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Jin Joung
Mr. Chung
LA2/Pre-IB Per. 6
3 April 2016
Men/Womens Brains
As the era changes, the role of men and women changes and following those changes a
persons behavior and attitude adjusts to the time periods ideology. During the Elizabethan era
(1558 - 1603), women were expected to be housewives and rear the children. Childbearing was
known to be an honor for women. Even though there are still some beliefs that women should
continue to inhabit the traditional female role of homemaker and mother, their roles in the
1990s had a drastic change compared to the Elizabethan era (Role). They were allowed to vote,
take on jobs outside of the domestic sphere, and inherit possessions, which wouldve only been
allowed to the males of the family during the second half of the 16th century. There were fewer
changes for men than women: men could work in the domestic sphere as well and they gained
suffrage that didnt depend on their social standings. The roles of men and women in the
Elizabethan era and the 1990s can explain the ethics/morals, conflicts, and behavior of Petruchio
and Katherine.
The ethics/morals of Petruchio and Katherine can be justified by the eras public opinion.
In the Elizabethan era, people believed that women in her greatest perfection was made to serve
and obey man (Elizabethan). Men were raised believing that they were superior to women and
women were raised believing that they were inferior to men. This explains Petruchios role as the
tamer of Katherine, the shrew. The mens domestication of the female was legitimate during the
second half of the 16th century, since their role was to be above women. Petruchio and even the

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other men expected Petruchio to tame Katherine. Then tell me, if I get your daughters love/
What dowry shall I have with her to wife?, as said by Petruchio shows that he was only
interested in Katherine for the dowry he would receive following the marriage (Shakespeare
2.1.126-127). During the Elizabethan Era, many marriages were negotiated between the future
husband and the father of the future wife. As such, marriage becomes a transaction involving the
transfer of money (SparkNotes). Feeling repressed because of what society expects from her,
Katherine goes against what was standard for women at the time. Womens role during the time
period was very restricted; therefore, it explains Katherines will to break free from that cage.
On the other hand, during the 1990s, women broke free from their cages and were able to
speak their minds out without feeling the publics disapproval of them. In this era, Katherine
becomes a woman that no longer needs to be domesticated. It may have been common in some
households that retained traditional methods, but most households had transitioned to methods
common in the late 20th century. In public, domestication became frowned upon and it was no
longer expected of men. Also, women were gradually becoming equal to men; therefore, the idea
of the inferiority of women to men were unpopular. This explains Katherines attitude towards
her suitors. Even though some marriages were still being arranged by the parents, most of them
were not based on money but on the love between the two parents children.
Not only can the ethics/morals be explained by the role of men and women during the
time period, the major conflict can be as well. The major conflict present in The Taming of the
Shrew is Petruchios attempt to tame Katherine; that is, to assert his authority in their marriage
and overcome her hotheaded resistance to playing the role of his wife (SparkNotes). This
conflict is only present due to their roles being already defined by the time period. It is the mens
role to be superior to women and the womens role to instantly obey not only their father but

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also their brothers and any other male members of the family (Elizabethan). As Katherine
goes against the social norms, conflict is expected to arouse. Petruchio is persistent in trying to
make Katherine his because it is his role as a male figure to carry out his role provided to him by
society. All he has known was the life of being in power and authority; therefore, he expects to
be in power with Katherine and hold authority over her as well. On the other hand, during the
1990s, gender stratification is not seen as a popular movement. Most men do not seek to be the
alpha, but instead stand equal to women. Therefore, conflicts present during the late 20th century
are not pertaining to the mens domestication of a woman. Some conflicts present in this time
period pertain to money and mating matters. Women fight over a man and men fight over a
woman. Some use money to lure others to themselves and entice those people that catch the bait.
In this time period, Katherine is still the daughter of a rich family; however, instead of the men
negotiating with Baptista, they have to go through Katherine herself to gain her hand in
marriage. Therefore, conflict found between Katherine and Petruchio during the Elizabethan era
is not present as marrying one of her suitors is her choice, not of one against her will. Instead of
the men holding power and authority over the woman, it can be seen that Katherine is the one
with the power and authority. This is shown through her use of her fathers wealth and authority
to keep Peter (Petruchio) from leaving. Gender roles present during the Elizabethan era that
manifested conflicts does not apply to conflicts in the 1990s as they were based mostly on money
and other factors.
Petruchio and Katherines behavior can be justified by gender roles of each time period.
Katherine is similar to Queen Elizabeth in the matter of marriage and their role as women.
Understanding the subservient role of Elizabethan women provides an understanding as to why
Queen Elizabeth was reluctant to marry. All of her immediate male relatives had died. She was

