William
Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew
Study/Review
Questions
Induction
1. Who is
Christopher Sly?
2. Why has he
been thrown out of the alehouse?
3. Who finds Sly
and what does he plan to do to him?
4. Who else is
involved in this elaborate trick?
5. What is
Sly’s reaction when he awakes?
6. What is the
story Sly is given to believe?
7. Describe the
interaction between Sly and his “wife”
8. How does the
induction end?
9. What purpose
does the induction serve?
10. Why might Shakespeare have included this framing device?
Act I:Scene 1
1. Where does
Lucentio come from and why is he in Padua?
2. Who is Tranio
and what does he promptly remind Lucentio as they start their adventure?
3. Who do
Lucentio and Tranio see on the street?
4, How do these people treat the eldest
daughter?
5. Who is already vying for the youngest
daughter?
6. Who then falls in love with the
youngest daughter at first sight?
7. Baptista explains that Bianca cannot be
married until what happens?
8. Baptista will allow who in his house
and why?
9. Hortensio and Gremio agree to work
together to do what?
10. Lucentio then plans to become what?
11. Tranio must then become who, why?
12. What story is Biondelli given to understand this deception?
Act I: Scene
2
1. Petruchio
came from where? Why?
2. Petruchio and
his servant ______________ have a word play about knocking at the gate outside
______________’s house.
3. What does
Hortensio tell Petruchio about Kate?
4. How does Petruchio respond?
5. Does Petruchio know Baptista?
6. Hortensio asks for a favor in return
from Petruchio, what is it?
7. Hortensio will then become
______________, a tutor of ______________.
8. Meanwhile,
Lucentio has convinced Gremio that he a school teacher of _______________ and
that he would like to tutor Baptista’s daughters.
9. Gremio agrees to present him as a tutor
if Lucentio does what?
10. How is it that Tranio(now posing as
Lucentio) enters the picture?
11. The three wooers to Bianca agree they
must do what?
Act II
1. At the opening of Act II, how does
Bianca indicate her submissiveness?
2. When Kate questions Bianca about her
suitors, what is Bianca’s first comment about/concerning them?
3. What is the early evidence in Act II
that Kate is hurt by her father’s favoritism toward Bianca?
4. Once Gremio, Lucentio (Cambio),
Petruchio, Hortensio (Litio), Tranio (Lucentio) and Biondello appear and
Petruchio greets Baptista, what two adjectives does Petruchio use in asking
Baptista whether he has a daughter named Katherina?
5. Following this, Petruchio mentions a
number of Kate’s good qualities which he has heard about. List them.
6. Hortensio (Litio) is to instruct Bianca
in the “sciences” of _____________ and ______________.
7. When Baptista expresses reluctance to
present Katherina to Petruchio, Petruchio says there may be two reasons for
this. What are they?
8. Gremio presents Lucentio (Cambio) as an
instructor of ________________________.
9. When Tranio (Lucentio) presents himself
to Baptista as a suitor to Bianca, what two adjectives does he use to describe
Bianca?
10. What has Tranio (Lucentio) brought with
him which he presents to Baptista?
11. Petruchio tells Baptista that he is in
a hurry to marry and court Kate.
What is his excuse for his haste?
12. What dowry does Baptista promise to
Petruchio if Petruchio does marry Kate?
13. Baptista tells Petruchio that besides
his consent to marry Kate, Petruchio must get something else. What is that something else?
14. Everyone leaves except Petruchio, and
Baptista promises to send Kate to him.
Before Kate enters, Petruchio talks about how he’ll respond each
time Kate talks/acts. Briefly
explain two of Kate’s actions and Petruchio’s intended response to each.
15. Briefly describe/summarize the interaction between Kate and Petruchio.
16. When Baptista, Gremio, and Tranio
(Lucentio) enter after Petruchio has spoken to Kate, Kate still acts shrewish
towards them. How does Petruchio
explain this behavior.
17. When will Petruchio and Kate be
married?
18. What does Petruchio say he must do
before the wedding? (Where must he go and for what purpose?)
19. Baptista tells Gremio and Tranio
(Lucentio) the conditions under which he will choose a husband for Bianca. What will the man who
“wins” her hand need to have?
