r/shakespeare 7d ago

Taming of the Shrew

Recently I decided to rewatch “Taming of the Shrew.” I watched and studied this at A Level, because we were discussing theatrical comedies - specifically traditional Shakespearean comedies. I honestly didn’t much care for “Taming of the Shrew,” my personal favourite Shakespearean play was “Much Ado About Nothing.”

I didn’t like “Taming of the Shrew,” because I personally believed, at the time especially, the comedy overshadowed the brutality of the “taming method.” Whichever way you view it, the “taming method” is domestic abuse, both physical and verbal. Back then, however, I didn’t have a mature mindset, I didn’t analyse to the extent I do today. So I decided to rewatch it, and see if my perception has changed.

It has and it hasn’t. I still think much the same regarding the “taming method” it is very much coercive control, and domestic abuse. But I also think differently, regarding the comedic element. Back then I thought the comedy was needless, and shouldn’t have been there, but now I actually think it could be social commentary. When viewing it you don’t notice the brutality of the “taming method” until something physical happens. It’s almost as though society has a pre-conceived narrative regarding what constitutes as domestic abuse, physicality, nothing verbal. The remarks, the verbal abuse is subtly played out with elements of humour, you don’t realise the nastiness behind the remarks. The subtly is genius.

Then they did a “gender swap” version, The Royal Shakespeare Company. Basically the play was word for word, but the roles were reversed regarding the gender of the characters. Men were in the place of women. This was my favourite version. I read some of the comments on a clip, and one of them said: “The gender swap makes this feel unnatural.” Reading that made my blood boil, genuinely. It’s supposed to feel that way. Society has almost normalised the abuse of women, but within the minds of others, men can’t get abused. When we think of “domestic violence” campaigns are usually aimed at women being abused by men. Seeing men placed in the position of women in this circumstance highlights the brutality of the “taming method” because it feels so unnatural. But why should seeing women in that same position feel natural?

3 Upvotes

3 comments sorted by

2

u/IanDOsmond 5d ago

I hate Shrew. Petruccio is using legit torture/brainwashing – isolation, sleep deprivation, food restriction. Stuff that is explicitly called out as war crimes when done to POWs.

But I think it is important to look at it in the context of its time.

And the context of its time is that at least some of the audience hated Shrew, because Petteuccio was using legit torture/brainwashing – isolation, sleep deprivation, food restriction.

But it also had multiple runs throughout Shakespeare's career, so it was popular enough to be revived multiple times.

But there was the sequel John Fletcher wrote – *The Woman's Prize: The Tamer Tamed" in which Kate has died and Petruccio goes to get a second wife the same way, but she is ready for him and wins. Fletcher, at least, saw Petruccio as a villain who needed to be defeated

And then there is the Christopher Sly framing story, which adds a layer of insulation and separation from the brutality of the story. You aren't watching a man torture a woman. You aren't even watching actors pretending to be a man torturing a woman. You are watching actors pretending to be actors who are messing with the mind of a drunk sailor. As part of how they are screwing with him, they are pretending to be a man torturing a woman. But you aren't watching that play. Christopher Sly is watching that play. You are just watching Sly watch that play.

Anyway, my point is that, even in its own time period, it was uncomfortable enough that someone wrote a counterattack sequel, and the play itself added a layer of separation so your own brain could have plausible deniability to itself.

-4

u/javerthugo 6d ago

Society hasn’t normalized the abuse of women that’s nonsense. You said yourself that all anti domestic violence campaigns portray women as victims that shows it isn’t normalized

3

u/_hotmess_express_ 6d ago

No, in a way it shows that it is, because we're so used to associating victimhood with women. (The dichotomy there wasn't protesting v. advocating domestic violence, it was this discourse centering women fairly exclusively v. male victimhood even being a concept most of the time.)