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answerable to no male member of the family (Alchin). Like Queen Elizabeth, Katherine was
reluctant to marry as well because of their role as women to be subservient to men. However,
since Katherine still had immediate male relatives, she had no choice but to be forced to marry.
She was reluctant to marry and be subservient to a man she didnt like. This explains her
behavior towards Petruchio as she fights back to gain control. As time goes by and Petruchio
continues to tame Katherine, he becomes successful as seen in the end when Katherine says, 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 (Shakespeare
5.2.177-180). Her conforming to society shows the expected behavior of an Elizabethan woman women in her greatest perfection was made to serve and obey man (Elizabethan). On the
other hand, Petruchios behavior was expected of an Elizabethan man from the beginning. His
act of negotiating with Baptista for Katherine was legitimate as women were used to forge
alliances with other powerful families through arranged marriages and Petruchio wanted the
wealth that Baptista had (Alchin). During the Elizabethan era, disobedience was seen as a crime
against their religion (Alchin). This explains Petruchios behavior to tame Katherine as his role
was to be the alpha in charge. In contrast, men and women in the 1990s were not restricted by
their roles as much. Sometimes marriage was used to benefit both families, but it was not
through the use of women. Arranged marriages were formed through the negotiation of both
familys parents instead of between the future-husband and the father of the future-wife.
However, arranged marriages in the 1990s became unpopular and has transitioned to marriages
based on the children and the parents consent. This shows why Katherines suitors are wooing
her instead of negotiating with Baptista, her father. As a daughter of a rich father, Katherine has
power and authority which enables her to act like the alpha making her suitors subservient to her.

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Her alpha characteristics are visible in her behavior as she is sassy, and her authority is
demonstrated when she prevents Peter (Petruchio) from leaving.
Through the transition from one time period to another, the roles of men and women
conformed to each eras ideology. These roles defined a man and a woman and served as
legitimate reasons to the ethics/morals, conflicts, and behavior of men and women, including
Katherine and Petruchio. Katherines behavior during the Elizabethan era was due to her rebel
against the nature of the society in which she was a part of; however, the Katherine in the 1990s
did not rebel as it did not restrict her to being subservient to men, but instead allowed her to rise
to power and become the alpha. Petruchio was only in power as society deemed him to be. This
was all lost in the 1990s as society rejected the idea of gender stratification; therefore, making
Petruchio the beta to the alpha Katherine. Elizabethan era conflicts were due to gender
stratification, while conflicts in the late 20th century are based mostly on money and mating. It
was acceptable to use women and domesticate them during the latter half of the 17th century, but
it became socially unacceptable to do so in the 1990s. The ethics/morals, conflicts, and behavior
of men and women has drastically changed from the 17th century to the 20th century. Some of the
roles have been reversed, while others remain unchanged.

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Works Cited
Alchin, Linda. "Elizabethan Women." Elizabethan Women. Web. 4 Apr. 2016.
"Elizabethan Women." Elizabethan Women. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.
"Role of Men and Women in the 1990's." C-SPAN.org. Web. 04 Apr. 2016.
Shakespeare, William, and Thomas Goddard Bergin. The Taming of the Shrew. New Haven:
Yale UP, 1954. Print.
SparkNotes Editors. SparkNote on The Taming of the Shrew. SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes
LLC. 2002. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.