Taming of the Shrew
Lecture 2 ►The Induction
Logical Geography of the concept
of ‘Farce’ in Drama
 A comedy
 involving farcical hoops
 Using buffoonery and horseplay
 Including crude, energetic characterization
 Ludicrous and improbable situations
 Going beyond the bounds of credibility
What is an
Induction
 Noting the meaning of ‘Induction’ in the context of
Drama: An Introduction or Introductory scene
 In the sense of the play, the Induction then serves the
purpose of an opening theatrical device to introduce the
audience to key concerns, concepts and themes of the
central play; of the play proper;
 Concerns with hunting; acting; creation of illusion of a
rich, powerful world; the conflict between appearance
and reality
Synoptic Overview .
Two Induction Scenes (Scenes 1 and 2):
 Scene 1: Sets the stage, with Christopher Sly, a drunken
peasant / tinker / beggar, and the Hostess arguing.
Sly is then discovered by a noble Lord, and the Lord’s
plan is hatched;
 Scene 2: The Lord’s plan is set in motion and the various
acts of role-playing commence.
The Induction
 Consists of two scenes that stand apart from and outside of
the main action of the play proper;
 The actions that occur within the Induction have no bearing
or direct consequence on the action of the central play and
thus are not ominous; (though indirectly, yes!)
 BUT the Induction does introduce the audience, and
foreshadows / throws a forward light on the key themes and
concerns that are pertinent to the central play, “Taming of the
Shrew” — e.g. the development of love and marriage
 In deriving these themes and concerns, we must closely
analyze the elements of language, the stage directions, the
dramatic action, dramatic irony, and dramatic effects
The Induction
The Induction presents enough clues both in the action and
dialogue to suggest an approach and insights pertaining
to what takes place in the central play.
Even though there is no concluding frame or epilogue in
Shakespeare’s Induction, one is left to imagine what the
outcome of the Lord’s game may be.
Would it be comical? Or would the audience find the Lord’s
abuse of power revolting and sympathize with Sly?
Imagine Sly’s sense of humiliation once the game is
concluded and the deception is revealed.
The Induction
-
The comic element in the Induction is necessary to
orientate and facilitate our involvement and engagement
with the central play
-
The meanness and cruelty of the Lord’s joke is easily
overlooked because of the comical element;
its
farcical dimension
-
This comic element is thus sustained throughout the play
and primes the audience to be able to more easily accept
the violence and cruelty that Petruchio portrays towards
Katherina
Function of Induction
 It makes the audience aware that the play is intended to
be viewed as a comedy; as farce;
 Not to be taken in any way as a serious presentation;
 And to begin introducing the sort of dramatic
personages who are to be made fun of; mocked;
 The drunken tinker and the arrogant, aristocratic Lord
Class &
Social Hierarchy
 Class differences are clearly brought to our attention in
the two Induction scenes
 Introduction to Sly, the tinker / the beggar, and the
construction of his character
 Analysis of his language reveals that he speaks in prose,
commits misquotations and thoroughly gets his facts
wrong. Talks about his ancestry which he will then
vehemently deny;
 Stage action: He falls onto the floor in a drunken stupor
and his occupation of the lower space of the stage is
visually impactful, and thus critically significant;
 Why? Contrast with the dramatic entrance of the Lord
Class &
Social Hierarchy
Analyse the entrance of the noble Lord: he arrives with aplomb –
enhanced by the sound cue of trumpets
He falls asleep
Wind horns. Enter a Lord from hunting, with his train of Huntsmen and
Servingmen
 The Lord’s entrance together with his band of huntsmen and
servingmen make for a visually arresting sight on stage. (Note
that the importance of his entrance is highly dependant on the
choice that the director makes)
 When he starts speaking, the difference is made more strikingly
Lord’s Plan:
Manipulation
 The Lord manipulates Sly into believing that he is not the scum of
the earth but of noble birth
 Question to ask yourself, WHY?
