Women and Marriage in Shakespearean Britain
Marriage and women’s role in society are very important themes in Taming of the Shrew. The play depicts the taming of Katherina as she becomes an uncontrollable, independent, feisty women, to a well-mannered, cultivated, loyal housewife at the hands of her husband Petruchio. In Act 2 Scene 1, Katherina is treated as a kind of commodity when Petruchio and Baptista are discussing the dowry for Katherine’s marriage. Thomas Overbury described the wife as “a mans best moveable” in his literary character sketch of “a good wife” and the concept of women as a commodity was prevalent in early modern Britain because wealth was inherited through marriage. From the men’s perspective, marriage to women was regarded as a way of securing more wealth for the husband or the family and marriage was more of an economic or social contract than the union of two lovers. However, marriage could also benefit the women as well. As a man’s inheritance would pass to the first born son and not to the daughters, fathers encouraged marriage to their daughters as a means of providing for the welfare of his daughter. Furthermore, wives were entitled to a part of the husband’s estate or wealth in the event of the husband’s death. Thus, marriage provided financial stability for women and could secure their position in society in the event of their father or husband’s death.
Also, outside the context of marriage, women were regarded as inherently inferior to men, uncontrollable, and prone to many vices. Although 16th century Britain was ruled by a female monarchy, this misogynist ideology prevailed throughout modern early England. Elizabeth 1st herself was binded by this ideology as she never directly promoted the equality of women through politics. At the battle of Tilbury, Elizabeth 1st claimed that she “has the body of a weak and feeble women, but (has) the heart and stomach of a king”. Although this claim seems to make an argument that masculinity and femininity can be equally embodied in the female body, at the same time it asserts the women’s position in the misogynist hierarchy of 16th century Britain.
Thus, Petruchio’s taming of his wife, which include threats of violence, verbal abuse, and starvation, is not unusual at all in the context of early modern Britain. Laws allowed men to beat their wives to “correct” their errors and regarded as a private matter of the household. However, in Shakespeare’s time, domestic violence was a heavily debated topic in sermons as a different kind of ideology emerged which asserted that marriage was a form of “partnership” instead of a social contract. Domestic violence conflicted with this new concept of marriage, and although husband’s could not be punished by the law, it was frowned upon in some households. The Taming of the Shrew reflects the controversy concerning domestic violence as Petruchio never physically injures Katherina, although the presence of violence lingers over the whole play.
Edited by Shinichiro Fukuoka
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