Here are some articles on this Shakespearian character, Petruchio, and the play, The Taming Of The Shrew.
The Taming of the Shrew: Tough Love or Domestic Violence?
MAY 24, 2015 / ROSEMARIE KEENE
William Shakespeare’s comedy The Taming of the Shrew features the marriage and relationship of Petruchio and Katherine. Although the couple reaches an understanding at the play’s end, the two had quite the rocky start. To compare their interactions with today’s society, their marriage contains elements of severe domestic abuse.
When Petruchio and Katherine meet in Act 2, Scene 1, there is a clashing between their personalities. From the beginning, Katherine has been labeled by everyone as “the shrew.” Katherine has an extremely bad temper. She willingly slaps and verbally abuses people, including her father Baptista Minola and her sister Bianca Minola. Katherine is a bold, intelligent woman who freely speaks her mind in a time where this is unacceptable, improper, and unbecoming of a lady of her standing. Petruchio, an arrogant and greedy man, arrives in Padua to seek a wife with a large dowry. Once Petruchio learns of Katherine’s large dowry and availability, he desires to have her as his bride. When Baptista informs the suitor that Katherine has an undesirable personality and Petruchio will not receive the twenty thousand crowns until “when the special thing is well obtained,/That is, her love, for that is all in all” (Shakespeare 83), Petruchio is determined to “tame” Katherine like one would a hawk. Petruchio has no intentions of using wooing techniques during their short courtship to win her over, he is more concerned trying to have an obedient wife rather than a loving woman. His taming tactics can be seen as abusive or detrimental to her psychological health.
Petruchio’s first attempt to tame Katherine is to contradict and argue with everything she says. When he greets Katherine for the first time, Petruchio addresses her as “Kate.” “Kate” corrects him, and Petruchio immediately disagrees, claiming everyone knows her as “plain Kate,/And bonny Kate, and sometimes Kate the curst. But Kate, the prettiest Kate in Christendom, Kate of Kate Hall, my super-dainty Kate/(for dainties are all Kate)” (Shakespeare 87). They continue to banter back and forth for the remainder of Act 2, Scene 1 until Petruchio declares to everyone that they will be married on Sunday. At this moment in time in the play, to the average audience member, it would seem unlikely that this is domestic abuse. Their insults towards each other can be seen, at most, a form of emotional abuse. Regardless of viewpoint, their relationship is far from a healthy one. According to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, a healthy relationship is one where partners listen to each other and treat each other with respect. From what is seen of Act 2, Petruchio and Kate are unwilling to compromise and form understandings of one another. They constantly criticize and are disrespectful towards each other.
The pair’s interactions also contradict the Elizabethan era’s ideals of courtship. In this way, their relationship is unconventional and should be looked down upon in society’s eyes. According to Diana O’Hara, families would arrange their children to marry someone their family was close to. Petruchio has only just met Baptista Minola; Baptista has heard of Petruchio’s father, Antonio of Verona. Although Antonio is “A man well known throughout all Italy” (Shakespeare 79), it is implied that the Baptista has never encountered Antonio of Verona in person. If Baptista had an intimate acquaintanceship or friendship with Antonio, then Baptista would have known Petruchio either by sight or name. Petruchio only knows Kate for one scene in Act 2 before the decision is made that the two shall marry. Baptista, unlike his Elizabethan fatherly counterparts, is not concerned about the possible political, social, or financial connections Katherine’s marriage with Petruchio would bring. Katherine’s father wants to marry his eldest daughter off, so he could sell his beautiful, desirable, and agreeable Bianca to the highest bidder.
Their physical and verbal interactions in Act 2, Scene both reflects signs of physical abuse and illegal actions in the rules of courtly love. This couple have been left to have a conversation unsupervised, without the presence of a male family relative. It is typical of a performance of The Taming of the Shrew that Petruchio and Kate begin to wrestle and physically strike each other during their verbal battle of wits. Touching, even holding hands, was taboo in terms of courtship. This inappropriate contact also radiates the physical component of domestic violence, which includes actions such as “pulling your hair, punching, slapping, kicking, biting, or choking you.” During this time, Kate and Petruchio are doing this to each other.
