The Taming of the Shrew: Act II

[Scheherazade]

We will be reading Act I during this week (January 19-26).

Please post your comments and questions here.

Act II

[Virgil]

Oh I had fallen behind. I see we're up to Act III, but I wanted to comment on Act II. Here's the beginning of Act II, and I think it's important.

Enter KATHARINA and BIANCA
BIANCA
Good sister, wrong me not, nor wrong yourself,
To make a bondmaid and a slave of me;
That I disdain: but for these other gawds,
Unbind my hands, I'll pull them off myself,
Yea, all my raiment, to my petticoat;
Or what you will command me will I do,
So well I know my duty to my elders.

KATHARINA
Of all thy suitors, here I charge thee, tell
Whom thou lovest best: see thou dissemble not.

BIANCA
Believe me, sister, of all the men alive
I never yet beheld that special face
Which I could fancy more than any other.

KATHARINA
Minion, thou liest. Is't not Hortensio?

BIANCA
If you affect him, sister, here I swear
I'll plead for you myself, but you shall have
him.

KATHARINA
O then, belike, you fancy riches more:
You will have Gremio to keep you fair.

BIANCA
Is it for him you do envy me so?
Nay then you jest, and now I well perceive
You have but jested with me all this while:
I prithee, sister Kate, untie my hands.

KATHARINA
If that be jest, then all the rest was so.

Strikes her

Enter BAPTISTA

BAPTISTA
Why, how now, dame! whence grows this insolence?
Bianca, stand aside. Poor girl! she weeps.
Go ply thy needle; meddle not with her.
For shame, thou helding of a devilish spirit,
Why dost thou wrong her that did ne'er wrong thee?
When did she cross thee with a bitter word?

KATHARINA
Her silence flouts me, and I'll be revenged.

Flies after BIANCA

The question that comes up is, why is Katharina such a shrew, and here it seems that she is jealous of Bianca's beauty, or if not just beauty the attention she gets, including probably her father. It seems to me that therre is a deep hurt inside of Kate that she needs to strike back. Bianca gets the suitors, Bianca gets the marriage proposals, Bianca gets the education.

What do others think? Frankly I think there may be other reasons as well for Kate's shrewness. Afterall, she doesn't have to blame Bianca. what are some other thoughts?

[Redzeppelin]

Kate "owns" her shrewishness - there is nobody to blame for her response but her; that, however, does not negate the fact that her father clearly favors his younger daughter (and the final scene in the play justifies some of this exchange). I think a good case can be made that Baptista dotes on his younger daughter, while Kate is the "problem child." The lack of a mother in the play is interesting; I don't want to psycholanalyze Kate too much, but I think it's an interesting omission. I think Baptista and Bianca have fed the shrew in Kate, but I don't think they created it.

I think its attention more than beauty that Kate is jealous of - of parental and romantic attention, of fatherly and masculine love.

[Virgil]

Kate "owns" her shrewishness - there is nobody to blame for her response but her; that, however, does not negate the fact that her father clearly favors his younger daughter (and the final scene in the play justifies some of this exchange). I think a good case can be made that Baptista dotes on his younger daughter, while Kate is the "problem child." The lack of a mother in the play is interesting; I don't want to psycholanalyze Kate too much, but I think it's an interesting omission. I think Baptista and Bianca have fed the shrew in Kate, but I don't think they created it.

I think its attention more than beauty that Kate is jealous of - of parental and romantic attention, of fatherly and masculine love.

Yes I agree with everything you say here Zep. Good point on the lack of a mother. Could be that Kate has had to take up motherly duties while Bianca remains the favored, perhaps spoiled, child. There seems to be several reasons for Kate's resentment, and I think part of the reason she turns her personality around is the attention that Petruchio pays her.

[Redzeppelin]

I agree with your point and it made me think of this: as oldest daughter, Kate would naturally have to slide into the mother position (like the sterotypical "you're the man of the house now, son" spoken to boys by their mother when dad splits). Kate, therefore, "grows up" and Bianca gets to stay a "child." She has less responsibility and - as such - more attention from father. I don't like to follow psychology too far because this is all 20th century speculation - but it's worth mentioning because Kate's anger is the sticking point in this play - but not so much what lays behind the anger, but how people choose to interpret its meaning and function in Kate's life. I think her anger is largely misinterpreted by many readers. But I'll save those comments for later. Where are all the other posters? This play gets the liveliest discussion of all the works I cover in my literature class - the guys and girls really get animated (especially the girls).

So, I will pose a question or two and see who bites (because I have lots to say about this play):

Act 2 is one long scene - the first meeting between Petruchio and Kate - are they attracted to each other? Why does he agree to marry her after meeting her: is it the money, or something else? Are these two a good match?

[Virgil]

I agree with your point and it made me think of this: as oldest daughter, Kate would naturally have to slide into the mother position (like the sterotypical "you're the man of the house now, son" spoken to boys by their mother when dad splits). Kate, therefore, "grows up" and Bianca gets to stay a "child." She has less responsibility and - as such - more attention from father.

Yes, that's what I was alluding to.

I don't like to follow psychology too far

Neither do I. I can't stand that crap. But there is psychology (psychoanalysis) and there is psychology as to why a character is who he is. This falls into the latter. I do not mean to imply that because that because a writer applies some sort of undertanding of a character that it applies to real life.

So, I will pose a question or two and see who bites (because I have lots to say about this play):

Act 2 is one long scene - the first meeting between Petruchio and Kate - are they attracted to each other? Why does he agree to marry her after meeting her: is it the money, or something else? Are these two a good match?

Great question! It's been running through my mind and I haven't come to a conclusion yet. Perhaps later.

Yeah, where is everyone?

[Redzeppelin]

This play is so ripe with issues of gender, power, relationships, behavior and such - I wonder where the ladies are? Is everybody too politically correct to handle this hot play? Let's have at it - the game's afoot!

[papayahed]

Great question! It's been running through my mind and I haven't come to a conclusion yet. Perhaps later.

Yeah, where is everyone?

I was going to say they were attracted to each other however that's hard to say since Petruchio had said he was going to marry Kate before he even met her..

On the other hand I think Kate may have been "enamored" after the first meeting, someone stood up to her..