Old Analysis for Old Drama (The Taming of The Shrew)

 Fie, fie! unknit that threatening unkind brow,
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes,
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor:
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty;
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign; one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body
To painful labour both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe;
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience;
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince
Even such a woman oweth to her husband;
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will,
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
I am ashamed that women are so simple
To offer war where they should kneel for peace;
Or seek for rule, supremacy and sway,
When they are bound to serve, love and obey.
Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,
Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,
But that our soft conditions and our hearts
Should well agree with our external parts?
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!
My mind hath been as big as one of yours,
My heart as great, my reason haply more,
To bandy word for word and frown for frown;
But now I see our lances are but straws,
Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare,
That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.
Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,
And place your hands below your husband's foot:
In token of which duty, if he please,
My hand is ready; may it do him ease.

That long dialogue is spoken after Katharina’s obedience toward Petruchio is shown in front of Hortensio, Lucentio, Bianca and Hortensio’s wife. Husband, in the speech, is analoged as the lord, meaning that husband is something that is great, strong and powerful. Similar analogue is represented by the line “thy head” which means husband is something that has major role and highest position among all. Those also mean that husband, according to the speech, contributes  important role in a family, especially as the tough keeper of the wife from the dangerous thing outside. That is also stated in “And for thy maintenance commits his body. To painful labour both by sea and land. To watch the night in storms, the day in cold.” So, that is husband who gives wife the life, secure and pleasure.

Meanwhile, wife is depicted as weaker person than husband. That is represented in the line ”Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare.” That implies the set side that wife is the needer while husband is the giver. The husband is represented as the person who has everything that can be given for the wife. Moreover, Katharina also sees that what has been given by the husband is a debt that has to be paid by the wife. It is stated in “But love, fair looks, and true obedience, Too little payment for so great a debt.” However, the wife who has great heart only can pay it by her love and obedient since wife can not pay it by protection and tough keeping. Katharina’s point of view deals with biological difference between man and woman. Although some women have same ability as strong as the men, that is only the minorities, mostly women have weaker body structure than the men. Therefore, that is the fact which makes her speech convincing and influencing.

In the speech, Katharina believes that husband is the side which give, while wife is the side which need. That is believed that power inequality between wife and husband exists naturally and that can not be beaten. Then, husband is the person who has power, command and protection, while that is the wife who should be thankful for great protection which is given by the husband. As the payment, woman should pay back the protection by her love and obedience.

Sumber gambar:
http://madameaddams.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/the-taming-of-the-shrew.jpg