By Act 4, Petruchio finds ways to physically abuse her after she is made his wife without touching her. Petruchio frequently forbids Kate from eating and sleeping until she submits to him. Petruchio disguises his abuse with concern (emotional abuse), by making excuses for why Kate cannot partake in drinking, food, For example, in Act 4, Scene 1, Petruchio does not allow her to consume mutton because “‘Tis burnt, and so is all the meat” (Shakespeare 149). He starves her until she grovels at his feet and becomes grateful that she is married to him. Katherine becomes desperate enough where she asks Grumio, Petruchio’s servant, to bring any food he can find; when Grumio tells her “I fear it is too choleric a meat,” (Shakespeare 165) she does not care. Kate stoops so low that she is willing to eat rotten food, food that could potentially make her ill, in order to sustain her body.
Act 4 continues to provide the pivotal moments of examples of Petruchio’s abusive behavior. Besides Petruchio keeping Katherine sleep deprived (and not through the method of excessive lovemaking on their honeymoon as newlyweds often do) and starving his new wife, Petruchio has been emotionally manipulative as he controls her appearance. After leaving immediately after the wedding and before the reception in Act 3, Petruchio forces Kate to leave without properly saying goodbye to her family and packing for the trip. In Act 4, Katherine remains in her old filthy wedding gown, having been ruined mostly on the journey. In Act 4, Scene 3, Petruchio has had a Tailor fashion her a new dress. Katherine likes the look of the gown, saying “I never saw a better-fashioned gown,/More quaint, more pleasing, nor more commendable” (Shakespeare 171). Yet, at Katherine’s approval, Petruchio demands that this dress is unworthy of his bride and his expectations; Petruchio sends the dress back with the Tailor, commanding him to make changes. Petruchio has tempted Katherine with a new dress and he forces her to remain in rags.
Petruchio furthers his physical and emotional domestic abuse when it concerns Kate’s family. From the moment the two wed in Act 3, Petruchio segregates Katherine from her family. He continues to isolate her by taking her to his house in the country, a place she has never been before. Her new husband’s home is unfamiliar, as she does not know the exact location nor does she have any personal connections in the area. In her alienation, Katherine gathers the desire to return to the family she argued with frequently and at times, despised. Petruchio denies her requests. Petruchio seemingly yields to her wishes in the Act’s 5 scene. Petruchio makes her and company travel back on foot to Padua. Katherine, who has not had her proper sleep or intake of victuals over the past few days, becomes utterly exhausted and drained of energy. In the hot sun, this could prove dangerous to Katherine’s health. Whenever Kate disobeys her lord husband or disagrees with his lawful wording, Petruchio makes them return back to his country home and restart the odyssey. Kathrine soon figures that her own behavior is to blame for her punishment; Katherine feels she is deserving of the abuse. After this psychological and bodily torture, Katherine finally concedes and they are able to continue. When Petruchio names the sun in the sky as the moon, Katherine agrees, “I know it is the moon” (Shakespeare 187). He further tests her obedience by quickly retorting, “Nay, then you lie. It is the blessed sun” (Shakespeare 187). When they meet old Vincentio on the road, he has Katherine identify the elder as “Young budding virgin, fair and fresh and sweet” (Shakespeare 189). Petruchio corrects her and makes her seem like a mad fool when he educates her that Vincentio is actually “a man–old, wrinkled, faded, withered–/And not a maiden, as thou sayst he is” (Shakespeare 189). Katherine readily agrees with her husband and apologizes for her stupidity, blaming it on the sun.
