The Dominance of Patriarchy in The Taming of the Shrew:

                The Taming of the Shrew tackles the prominent theme of the negative effect of a patriarchal society on free-thinking and independent women. Kate is a young girl who does not conform to society’s expectations of a sweet and mild-mannered girl; she is loud and insulting. She is forced into marriage, and because she is a woman, she must be “tamed”, or turned into the desirable woman according to society. The whole play centers on Kate’s taming, because in a community where males dominate, females must be turned into appealing and desirable simply to please men. Women are viewed as lesser in worth, and their intellectual worth is repudiated because women do not have power, or even access to it. Another work of literature with similar theme is the poem “Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy. A girl is born with brains and talent; however, people cannot see that because they only see fault in her physical appearance. “She was healthy, tested intelligent… everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs” describes that she is a girl whose intellect has no worth because she does not fit into society. Thus, she is forced to conform: “In the casket displayed on satin she lay/with the undertaker's cosmetics painted on/a turned-up putty nose/dressed in a pink and white nightie/Doesn't she look pretty?” The last stanza of the poem shows her transformation, and finally, everyone accepts her, just as Kate is accepted after she is tamed.