Discussion Topic
The significance of dramatic comedy and its impact on the audience in The Taming of the Shrew
Summary:
The significance of dramatic comedy in The Taming of the Shrew lies in its ability to entertain and engage the audience while exploring themes of gender roles, marriage, and social hierarchy. The humorous interactions and situations provoke laughter, which can lead to reflection on societal norms and personal behavior, ultimately making the play's commentary more accessible and impactful.
What is the significance of dramatic comedy in The Taming of the Shrew?
Dramatic comedy is that which shows humans as worse than they might be portrayed in reality. It highlights all of the many flaws that may encompass certain characters, or people in similar situations, in order to draw them out for comedic purposes. The hope is that, in the end, the flaws are remedied and the characters are all the better for having their flaws exposed or thrown in their own faces. This is the whole point in Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew." Katherine's "waspish" (eNotes eText II.i.214) attitude at her first meeting with Petruchio plays out in physical violence, which can be construed as funny because women don't usually hit a suitor upon first meeting him. Petruchio threatens to "cuff" her if she strikes again (line 225) which presents stage directors with many possibilities for physical roudiness between the two leads. Physical comedy is one of the elements of...
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low comedy under the umbrella of dramatic comedy. One of the worst things that can happen in a marriage is physical abuse, but here, even before the two are married, they are slapping or constraining each other rather than holding hands and getting to know each other. The comedy andirony of the situation sets the scene for the audience to root for Petruchio to win Kate's heart and for them to live happily ever after.
References
Why is humor's dramatic impact on the audience important in The Taming of the Shrew?
There is a long history of the humorous depiction of domestic violence in English drama. The puppet show characters Punch and Judy, which were brought to England in the seventeenth century, are an example of this popular kind of humor. In these puppet shows (which were more widespread than any Shakespeare play, as they were performed in almost every village) the husband, Punch, of a nagging wife, Judy, argue and beat each other. While things are generally more civilized in The Taming of the Shrew, the humorous intent is similar. The joke of the "shrewish" or nagging wife, eventually disciplined by a long-suffering husband, was considered funny for a very long time in England (and is still current in sanitized versions of village shows today.) The humor attached to a very real issue of domestic strife could be seen by the audience in various ways: it was funny to some people because they see the nagging wife as something unfeminine, and the eventual punishment by the husband as a restoration of the patriarchal order; the ridiculousness of the discord between a married couple played out for all to see; or a coping mechanism of laughing at the inescapable fact of domestic violence. The humor in Taming makes Petruchio's assertion of authority more palatable, and Kate's allegedly "shrewish" behavior funny. Humor palliates the truth of the struggle between the sexes.
Source: Punch and Judy webpage http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-PunchNJu.html