To modern audiences, all elements of this relationship is undoubtedly abusive. According to the American Psychiatric Association, as Petruchio sets to “isolate, intimidate, and control” his partner, Petruchio is a sadistic domestic abuser. To her family, Petruchio may seem attentive and affectionate to his new mate. His sole purpose is to humiliate her enough to tame her into submission, so Petruchio can have full control over her dowry, as promised by Baptista. His forms of humiliation end up including calling her names, insulting her, rough-handling her, and overall putting her in her place. Men were afraid of being cruel to Kate because she had no problem with acting unladylike and getting revenge. There are times that Katherine seems afraid of Petruchio. Given, Kate has never been pursued by a man romantically and she does not know how to interact with a man who challenges her. It can also be argued that she fears for her life as he neglects her human needs. Yet, Katherine ultimately submits to his will and demands because her husband is her key to survival, socially as well as provider of food, water, clothing, and shelter. He also does sexually assault her; he forces a kiss on her after their meeting in Act 2. The next time the couple kisses, it is done with some coercion on Petruchio’s part. It is not until Act 5, Scene 2 that a kiss between the married couple is completely consensual by both parties.
Whether it is newly discovered admiration or an admitted defeat over dominance, Katherine and Petruchio’s unspoken commitment to be amiable towards one another is not normal. There is no boundaries as they pressure each other into doing things they do not wish to do; Petruchio succeeds in this task more often than Kate. Both are resistant to compromise; it is Petruchio’s way or the highway (an option Katherine does not have available to her). Katherine and Petruchio are both disrespectful and critical towards one another. Katherine is only allowed to speak openly of her thoughts when Petruchio commands it, to insult the Widow and her sister Bianca at the banquet. Petruchio only supports and celebrates Katherine’s words and actions when they reflect and coincide with his ideals. William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew is not a romantic comedy. The Taming of the Shrew is the tragedy of a woman losing her natural freedom and her personal identity to her husband.
Works Cited
Bamford, Karen. Shakespeare’s Comedies of Love. Toronto, ON, CAN: University of Toronto Press, 2008. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 15 March 2015.
Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2014. Print.
The Taming of the Shrew by William Shakespeare
PETRUCHIO
Character Analysis
Petruchio is a wealthy bachelor who is on the prowl for a rich wife. When he hears about Katherine Minola, he agrees to marry her despite (or, perhaps because of) her reputation as a shrew. You see, Petruchio sees himself as the ultimate shrew taming champion – he even tutors other men on how to get their wives in line. (Elizabethans were really worked up about all the shrewish wives running around making their husbands look like wimps. They came up with sermons about how women should be silent and obedient, and tons of little gadgets to keep overly talkative women quiet – ever heard of a scold's bridle?)
The Man Loves Money
Petruchio's not a hard one to figure out – in fact, he's pretty honest throughout the play. He's the only guy who unabashedly admits that he loves money more than anything else.
Signior Hortensio, 'twixt such friends as we Few words suffice. And therefore, if thou know One rich enough to be Petruchio's wife (As wealth is burden of my wooing dance), Be she as foul as was Florentius' love, As old as Sibyl and as curst and shrewd As Socrates' Xanthippe, or a worse, She moves me not, or not removes at least Affection's edge in me, were she as rough As are the swelling Adriatic seas. I come to wive it wealthily in Padua; If wealthily, then happily in Padua. (1.2.66-77)
This is a long speech but stay with us – it pretty much sums up Petruchio as a character. Here, he says he doesn't care if a woman is ugly, old, or shrewish – as long as she's got a big bank account, he'll marry her because money makes him happy. (His references to Florentine, Sibyl, and Xanthippe also tell us he's well read and educated, just like the other upper-middle class characters in the play.)
This is also a great example of how Petruchio loves to use figures of speech. Even if Kate's as "rough" as the "seas," he's unfazed. This makes him an adventurer, a guy who's "man enough" to face a violent force of nature. (Elsewhere, he compares himself to a strong gust of wind that will blow out Kate's "fire.") What does Petruchio's little simile say about him? Well, he's full of bravado and he really likes to use language to convey his dominance and masculinity.
