Fie, fie! Unknit that threat'ning unkind brow,
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor.
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty,
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body
To painful labor both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience—
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince,
Even such a woman oweth to her husband.
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will,
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
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.
Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,
Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,
But that our soft conditions and our hearts
Should well agree with our external parts?
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!
My mind hath been as big as one of yours,
My heart as great, my reason haply more,
To bandy word for word and frown for frown.
But now I see our lances are but straws,
Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare,
That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.
Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,
And place your hands below your husband’s foot:
In token of which duty, if he please,
My hand is ready, may it do him ease.
unkind brow - Katherine has just pulled both of the girls forward in front of their husbands. An “unkind” brow would simply be a frown or pouting face. The girls are not only rolling their eyes at her but also not wanting to listen to what she has to say. Katherine begins her monologue by tell the women they have no reason to have such a face on.
fountain troubled - Katherine is comparing an angry or “moved” woman to an unbalanced fountain, almost agitated. It is muddy, unpleasant, and lacks the beauty seen in most graceful, peaceful fountains. She explains that no one could ever touch a fountain in this condition, much like a husband being disappointed in his unwilling wife.
true obedience - After all a husband does for his wife and family, all he asks is for unconditional love, support, and of course, obedience. She explains that cooperative behavior for her husband does not even equal everything he does.
oweth - A woman owes her husband much like a man owes his king. The loyalty given to a king is the same loyalty a woman gives to her man.
graceless traitor - When a woman resists, pouts, and constantly demands her way in the marriage, she is being an ungrateful trait. Katherine is utterly ashamed that woman can fight, or declare war, with their husbands, who do so much for them and their town.
simple - This term is often used in a positive context, meaning easy to understand, deal with, or use. However, Katherine is using it with a different meaning. She is exclaiming that they are foolish women for acting with such simplicity and carelessness.
unable worms - It is extremely degrading to be called a worm. Worms are some of the most disgusting invertebrates. They live with bacteria and in unsanitary conditions. To a human, they are unwanted pests and unimportant to our daily lives. To relate these women to intractable worms is very harsh. However, Katherine is making her point her clear now that she is tamed.
vail your stomachs - Katherine tells the women to sallow their pride, as they should realize all the good he has done, and all he good he deserves. Just like she did, they must let go of their bad attitudes and be a humble wife.
do him ease - She ends her speech by reaching her hand out to her beloved husband, saying she is ready to care for and love him. She only hopes this gesture of her loyalty will show she is a changed woman and it will bring in comfort. This is not only addressed to Petruchio, but also as an example for the other women.
I admit that times have greatly changed since Taming Of the Shrew was written, but for the time period, I think this monologue if perfection. It personally inspires me to not be so self-sufficient with my actions and words, especially towards men. Many ague that this is not what women should be doing, women should not be “obedient” to men or following a mans rules. However, I believe the contrary. During this period, women did not work, they did not support the family in the way the men did. They worked all day, sometimes night, and fought in wars. To me, it is discourteous for wives to be scornful and then demanding. Most should not only love and support their husbands but also make their lives easier. And if they do the contrary, it shows bad character and that you weren’t raised properly.
I find this monologue inspirational because it is separate from the “typical” woman empowering speeches. In modern day, women often blame them for most of their problems, especially within the relationship. However, this speech shows that it is sometimes not their fault. And it is acceptable to take a man’s emotions, hard work, and stress into consideration before we act and speak. I also love that I read this in Elizabeth Taylors voice; it makes this speech that much better.
As you know, I had some difficulty with this assignment. I managed to erase my entire home page and lost my past three blogs (R.I.P). However, I definitely learned a lot with this assignment. I learned, most importantly, to also save my work and back it up, and then back it up again. Because next time I will make a silly, careless mistake, I will have it saved. I also learned how to make Hypertext Links! I really had no idea how to do it before this and it took me a while to figure out. I enjoyed re-reading and analyzing Katherine’s speech. I feel as if I understand it much better this time. All in all, this has definitely been a learning experience.