The Taming of the Shrew - Feminism and Shakespeare

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Some have made the claim that Shakespeare was pro-feminist and did all he could to illuminate the wrong done to women of his time by creating some overwhelmingly misogynistic characters. This was his way of showing men the errors of their ways and shaming them into showing women more respect. This is an interesting hypothesis for a number of reasons. First of all, there are no signs that it worked, if Shakespeare did indeed intend to reform men. Could the Bard, supposing that he was trying to shame men into changing, influence men in this manner? Can we blame him if he failed? Secondly, and by far more interesting to me, is that, in some cases, feminists seem to be more interested in martyring the Bard than in promoting feminist agendas What proof do we have that Shakespeare was really that enlightened? I was really quite entertained while reading the intro to The Taming of the Shrew. It was quite humorous to watch a person back flips to show what a righteous dude Mr. Bill really was. Anne Barton seems to be firmly entrenched in the "proto feminist Bard" camp. The introduction to this play was among the best I have read for this class and I don't mean to seem to be "slamming" Anne Barton, but her justifications for Petruchio and Shakespeare were pretty funny, in my opinion. Maybe I am crazy, but I don't see how starving your new wife and refusing her sleep is enlightened behavior in any way, shape, or form. Barton tells us that, in Shakespeare's time, "shrewish" wives could become the victims of "physical violence, the more ingenious and excruciating the better." She further tells us that, in comparison to the men of that day, "Petruchio . . . is almost a model of intelligence and humanity" and that "what Petruchio wants, and ends up with, is a Katherina of unbroken spirit and gaiety who has suffered only minor physical discomfort . . ." (138). This is a very interesting take on the situation I read about. To me, Katherina's spirit was completely broken at the end of the play. I was anxious to see how Barton would, in addition to this proof of comparative enlightenment on Petruchio's part, find a way to claim that Shakespeare was also showing the men the error of their ways.

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