20. Baptista agrees that Bianca will marry
_______________ provided he shows proof that he has the dowry he promised. How will this groom-to-be provide
proof?
Act III,
Scene 1
1. Lucentio
(Cambio) and Hortensio (Litio) devise a method by which they will tutor Bianca.
How will they “share” her?
2. How does Bianca react to this plan?
3. What secret does Lucentio (Cambio)
reveal to Bianca?
4. What information does Hortensio (Litio)
reveal to Bianca in his lessons?
5. What does Hortensio (Litio) mean when
he says about Bianca: “If once I find thee ranging, Hortensio will be
quit with thee by changing”?
Act III.2
1. Who is late for Kate and
Petruchio’s wedding?
2. ______________ (who) tells the audience about Petruchio's attire. Describe Petruchio’s physical
appearance as he arrives for the wedding:
3. After Baptista and the others express
their disapproval of Petruchio, Petruchio says, “To me she’s
married, not unto my clothes.” What does he mean?
4. What plot point does Tranio repeat to Lucentio
in ll. 132-137?
5. Who is Gremio talking about when he
says, “Tut, she’s a lamb, a dove, a fool to him”? What does he mean?
6. Describe Petruchio’s behavior
during the wedding:
7. What conflict arises between Petruchio
and Kate at the reception immediately following their wedding? How is the conflict resolved?
Act IV. 1
1. What is the setting of Act IV, Scene 1?
2. Grumio tells Curtis, another servant,
the story of Petruchio and Kate’s journey home. In your own words, briefly describe what happened. How does
this passage illustrate Petruchio’s method of “taming” Kate?
3. How does Petruchio greet his servants
upon arrival? What is his
tone/attitude?
4. How do readers/audiences know that this is not normal Petruchio behavior?
5. What happens during Kate and
Petruchio’s first meal together?
Why is Petruchio unhappy with the meal? What is his solution to the problem?
6. What does Peter mean when he says:
“He kills her in her own humor”?
7. According to Petruchio, what else is he
going to do to tame Kate?
Act. IV. 2
1. What “secret” does
Hortensio (Litio) reveal to Tranio (Lucentio)?
2. What
“deal” does Tranio (Lucentio) then make with Hortensio (Litio)?
3. What is Hortensio’s marriage plan for the
future?
4. Hortensio announces that he is going to
the “taming school.” What/who is he referring to?
5. Who do Tranio and Biondello find to play
Lucentio’s father and How do they convince him to go into disguise?
Act. IV.3
1. What happens at Petruchio’s house
when the haberdasher and the tailor arrive?
2. Where are Katherine and Petruchio
preparing to go at the end of the scene?
Act. IV.4
1. What
agreement is struck between Baptista and “Vincentio”
2. Why does Baptista want to
do the negotiating somewhere other than his house?
3. Baptista sends ____________ to Bianca
to tell her about the marriage plans.
4. What does Biondello tell Lucentio he
must do in order to assure the success of the marriage plans?
Act. IV.5
1. Who do
Katerine and Petruchio encounter on the road to Padua?
2. How does Petruchio know that he has
“tamed” Kate? Give at
least two examples.
Act. V. 1-2
1. What does Vincentio think has happened
when he sees Tranio wearing his son’s clothing?
2. How is the case of mistaken identity
resolved?
3. In lines
146-154, what does Katherine do that proves she is “tamed”?
4. At the end of
the play, Hortensio is married to __________________
Lucentio is
married to ________________________ and Petruchio is married to
_____________________.
5. What bet does Petruchio make with
Hortensio and Lucentio? What are the terms of the bet?
6. Who calls his wife first? What is her
response?
7. Who calls his wife next? What is her
response?
8. Who is the last to call his wife? What
is her response?
9. Who wins the bet?
10. What does
Baptista give the winner? Why?
11. What is the main idea in
Katherine’s closing speech? What are some possible interpretations for
her words?
Final Review
Questions
1. Is Kate really a shrew? Why or why not?
2. Does Petruchio like Kate for more than
her money in the end? How do you
know?
3. What role does appearence vs. reality
play in this comedy?
4. In Shakespeare’s time, the term
“comedy” simply implied a happy ending. What else makes this drama a comedy?
5. Do you think Kate is really changed by
the end of the play? How does her
speech make you feel?