Taming of the Shrew
William Shakespeare
By Chloe Glassel, Aaliyah Henderson, Charles Santa
Cruz, and Mary Chernovisova
Play Synopsis
“A lord comes across a drunken and comatose
Christopher Sly, and conceives the idea of bringing
him back to his house and treating him as a
nobleman when he awakes, to see what happens.
The lord has his servants dress and act
appropriately, and convinces Sly that he has come
to his senses after a long illness. A passing troupe of
players perform a play for him, during which Sly
gives an occasional bored reaction.”
Scene Synopsis: ACT 2 SCENE 1
After Baptista must break up a spat between daughters Kate and Bianca, a group
of 6 men appear. The group uses false identities and abilities to gain the right to
see and woo Bianca. Petruchio, one of the men, hears about the dowry that will
come with marrying Katherine and decides to woo her. Upon their meeting he
contradicts everything she says and begins calling her Kate, all to her displeasure.
After a verbal dueling, the other men reenter to which Petruchio claims to have
already agreed upon Sunday as the wedding. Now that Bianca will be available to
wed once Kate has, Baptista allows Lucentio to marry her once he has proven she
will be provided for if she is to be widowed.
William
Shakespeare ● English Poet and Playwright
● Born April, 26 1564
● “Bard of Avon”
● Borrowed from history, mythos,
and other plays but made them
uniquely his own plays
Growing Up
William Shakespeare, born in Stratford-upon-Avon England, was the third child of Mary
Aden and John Shakespeare. William had two older sisters and three younger brothers
Judith, Joan, Edmund, Gilbert, and Richard. Not many educators know much about
Williams upbringing but they assume “he attended the King’s New school in Stratford
which taught reading, writing, and the classics.” (Biography). Though William had a long
life to live, there aren’t very many sources aside from court hearings and important
documentation of his work that prove his existence as a person. By the 1950’s William
became a managing partner of Lord Chamberlain's Men Company of Theatrical Players.
Little of his professional life gave insight on how he became such a talented writer, but 20
years of being a playwright certainly gives him bragging rights on a successful career. We
still read and perform his pieces over 400 years later.
Religion ● Kings and princes began rising
against the church
● Universities and other
institutions became primary
schooling
● These led to abandonment of
religious text as basis for
theater, began move to
secular, humanistic theatre
Shakespeare born: The Globe Theatre is Play Published:
April 26, 1564 built by the
Chamberlain’s Men “Taming of the Shrew”
- 1623 (written in
1593)
1564 1588 1599 1616 1623
Defeat of the Spanish Death: April 23, 1616
Armada
Political
● Tudors are now in power
● Scotland and England will never get
along :(
● Sike here comes the creation of Great
Britain!
● After the English defeated the Spanish
Armada, patriotism soared.
Society
● Feudalism is out, cities are in
● Mining of coal,tin, and lead
flourished
● Poor Hygiene
● Everyone wore wool
● Women had little to no power
Taming of The Shrew Impact
● The oppression of
women
● “Marriage as an
Economic Institution”
● How social roles can
influence happiness
Works Cited
Editors, History.com. “Spanish Armada.” University of Houston,
History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2 May www.uh.edu/~djudkins/life_in_renaissance_engl
2018, www.history.com/topics/british- and.htm
history/spanish-armada.
Flores, Staphan. “Shakespeare's World.”
“Elizabethan Society | tutor2u History.” tutor2u, Frankenstein, University of Idaho, 2019,
www.tutor2u.net/history/reference/elizabethan- www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~sflores/345world.ht
society. ml.
“LIFE IN 16th CENTURY ENGLAND.” A Brief SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on The Taming
History of Poland, 2018, of the Shrew.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes
www.localhistories.org/tudor.html LLC. 2002. Web. 4 Mar. 2019.
Brockett, Oscar Gross., and Franklin J. Hildy.
History of the Theatre. Pearson, 2014.
Works Cited Cont'd
“William Shakespeare.” Biography.com, A&E T, Bruce. “A History of the Globe Theater |
Brought to You by Theater Seat Store.”
Networks Television, 14 Feb. 2019,
TheaterSeatStore.com, 28 Feb. 2019,
www.biography.com/people/william- www.theaterseatstore.com/blog/history-globe-
shakespeare-9480323. theater.
Shakespeare, William. “The Taming of the Shakespeare, William. “The Globe Theatre.”
Shrew Synopsis.” PlayShakespeare.com: The PlayShakespeare.com: The Ultimate Free
Ultimate Free Shakespeare Resource, 2005, Shakespeare Resource,
www.playshakespeare.com/taming-of-the- www.playshakespeare.com/study/elizabethan-
shrew/synopsis. theatres/2189-the-globe-theatre.
“What Are the Social and Historical Implications
of The Taming of the Shrew?” Enotes.com,
Enotes.com, 2019, www.enotes.com/homework-
help/what-social-historical-implications-taming-
shrew-127937.