Petruchio and Saucy Women
Being a big fan of language, it's no surprise that Kate's acid tongue and wit are appealing to Petruchio (he gets all hot and bothered when Kate cracks Hortensio over the head with a lute and there's a ton of sexual tension when they first meet and argue in Act 2, Scene 1). Still, Petruchio sees himself as a "manly man." As such, he always wants to appear in the dominant role, especially in public. Even after Petruchio has "tamed" Kate, he still enjoys her ability to slice and dice her opponents with her witty speech. Our evidence? We're glad you asked. When Kate argues with the Widow at the wedding banquet in Act 5, Scene 2, Petruchio says, "To her, Kate!" He likes Kate's temper and her acid tongue, just not when it's directed at him.
Taming School
So, what about this whole "taming" thing? How does it work, exactly? First, Petruchio acts like a "shrew" on his wedding day and throughout the honeymoon so that Kate can see what her bad behavior looks like in another person. This involves a lot of yelling, swearing, the abuse of hapless servants, and erratic and cruel behavior toward Kate. Basically, Petruchio deploys some tried and true torture techniques – starvation, sleep deprivation, psychological manipulation, and good old fashioned humiliation – to get Kate to behave the way he wants.
One of the manipulative techniques Petruchio likes to use is a little game called "let's pretend everything I say is true, even when it's not." How does this work? Well, if the sun is shining in the middle of the afternoon and Petruchio says the moon is very pretty this evening, everybody has to agree that yes, the moon is very pretty indeed. Same goes for when Petruchio pretends an old man is really a "budding" virgin. What happens when Kate doesn't play along? Well, she's punished. Notice how getting his way involves controlling the names of things?
OK, so what do we make of this? Aside from the fact that Petruchio is a jerk, we should think about how his character speaks to the idea that social roles are performative – that is, the idea that getting along in the world requires one to do a lot of acting. Many critics point out that Petruchio teaches Kate how to play-act, to perform a role other than "shrew." This would make his "taming school" more of a nightmare theater boot camp than anything else. Are we letting Petruchio off the hook? Absolutely not. He's utterly abusive toward his wife and revels in his power over Kate.
At the same time that the play portrays domestic violence on stage, Shakespeare leaves open the possibility that anyone who tries to follow Petruchio's advice and behavior is a total idiot. Hortensio, who spends a lot of his valuable time at Petruchio's so-called "taming school," winds up having absolutely no control over his wife, the Widow. In fact, she ends up humiliating him when she disses him in public and causes him to lose a bet. Also, while it appears that Kate has been tamed, her final speech is so over the top that we wonder if Petruchio has trained an obedient wife or just a woman who has learned how to pretend to be obedient. If the latter is true, is this what Petruchio intended?
Either way, we appreciate the way the characters' obsession with acting and performing allows the play to acknowledge that social stereotypes (shrews, good girls, manly men, etc.) are not innate characteristics and are perhaps best left on the stage.
PETRUCHIO TIMELINE AND SUMMARY
1.2.1: Petruchio arrives in Padua with his servant Grumio and announces that he is there to visit his friend Hortensio. He orders his servant to knock on his friend's front gate and then twists Grumio's ears when he doesn't comply.
1.2.5: Petruchio is happy to see his buddy Hortensio and explains why he's beating up on his servant before announcing that he is looking for a rich wife to add to the inheritance left to him by his father. When Hortensio jokes that he knows a rich shrew, Petruchio jumps at the chance to woo Kate.
1.2.14: On the way to Kate's house, Petruchio brags to every guy he meets about what a manly man he is and how he's not afraid to marry a railing, scolding woman. When he meets Bianca's suitors, he agrees to let them reimburse him for the cost of wooing Kate. (If Kate gets married, then Bianca is free to marry, too.)
1.2: Off-stage, Petruchio grabs a snack and pounds some beers with his new friends.
2.1.1: Petruchio arrives with the fellas at Baptista's house, where he presents a disguised Hortensio as a tutor for Baptista's daughters.
