Black 9/27/99Clayton Wood 259-61-3993In Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew Petruchio becomes a caricature of Katherine inorder to tame her of her shrewishness. In doing this he leaves her spirit alive. The entire playcenters on identity and perspective. Shakespeare alters the identity of many of the major playersbut the most important alteration is the one that occurs within Kate.The play begins with an identity switch as Christopher Sly, a peasant and town drunk, ismade to think he is a nobleman. This is an important clue at the start of the play. The inductionends with Sly sitting by a page he thinks is his wife, watching a play unfold before him. The identity of several of the suitors is switched. In Act I scene 1 Lucentio and Tranioswitch clothing in order to for Lucentio to have a better chance of wooing Bianca. In scene 2Hortensio dons a disguise for the same purpose. Later on Pedant pretends to be Vincentio. In Act II scene 1 we have our first clue as to what Katherine’s true feelings are. She isaware of her age, as the barb of Bianca, “I know my duty to my elders” shows us. Her pryinginto Bianca’s love life also makes it clear that she is interested in marriage and rather wishes for asuitor of her own. She is actually physically violent when her sister suggests her interest is all ajoke. Petruchio enters the scene full of confidence, the savior for Baptista and the grief hisdaughter brings him. He is sure of success because he says he is “rough, and woo not like ababe.” When he first meets Katherine he calls her by her familiar name, something a stranger would notnormally do. Their interchange here is important, she replies, “They call me Katharine that dotalk of me.” He answers, “You lie, in faith; for you are called plain Kate.” Katherine has earlierestablished herself as someone who is talked about and not addressed directly, when she issp...