 Why would the Lord want to play such a trick on him? Various
reasons: Abuse of class, to pass his time and entertain himself;
 His very manipulation raises a few central concerns re- the central
play
 The lord’s manipulation of Sly mirrors that of Petruchio’s
manipulation and translation of Katherina into a loving wife in the
central play
 Although the lord’s manipulation here raises the concern of power
dynamics between classes, Petruchio’s manipulation reflects the
power dynamics in the relationship between a husband and his wife
Metaphors
Metaphor of hunting, and game (recurring in the play)
 ‘Well, you are come to me in happy time,/ The rather for I have
some sport in hand” Induction 1.86-87
Metaphor of falconry/ taming/ hawking
 “For I am he am born to tame you Kate,/ And bring you from
a wild Kate to a Kate/ Conformable as other household Kates.”
2.1.267
The hunter and the hunted / the falconer and the falcon/
the tamer and the tamed
 All of these connote relationships within the dynamics
of power
Power
 If the Lord abuses his power as an aristocrat, does
Petruchio then abuse his power as a husband?
 Consider the way Petruchio ‘tames’ Katherina
 What does this tell us about the power dynamics
between the sexes? Between husband and wife?
 Note that power is already assumed by Petruchio even
before he becomes her husband. Katherina does not
protest against his claims that she wants to marry him –
why?
 “Here comes your father. /Never make denial / I must and
will have Katherine to my wife.” 2.1.271
Identity
 ‘Know thyself ’ is the great message of life and literature;
 The tension between what is determined for us, and
what is determined by us, i.e. the choices we make
 Who we are, or how we are, is a process that begins
before we are even aware of it;
 What does it mean for a name to name me?
Acting / Role Playing
 The importance of role playing becomes apparent in the
Induction when the Lord and his servingmen assume
various acting roles in order to convince Sly that he is
actually lord, not a tinker.
 Acting / role playing is mirrored in the play itself by
Lucentio and Tranio’s own role playing;
 “Doth the clothes maketh the man?” (Hamlet)
 Another key concept arising from role playing would be
‘Appearance’ as opposed to ‘Reality’
Clothing
 The motif of clothing recurs throughout the play and
one cannot help but question its significance
 Bartholomew dons ladies’ clothes and assumes the
appearance of a woman
 Sly is helped into the clothes of a noble involuntarily,
and then assumes the identity of a lord; Outward
appearances?
 Tranio and Lucentio exchange clothes to assume
different identities in order to trick and deceive
Baptista and Bianca
 Petruchio attends his own wedding banquet in ragged
clothing; ‘mean-apparell’d’ [3.2.71];
 He then later denies Katherina of a beautiful gown
and cap
Clothing
 Each incident regarding the motif of clothing reflects a
certain issue and concern
 Do the clothes really make the man? Does Bartholomew
really become a woman? He is convincing enough to Sly
however. Similarly, Tranio and Lucentio. One questions
then the concept of Identity and how this may be a
social construct.
 The obvious answer: that the clothes do not make the
man. Sly will never be a lord simply because his clothes
have been changed. But, his behaviour has been shaped
and manipulated by the Lord through his dressing. It is
used here as a tool of control. In the play proper
Petruchio also uses clothing in his taming of Katherina
to humiliate her.
Identity and the
Notion of Self
 Through manipulation, Sly is transformed into a lord by
believing the fabricated stories that the Lord and his
Servingmen tell him
 The change of clothes also contributes to Sly’s transformation
and he in due course appears to believe that he is of noble
birth. Similarly other characters frequently take on various
identities too – through the change in language and clothes
 Sly’s transformation appears to be complete when he starts to
speak in verse; similarly, Kate’s transformation seems
complete when she starts to speak like the ideal woman of the
Italian Renaissance
Identity and the
Notion of Self
 However note Sly in 2.70-73 betrays himself:
Upon my life, I am a lord indeed
And not a tinker, nor Christopher Sly.
Well, bring our lady hither to our sight,
And once again a pot o’th’smallest ale.
 This choice of the cheapest beer draws attention to, and
emphasises the distinctions of rank between his actual and
assumed identity (Note: Use of visual sign systems)
 We can thus infer that despite the Lord’s manipulation, he is
unable to dispose of his old identity. If Sly parallels
Katherina, could it be then that by the end of the play,
Katherina’s transformation to a lady is also suspect?