2.1.6: Petruchio lays out his proposal to Baptista, who agrees to the plan if Petruchio can get Kate on board.
2.1.11: When he meets Kate, the two engage in a verbal battle of wits. Petruchio contradicts everything Kate says, turns her words into dirty jokes, and then announces that he plans to marry Kate with or without her consent. He will also tame her.
2.1.39: When Baptista enters the room, Petruchio lies and says that Kate is psyched about getting married, but they have agreed that she should pretend to hate him in public.
2.1.40: Petruchio leaves for Verona and says he'll be back on Sunday to marry Kate.
3.2.1: Biondello tells us that Petruchio makes a spectacle of himself when he rides in to Padua on a tired old horse and is dressed in a wild and inappropriate get-up.
3.2.1: Petruchio arrives at Baptista's house in the crazy costume, as described by Biondello, and acts like a crude ruffian. He refuses to change clothes, delivers a speech about how Kate is marrying him, not his clothes, and then runs off to search for Kate.
3.2.1: After the wedding ceremony occurs off-stage, Gremio tells us that Petruchio caused a scene during the wedding ceremony by hitting the priest, making out with Kate, and chugging a few bottles of wine.
3.2.8: Petruchio enters the room and says he and Kate won't be staying for the reception – they're off to his country house for their honeymoon. When Kate and her dad object, Petruchio says that Kate is his property and must do what he says. He draws his sword and pretends he's being attacked by thieves before running off with Kate.
4.1.1: At Petruchio's house, Grumio arrives and tells us that Petruchio beat him on the way home from Padua and didn't help Kate when she fell from her horse and landed in the mud. Petruchio swore and acted like a "shrew" the entire way home.
4.1.1: Petruchio enters his house with Kate and immediately lays into his servants. He claims that dinner has been burnt and refuses to let Kate eat. He sends her to bed without a meal.
4.1.8: Petruchio tells us that his behavior is all part of his plan to tame Kate. He compared her to a hawk that needs to be broken in and says he won't let her eat, sleep, or have a moment's peace until she bends to his will.
4.3.1: We hear from Kate that Petruchio has been starving her and refusing to let her sleep while pretending that he does it for her own good.
4.3.1: Petruchio brings Kate a dish of meat and then finds an excuse not to give it to her. He tells Hortensio to eat it all so Kate can't get any.
4.3.5: When a tailor and a hat maker arrive with the clothes Kate and Petruchio are supposed to wear to Bianca's wedding, Petruchio finds fault with everything and forces Kate to wear old rags. 4.3.17: He throws a tantrum when Kate corrects him about the time and how long it will take to reach Padua.
4.5.1: On the road to Padua, Petruchio "breaks" Kate. He pretends that the sun is the moon and demands that Kate go along with what he says. Then, when they encounter an old man, Petruchio pretends that the old man is young girl, which Kate also goes along with.
4.5.8: Petruchio learns that the old man is Lucentio's father, Vincentio, so he agrees to take him to his son's house in Padua.
4.5.15: When they arrive, Petruchio watches the chaos unfold as Vincentio confronts a man pretending to be him. Petruchio believes Vincentio is an imposter until Lucentio arrives and clears things up.
4.4.16: Petruchio demands a kiss from Kate and threatens to take her home unless she submits. When she does, they enter Lucentio's house for the wedding banquet.
5.2.1: Petruchio sits with Kate and the wedding party and enjoys some laughs. He trades insults with his friends, teases Bianca, and encourages Kate to argue with the Widow.
5.2.15: When the wives wander off to entertain themselves, Petruchio bets the guys that he has the most obedient wife of the group.
5.2.23: He calls for Kate and gloats when she comes. He demands that she take off her ugly hat and orders her to yell at the other wives for not obeying their husbands.
5.2.29: Petruchio is pleased as punch when Kate delivers a lengthy speech and calls him her king. He looks at Kate and says, "Let's find a bedroom." Before he runs off to sleep with his wife, he brags about how he's the ultimate shrew-tamer.