Gendered Identities: Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew

• Main Author: Ela İPEK GÜNDÜZ
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Gaziantep University 2018-07-01
• Series: Gaziantep University Journal of Social Sciences
• Subjects: taming; Shakespeare; gender
• Online Access: http://dergipark.gov.tr/download/article-file/504188
• ISSN: 1303-0094; 2149-5459

William Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew” questions the social world order that includes an exhibition of the Elizabethan norms including patriarchal authority. The subject matter of the play is a disputable topic that presents a depiction of the gender roles. The ambiguous point about Shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew” is the issue whether the females are surrendered to the male hegemony or not in their love relations. Throughout the centuries, both the text and the perfomance of the play are evaluated in different ways by the critics, producers and directors. Almost all interpretations add different dimensions to this controversial aspect of the play. Caroline Byrne’s 2016 Globe Theatre production will be evaluated before passing onto Shakespeare’s own text since it is significant to evaluate how a contemporary female director handles this problematic issue of the “taming” theme in its re-presentation of the the ongoing discussions about Shakespeare’s portrayal of a “tamed shrew” in the contemporary perceptions. Then, the text will be examined in its depiction of the gendered identities.