The Taming of the Shrew
Published on 27. April 2006
Book
Paperback/Softback
288 pages
978-0-14-101551-4 (ISBN)
Description
A relentlessly witty battle of the sexes, William Shakespeare's comedy The Taming of the Shrew is edited by G.R. Hibbard, with an introduction by Margaret Jane Kidnie in Penguin Shakespeare.
The beautiful but sharp-tongued 'shrew' Katherina has sworn never to accept the demands of any would-be husband. Her younger sister Bianca, meanwhile, is forbidden to be married until Katherina finds a suitable match - much to the dismay of Bianca's would-be suitors, Hortensio and Gremio. But when Katherina is pursued by the wily Petruchio, it seems that she has finally met her match. And as he meets her own caustic words with a feigned, capricious cruelty, Katherina quickly comes to understand the absurdity of her shrewish behaviour, in one of the greatest of all comic conquests. Famously adapted into Cole Porter's musical Kiss Me, Kate and filmed as 10 Things I Hate About You with Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles, The Taming of the Shrew is an unforgettable battle of wits.
This book contains a general introduction to Shakespeare's life and Elizabethan theatre, a separate introduction to The Taming of the Shrew, a chronology, suggestions for further reading, an essay discussing performance options on both stage and screen, and a commentary.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was born to John Shakespeare and Mary Arden some time in late April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. He wrote about 38 plays (the precise number is uncertain), many of which are regarded as the most exceptional works of drama ever produced, including Romeo and Juliet (1595), Henry V (1599), Hamlet (1601), Othello (1604), King Lear (1606) and Macbeth (1606), as well as a collection of 154 sonnets, which number among the most profound and influential love-poetry in English.
If you enjoyed The Taming of the Shrew, you might like Love's Labour's Lost, also available in Penguin Shakespeare.
'I pity the man who cannot enjoy Shakespeare'
George Bernard Shaw
The beautiful but sharp-tongued 'shrew' Katherina has sworn never to accept the demands of any would-be husband. Her younger sister Bianca, meanwhile, is forbidden to be married until Katherina finds a suitable match - much to the dismay of Bianca's would-be suitors, Hortensio and Gremio. But when Katherina is pursued by the wily Petruchio, it seems that she has finally met her match. And as he meets her own caustic words with a feigned, capricious cruelty, Katherina quickly comes to understand the absurdity of her shrewish behaviour, in one of the greatest of all comic conquests. Famously adapted into Cole Porter's musical Kiss Me, Kate and filmed as 10 Things I Hate About You with Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles, The Taming of the Shrew is an unforgettable battle of wits.
This book contains a general introduction to Shakespeare's life and Elizabethan theatre, a separate introduction to The Taming of the Shrew, a chronology, suggestions for further reading, an essay discussing performance options on both stage and screen, and a commentary.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was born to John Shakespeare and Mary Arden some time in late April 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon. He wrote about 38 plays (the precise number is uncertain), many of which are regarded as the most exceptional works of drama ever produced, including Romeo and Juliet (1595), Henry V (1599), Hamlet (1601), Othello (1604), King Lear (1606) and Macbeth (1606), as well as a collection of 154 sonnets, which number among the most profound and influential love-poetry in English.
If you enjoyed The Taming of the Shrew, you might like Love's Labour's Lost, also available in Penguin Shakespeare.
'I pity the man who cannot enjoy Shakespeare'
George Bernard Shaw
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Books Ltd
Dimensions
Height: 181 mm
Width: 111 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
168 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-14-101551-4 (9780141015514)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions
Additional editions
William Shakespeare | G. R. Hibbard
The Taming of the Shrew
E-Book
04/2006
1st Edition
Penguin Books Ltd
€8.49
Available for download
Persons
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright of the 16th and 17 centuries, now widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the word's pre-eminent dramatist.
Stanley Wells is the General Editor of the Penguin Shakespeare. He is Emeritus Professor of the University of Birmingham and Chairman of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Margaret Jane Kidnie is Associate Professor of English at the University of Western Ontario. She has written a critical guide to The Taming of the Shrew and is the editor of Ben Jonson: The Devil is an Ass and Other Plays.
Stanley Wells is the General Editor of the Penguin Shakespeare. He is Emeritus Professor of the University of Birmingham and Chairman of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
Margaret Jane Kidnie is Associate Professor of English at the University of Western Ontario. She has written a critical guide to The Taming of the Shrew and is the editor of Ben Jonson: The Devil is an Ass and Other Plays.