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iholcomb4790 's review for:
The Taming of the Shrew
by William Shakespeare
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this back in College, and I remembered this hadn’t aged well, but on a re-read, it’s much worse than I remembered. Petruchio’s only in it for Kate’s dowry, and most of Act 4 is dedicated to him starving her, not allowing her to sleep, gaslighting her over basic facts (literally, he contradicts her when she says the sun is out, or that an old man is a young maiden). Act 5 is the crap icing on this abuser’s cupcake, as we see Kate has gone full Stockholm syndrome, complying with his summons, and then the play ends with Kate lecturing Bianca and an old widow over women’s place in society (hint: it’s below their husband).
Yeah, the comedy is almost completely reliant on finding domestic abuse funny, so it fails for me dramatically in that regard. I hope Shakespeare’s other comedies are more like the Comedy of Errors. That said, this makes me want to re-watch 10 Things I Hate About You, which successfully adapts this story without all the abuse.
Yeah, the comedy is almost completely reliant on finding domestic abuse funny, so it fails for me dramatically in that regard. I hope Shakespeare’s other comedies are more like the Comedy of Errors. That said, this makes me want to re-watch 10 Things I Hate About You, which successfully adapts this story without all the abuse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship