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Ben Hoepner
Mrs. Swafford
Pre AP English 10/ Silver 2
10 December 2014
Father Daughter Relationships in The Taming of the Shrew
Kates shrewishness is the inevitable result of her fathers gross partiality; Kate is
no more than a cross child who is starved for love. Baptista is a family tyrant (Heilman 149).
The blame for the public perception of Baptistas two daughters, Katharina and Bianca, in
Shakespeares The Taming of the Shrew can be placed solely upon Baptista. A major social issue
of Shakespeares time explored in this play was the relationship between a father and his
daughters. This relationship had the ability not only to change the daughters behavior, but also
their appearance to potential suitors. It was due to Baptista that Katherina was considered a
shrew, and that Bianca was considered an angel. The father daughter relationships in this play
affected not only the public images of Baptistas two girls, but also their behavior throughout its
timeline.
Katherinas portrayal as the eponymic shrew of William Shakespeares controversial play
The Taming of the Shrew likely had more to do with her relationship with her father and its
consequences than anything else. This can be determined by knowing that, In the family, the
child is assigned the role of the unsocialized, original human being, needing guidance, moulding,
and strict discipline in order to meet the requirements of the community The father is an
absolute authority, imposing the values of society, and teaching the child obedience, duty, and
submission (Sirluck 420). Because Kate failed to adhere to her societys strict unspoken rules
about how a child, especially a daughter, should grow up in regards to manners, behavior, and

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general sociability, she was viewed as a shrew by nearly everybody who met her. She was
expected to allow her father to form her opinions and biases about almost everything (excluding
women themselves) for her, and more outrageously, to allow him to teach her submit to not only
himself, but all other men. It was solely these arbitrarily and unrealistically set societal
expectations of what a father/daughter relationship should be that impacted Kates impression on
people and ultimately her unhappy marriage, as seen in act II.
What, will you not suffer me? Nay, now I see
She is your treasure, she must have a husband;
I must dance bare-foot on her wedding day
And for your love to her lead apes in hell.
Talk not to me: I will go sit and weep
Till I can find occasion of revenge. (Act II, Scene I, Lines 31-36)
When Katharina spoke to Baptista in such a rude manner, anybody not used to her atypical
behavior would have been shocked- girls were never supposed to yell or disagree, and certainly
not with their own fathers. This behavior was incredibly uncommon, but it grew out of the clear
favoritism Baptista had for Bianca. Due to Kates bold personality and at the time abnormal
relationship with her father, she was perceived as an undesirably modern woman and given the
title shrew, which would come to define her for a time to come.
Whereas Katharinas relationship with her father was rocky, hostile, and unpleasant,
Biancas was always perfectly calm and joyful due to the favorable treatment she recieved. The
most prominent reason for this may not be because of her natural temperament, but rather
because Baptista has tamed Bianca, the model pupil, but has failed with Kate (Sirluck 422).
Baptista never failed to show his overwhelming favoritism toward his younger daughter, and it is

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very viable that this stems from the fact that he successfully tamed her at a young age after
failing to do so with her older sister, Katherina. Because of the traditionally high level of paternal
power in Bianca and Baptistas relationship, Bianca was viewed throughout her life as a perfect
wife: she was intelligent, pretty, and most importantly to her suitors, she was not known to stand
up to men, instead submitting to their wishes like the ideal wife of her time as shown in the
following lines.
BAPTISTA: Gentlemen, that I may soon make good
What I have said, Bianca, get you in:
And let it not displease thee, good Bianca,
For I will love thee ne'er the less, my girl.
.......
BIANCA: Sir, to your pleasure humbly I subscribe:
My books and instruments shall be my company,
On them to took and practise by myself. (Act I, Scene I, Lines 75-85)
Bianca is the image of a perfect girl, in great part due to the impeccable manners ingrained in her
by her father. She was fully compliant with Baptista after he essentially auctioned her off to the
highest bidder, not even sharing a word of her own opinion as her sister most certainly would
have. Bianca, because of her traditional relationship with her father in which he controlled her
life, was treated with kindness and respect, and was sought after by almost all who met her.
Although it may not be evident at first sight, the relationships between a father and his
daughters can affect the lives of all involved in a major way. Of the many aspects of Bianca and
Katharinas lives changed due to their starkly contrasting relationships with Baptista, the two
clearest and most important had to be behavior and public appearance. On one hand, Biancas

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traditional paternally-ran life lent to the sweet and submissive impression she gave, as well as her
being her fathers clear favorite child. Katharina, on the other hand, was never tamed by
Baptista, and grew up as her own more modern and empowered woman. This caused her to be
perceived as a shrew, a coarse and extremely undesirable candidate for a wife. The
father/daughter relationships in The Taming of the Shrew were without a doubt the cause for the
behavior of many of the main characters, and therefore one of the driving forces of the play.

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Works Cited
Heilman, Robert B. "The Taming Untamed, Or The Return Of The Shrew." Literary Reference
Center. Modern Language Quarterly, 1966; 147-162. Web.
Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Ed. Paul Moliken. Delaware: Prestwick
House. 2005. Print.
Sirluck, Katherine A. "Patriarchy, Pedagogy, And The Divided Self In The Taming Of The
Shrew." Literary Reference Center. University Of Toronto Quarterly, 1991; 417-434.