Themes of Taming of the Shrew
Gender Roles Nearly all critical commentary on The Taming of the Shrew deals to some extent with the plays treatment of gender roles: that is, what it has to say about socially accepted definitions of appropriate male and female behavior. ... In fact, the play knew centuries of popularity with audiences who found Petruchios "taming" of Katherina both inoffensive and amusing. ... Directors of modern productions of The Taming of the Shrew have also offered a wide variety of interpretations of this issue. ... Reality Confusion between appearance and reality is a principal source of humor m The Taming of the Shrew. ... He seems to welcome Katherinas "shrewishness" as an interesting challenge, and compares his efforts to "tame" her to a sportsmans taming of a hawk. According to this view, Petruchios strategy in "taming" Katherina is to convince her to join in this game with him. ... Role-playing and play-acting also figure prominently in The Taming of the Shrew. ... Imagery Of particular importance in The Taming of the Shrew is Shakespeares use of animal and other types of imagery in portraying various characters attitudes toward other characters, toward women in general, and toward marriage. The play is especially rich in animal imagery, beginning with the traditional use of the word "shrew" to describe a willful and quarrelsome woman. ... In Act IV, Petruchio likens his handling of Katherina to the methods used in taming hawks.