taming of the shrew

[elle_hart]

hi
im new to this so bare with me!
i have already read the taming of the shrew and now have an essay. basically i need to give reasons as to whether i think that it is a sexist play or not.
has anyone got any ideas of some quotes and info that i could use?!
thankyou elle

[mono]

Hello, elle_hart, welcome to the forum. :)
To answer your question, particularly on the final scenes (Act V, Scene II) of The Taming Of The Shrew one can see a great amount of sexist references, especially while women seemed compelled to walk about an aisle as proof of obseisance to their husbands.
The first appearance of Petruccio, in Act I, Scene II, one may see the practical trading-and-selling of women; nearly the selling of Katherine for the purpose of marrying Bianca. Petruccio, too, meets a very precise profile - loud, boisterous, dominant, and aggressive - a profile of which everyone hopes shall 'tame' Katherine.
Even in the title itself, one perceives some examples of sexism, the word 'shrew' not only referring to a rodent land-animal, but also, in Shakespearean English, the name of an ill-tempered, aggressive, non-compliant spouse.
I hope I have helped, and, for more information, I recommend visiting this site (http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/shrew/), or I can help with other questions, too.
Good luck!