The Taming of the Shrew - Softcover

Shakespeare, William

Softcover

ISBN 10: 014139658X ISBN 13: 9780141396583

Publisher: Penguin Classics, 2015

Synopsis

'I pity the man who cannot enjoy Shakespeare' George Bernard Shaw

The beautiful and witty Katherina has sworn never to accept the demands of any would-be husband. But when she is pursued by the wily Petruchio, it seems that she has finally met her match. As he meets her caustic words with capricious cruelty, Katherina is forced to reconsider her position, in one of the greatest and most contentious of all comic battles of the sexes.

Used and Recommended by the National Theatre

General Editor Stanley Wells
Edited by G. R. Hibbard
Introduction by M. J. Kidnie

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Few of Shakespeare's comedies have proved more popular and enduring than The Taming of the Shrew - and yet it has come to seem one of Shakespeare's more controversial plays. An analysis of the drama that is attentive to its theatrical challenges and stage history allows a better understanding of its power to provoke such diverse responses. How might Katerina's final speech be staged in the twenty-first century? Must it be played for irony, or are her words sincere? How might other characters on stage respond to her account of a woman's duty to her husband?

This Handbook provides students and theatre-goers with a performance-oriented guide to the drama. Its commentary explores the action scene by scene, drawing on discussions elsewhere in the book of Shakespeare's cultural and historical moment, and the play's continued fortunes on the stage and screen. Margaret Jane Kidnie equips readers with the skills and materials with which to explore the variety of ways in which this 'troubling comedy' or 'light tragedy' might take on meaning today for modern audiences.

About the Author:

William Shakespeare was born in late April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon and died in 1616. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist.

Stanley Wells is Emeritus Professor of the University of Birmingham and Honorary President of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

Margaret Jane Kidnie is Professor of English at the University of Western Ontario.

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 014139658X
• ISBN 13: 9780141396583
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288