“Taming of the Shrew” by William Shakespeare

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(Name) (Instructors’ name) (Course) (Date) “Taming of the Shrew” by William Shakespeare The play “Taming of the Shrew” is a comedy that centers on deception carried out by a nobleman on a drunken tinker named Sly (Murray 2). The play depicts a relationship between Petruchio and Katherina who are opposites of each other in terms of personality. In the play, Petruchio is portrayed as a gentleman, while Katherina is exposed as a stubborn shrew. Though the two are in a relationship, Katherina is reluctant to taking part in the relationship and taking to her roles as a wife. As the name of the play suggests, the play is about how Petruchio managed to tame Katherina into willfully playing a part in the relationship. This paper investigates Shakespeare’s use of setting in relation to the play “Taming the Shrew”. The paper also explains why Shakespeare chose to set the play in Padua Italy. The paper will also give details on the time settings, during the Italian renaissance, in relation to this. Place Setting In true Shakespeare technique, the play contrasts an urban Italian setting with a rural one. Though it may not be as obvious as other plays that he wrote; the play shares the theme of state versus conurbation division (Murray 6). The play is set during the Italian renaissance period in Padua, Italy. Shakespeare presents Padua in the setting of a city and terms it a nursery of art (Shakespeare 1.1: 2). In the play, Padua is brought forth as a city of wealth and sophistication characterized by rich culture and learning. We see this in the character Lucentio who pursues Katherina’s younger sister Bianca behind the mask of romance novels and Latin translations (Murray 2). Lucentio’s character also brings out the essence of Padua in education where he poses as a schoolteacher as he pursues Bianca. This is

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