Act Two Scene One in The Taming of the Shrew Essay

Act Two Scene One in The Taming of the Shrew The scene that I will be analysing in this piece of coursework, Act two Scene one, is an important scene in the play as a whole as it is the first time that we see the two main characters together. The characters Petruchio and Katherina have been developed separately until now; the audience has noticed similarities in their personalities such as use of physical strength and good use of words. We know that Petruchio is set to woo Katherine and all the tension that has been building up in anticipation of their meeting is about to be released. This scene contains a soliloquy from Petruchio in which he tells us about his plan to tame Katherina, this is†¦show more content†¦This shows that Bianca is trying to stand up to Katherina, but in response to this she is struck by her sister, once again showing Katherinas inclination to use physical violence whenever possible. Although we should be feeling sympathetic towards Bianca at this stage, we cant help but sympathise for Katherina also. There is obviously a reason for this behaviour and although she denies it maybe Katherina is subconsciously envious of Bianca and maybe has a desire to be married herself, even if she doesnt know it yet. Biancas line: So well I know my duties to my elders Seems smug, this is her way of tormenting Katherina suggesting she is irregular for not conforming to the expectations of society. When Baptista, her father enters we see him rush to Biancas aid, he does not even ask for Katherinas reasoning for tying up her sister but reprimands her anyway: Thou hilding of a devilish spirit Again we can sympathise for Katherina as her father is calling her a good for nothing devil. 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