The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy involving the character Kate Minola. She is a woman with a strong will. She is seen as a shrew because she is unwilling to conform to society’s assumed norms of the lady of ladyhood. Also, she refuses to submit to Petruchio, who believes that he is born to tame her. There is, therefore, a question of whether Kate was finally tamed or not. One becomes tamed when she is eventually forced to be submissive and obey the set standards. Additionally, one becomes tamed when they have to unquestionably follow the master for a reward or avoidance of punishment.
I am convinced that Kate is not tamed following the unfolding of events. Kate is liberated as she is acting just as Petruchio demands because she has specific objectives to achieve by her conduct. She wants to break her stigma. In a competition of potential suitors and the respect of their father, Kate grew up being on the losing end. Baptista fails to defend Kate when she receives insults in the streets. Baptista cherishes Bianca, on the other hand. She refers to Kate as too rough or “fiend of hell” (II.i.26). Accordingly, the beginning of Act Two witnesses Kate’s jealousy of Bianca. Baptista automatically blames Kate for the fault, which leads to the rise of the conflict. The frustration of lacking a suitor when her sister has several suitors is cited for her anger. Thus Kate purposely takes less consideration on the environment in which she hails.
I am convinced that Petruchio is not successful in taming Kate. Kate learns the privileges that come with better behavior. Petruchio’s willingness to match Kate’s ferocity breaks her anger induced by the lonely state. Petruchio’s compliment is something that Kate has never experienced before and which she has been longing to have. This attention she never received even from her father. Kate had an obligation to conform to the advances made by her husband. Petruchio manages to liberate Kate that whatever people say about her is not significant. As long as she is happy, she should not care about other people’s perceptions of her. He shows up in the wedding dress like a fool putting on worn, mismatched clothes and riding on a diseased horse “But our soft conditions and our hearts should well agree with our external parts” (V.ii.169)
The situation reveals that Kate is not tamed but has learned to adapt approach life in different ways. Possibly Petruchio wanted to show her that acting tamed in listening to his directions can help her get a path for approaching her self-proclaimed approaches in life. Kate is denied a cap for she is not gentle but finally gets one when “she becomes gentle” (IV.iii.189). The abusive techniques used by her husband do not necessarily turn her submissive but rather liberate her from loneliness and the toxicity obtained from the past experiences; thus, Kate is not tamed.
In conclusion, the interaction of Kate and Petruchio is far from portraying a taming relationship. Kate is in a learning environment and realizes that she can achieve materialistic goals like acquiring the father’s respect and achievements in happiness and peace. All the personal attributes that Kate receives prove that Kate is more liberated than tamed at the end. Kate is finally able to regain her true self without extinguishing her inner standards and goals.
Work Cited
Shakespeare, William. The taming of the shrew. Yale University Press, 2008.