Love in “The Taming of the Shrew”
The concept of love is presented widely in Shakespeare’s play, “The Taming of the Shrew.” Several forms are presented, although the two main types presented are the conventional and unconventional types. The different types of love are presented by different characters; hence the characters can be divided according to the type of love that they develop. The conventional love involves characters who are accepted by society to be in love and does not involve significant challenges. The unconventional characters are responsible for the unique type of love, and the societal morals appear to be against it. Petruchio and Katherine are presented as unconventional lovers, with their love beginning to develop after Petruchio hears about Katherine, and he falls for her money while attempting to tame her.
Petruchio’s love for Katherine had grown since the first day he heard about her. Petruchio fell for Katherine’s money and was willing to tame her owing to the knowledge that Katherine was wise and had outwitted all her previous suitors. The challenges that were associated with winning the love of Katherine gave Petruchio more confidence. After a long verbal duel between Petruchio and Catherine, Petruchio appears more confident in winning Katherine’s love. Petruchio says, “Will you, nill you, and I will marry you” to mean that he was not ready to lose Katherine (Shakespeare, II.i.263). Petruchio goes on to say, “I must and will have Katharina to my wife” when he sees Katherine’s father approaching (Shakespeare, II.i.263). Petruchio’s confidence wins Katherine’s love, and she later realizes that Petruchio is appreciative. The couple appears to have fallen equally in love, as Petruchio says, “What, art thou ashamed of me?” to show how intimate they had grown (Shakespeare, V.iii. 131). Although the absolute submission by Katherine is not seen in her words, the response to Petruchio’s words shows that she has already fallen in love: “No, sir, God forbid; but ashamed to kiss.” Moreover, Petruchio achieves his dream of taming Katherine in various ways.
One of Petruchio’s objectives in his pursuance of Katherine is to tame her and make her a submissive wife. Petruchio plans to achieve submission from Katherine through love, and he makes that clear to Katherine during their verbal duel: “For I am he am born to tame you, Kate,” Shakespeare (II.i.269). According to Biderman’s Chart of Coercion, Petruchio uses the monopolization of perception by inhibiting Katherine from resisting his wit. Petruchio turns Katherine’s puns into sexual innuendo: “Kath: I am no piece for thee! … PET: And without thee, I have no peace! I seethe, I boil, I bake for love of thee!” Shakespeare (II.i.263). Also, occasional indulgences help Petruchio, who uses words more than actions to ensure a successful taming of Katherine. Petruchio deliberately misunderstands Katherine to draw her attention towards his taming strategy. For example, Petruchio says, “What, I, a fowl? You call me a goose?” although Katherine had used the word foul and not fowl (Shakespeare, II.i.269). Furthermore, Petruchio promises Katherine that she needed to be tamed to enjoy marriage: “And bring you from a wild Kate to a Kate… conformable as other household Kates” (Shakespeare, II.i.263). Generally, Petruchio manages to tame Katherine, and they eventually fall in love as a couple.
In sum, the love between Petruchio and Katherine starts after Petruchio hears about Katherine and decides to try his luck. Petruchio’s wit helps him win Katherine’s hand in marriage since Katherine was known to be a hard-to-please bride-to-be. One of the objectives of Petruchio was to tame Katherine, and Biderman’s Chart of Coercion is applied in his case. Generally, Petruchio and Katherine represent the unconventional love in the play, “The Taming of the Shrew.”
Work Cited
Shakespeare, William. The taming of the shrew. Cambridge University Press, 2002.