marriage never was before” which is very true, Petruchio says “Gog’s wouns” in the church, what he actually meant was ‘god’s wounds’. This is evidence to show he is drunk. When this is said the priest drops the prayer book with shock he bends down to grab the holy book but Petruchio hits the priest and priest falls down too, he quotes “Now take them up”.

In front of all the guests and family he drinks mainly all the communion wine, and tips the rest on sextons head “And threw the sops all in the sexton’s face”. After Petruchio’s behaviour with the guests and priest he assaults his wife Katherine and gives her a rude sploshy kiss, “And kissed her lips with such a clamorous smack…. That at the party all the church did echo”. This is what probably made Katherine nervous scared and that she would have been the laugh of the place, I believe Katherina has got to be clever than Petruchio and change to persuade him that she has changed. This is and important part of the play because we don’t get to see how things take place.

Soliloquy:

          In act 4 scene 1 we hear from Petruchio about his game plan to tame Katherine he quotes “And till she stoops she must not be full-gorged,” meaning until she doesn’t obey Petruchio she will not be fully fed. This shows that he will deprive her of food in his plan. He refers to Katherine as a falcon “My falcon now is sharp” a bird’s image.

Petruchio has been using methods of all sorts pulling bedcovers off, waking her up at night, he quotes

 “Last night she slept not, nor tonight she shall not…….ill find about the making of the bed...fling the pillows….another way the sheets……And if she chance to nod ill rail and brawl, and with the clamour keep her awake”  

This is his way to depressing Katherina. Petruchio wants to keep her in his control so she doesn’t answer him back, blaming her for all sorts of trouble he has caused, Petruchio believes there is no other way in taming a shrew. “This is a way to kill a wife with kindness,” he follows on and asks a question to the audience for any suggestions, “He that knows better how to tame a shrew now let him speak” I believe  that Petruchio doesn’t expect a response back from his audience.”

Conclusion:

           At the end of my essay I am beginning to believe that the relationship of Petruchio and Katherine will be getting worse, I think Katherina is only showing Petruchio she is going to play with him and act much clever. But due to the way women were treated in the Elizabethan times Petruchio is much stronger than Katherina. She has put on a new image as a discipline women who listen to her husband; she is only trying to fool Petruchio into believing he has won the battle to tame her.