Identity and the
Notion of Self
 This raises the question of identity. Is identity a social
construct or is it inherent within us? i.e. Is Identity in
our nature or is it nurtured in our culture? Do we have
complete control over our identity? Are we what we
think we are? Are we what we want to be?
 In the play, identity appears to be fluid and is changed
through acting roles, clothing and language
 This parallels Katherina with Sly, and Petruchio with the
Lord
 The Lords manipulation of names and the concept of
naming also arises
Naming
 Despite Sly’s assertion of his previously known identity, his efforts
are nullified by the Lord’s elaborate scheme
 “I am Christophero Sly – call not me ‘honour’ nor ‘lordship’.
Induction 2.5
 “Thou art a lord, and nothing but a lord.” Induction 2.59
 Compare this with Petruchio’s naming of Katherina even before he
marries her. He is relentless in calling her Kate instead of Katherina.
Not only does he use her pet name to assert a sense of familiarity, he
does not allow Katherina to be addressed the way she desires.
 “They call me Katherine that do talk of me.” 2.1.182
 “You lie, in faith, for you are call’d 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 Kates – and therefore, Kate,/ Take
this of me, Kate of my consolation:” 2.1.184
Gender roles and Expectations
 In Scene 1 of the Induction, the Lord calls upon
Bartholomew, his male page, to take on the identity of a
woman and through his monologue at the end of the
Induction, we are made aware of the expectations of a
noble lady.
 This sets up audiences expectations of the idea of a
perfect wife. What is the effect of this? And how does
this affect the audience’s perception of Katherina in the
central play?
 A closer examination of his speech reveals the various
demands made on a woman
 Note again the contrast between the Hostess and a noble
lady that Bartholomew has been tasked to play
Induction Scene l.105-117
Tell him from me – as he will win my loveHe bear himself with honourable action
Such as he hath observ’d in noble action
Unto their lords, by them accomplished.
Socially expected behaviour from
noble ladies
With a soft voice and who
curtsies humbly
The form of address between
With soft low tongue and lowly courtesy,
husband and wife of the
And say, ‘What is’t your honour will command artistocracy – already
demonstrates the power
dynamics within the institution
Wherein your lady and your humble wife
of marriage
May show her duty and make known her love?
And then with kind embracements, tempting kisses
The concept of a woman’s
And with declining head into his bosom
Bid him shed tears, as being overjoy’d
To see her noble lord restor’d to health
duties towards her husband –
to be humble and to provide
sexual pleasure
And if the boy have not a woman’s gift
To rain a shower of commanded tears,
An onion will do well for such a shift,
Which in a napkin being close convey’d
What is being conveyed here are the assumed inherent
Shall in despite
enforce of
a watery
characteristics
women:eye. (l. 124)=
1. Women have the natural ‘gift’ of crying on cue – a gift that men
do not possess
2. Women can be oft times insincere in their tears
 Bartholomew, a page, dressed as a lady, addresses Sly
thus:
‘My husband and my lord, my lord and my husband,
I am your wife in all obedience.’ [Induction 1.104-105]
Sly in reply:
Madam, undress you and come now to bed.
[Induction 1.115]
Gender Roles and
Expectations
 The issue of a woman’s duty to her husband is at the
thematic heart of the play within the play (i.e. the central
play)
 The Lord’s extended lesson on how to play convincingly
the woman’s part offers to the audience a preliminary
portrayal of the constituent elements and expectations of
wifely behaviour: a humble manner, quiet voice, sexual
availability and (false) tears
 As the lord is to the servant,
 As the head is to the body
 As the sovereign is to the subject
 So the husband is to the wife
Summary
 Dramatic function and critical significance of the
Induction
 A Theatrical Framing Device / Technique
 Metatheatrical self-reflexivity
 Surface themes/issues that are critical to the play
 Social hierarchy
 Gender roles & expectations
 Marriage
 Identity (and manipulation of)
 Gender dynamics
 Power dynamics and relationships
 Do not forget, at the heart of our discussion and
analysis, are the concepts and concerns central to our
Paper—Paper 5 Women in Literature: How women are
represented in Drama; Prose; and Poetry
 Gender issues and key concepts such as the patriarchal
forces and patriarchal power structures to which
Katherina, and Bianca, are subjected