No, no, forsooth; I dare not for my life.
Please, Petruchio. I'm trying. What do you want from me?
Please. I'm trying. What do you want?
please what do you want
The more my wrong, the more his spite appears.
What, did he marry me to famish me?
Beggars that come unto my father’s door
Upon entreaty have a present alms;
If not, elsewhere they meet with charity;
But I, who never knew how to entreat,
Nor never needed that I should entreat,
Am starv’d for meat, giddy for lack of sleep;
With oaths kept waking, and with brawling fed.
And that which spites me more than all these wants,
He does it under name of perfect love;
As who should say, if I should sleep or eat
’Twere deadly sickness, or else present death.
I prithee go and get me some repast;
I care not what, so it be wholesome food.
I want you to do as I say. That's all. It's very simple.
Do what I say. That's it.
just do what i say
What say you to a neat’s foot?
What say you to a neat’s foot?
What say you to a neat’s foot?
What say you to a neat’s foot?
’Tis passing good; I prithee let me have it.
’Tis passing good; I prithee let me have it.
’Tis passing good; I prithee let me have it.
’Tis passing good; I prithee let me have it.
I fear it is too choleric a meat.
How say you to a fat tripe finely broil’d?
I fear it is too choleric a meat. How say you to a fat tripe finely broil’d?
I fear it is too choleric a meat. How say you to a fat tripe finely broil’d?
I fear it is too choleric a meat. How say you to a fat tripe finely broil’d?
I like it well; good Grumio, fetch it me.
I like it well; good Grumio, fetch it me.
I like it well; good Grumio, fetch it me.
I like it well; good Grumio, fetch it me.
I cannot tell; I fear ’tis choleric.
What say you to a piece of beef and mustard?
I cannot tell; I fear ’tis choleric. What say you to a piece of beef and mustard?
I cannot tell; I fear ’tis choleric. What say you to a piece of beef and mustard?
I cannot tell; I fear ’tis choleric. What say you to a piece of beef and mustard?
A dish that I do love to feed upon.
A dish that I do love to feed upon.
A dish that I do love to feed upon.
A dish that I do love to feed upon.
Ay, but the mustard is too hot a little.
Ay, but the mustard is too hot a little.
Ay, but the mustard is too hot a little.
Ay, but the mustard is too hot a little.
Why then the beef, and let the mustard rest.
Why then the beef, and let the mustard rest.
Why then the beef, and let the mustard rest.
Why then the beef, and let the mustard rest.
Nay, then I will not: you shall have the mustard,
Or else you get no beef of Grumio.
Nay, then I will not: you shall have the mustard, Or else you get no beef of Grumio.
Nay, then I will not: you shall have the mustard, Or else you get no beef of Grumio.
Nay, then I will not: you shall have the mustard, Or else you get no beef of Grumio.
Then both, or one, or anything thou wilt.
Then both, or one, or anything thou wilt.
Then both, or one, or anything thou wilt.
Then both, or one, or anything thou wilt.
Why then the mustard without the beef.
Why then the mustard without the beef.
Why then the mustard without the beef.
Why then the mustard without the beef.
Go, get thee gone, thou false deluding slave,
Go, get thee gone, thou false deluding slave,
Go, get thee gone, thou false deluding slave,
Go, get thee gone, thou false deluding slave,
How fares my Kate? What, sweeting, all amort?
How fares my Kate? What, sweeting, all amort?
How fares my Kate? What, sweeting, all amort?
How fares my Kate? What, sweeting, all amort?
Mistress, what cheer?
Mistress, what cheer?
Mistress, what cheer?
Mistress, what cheer?
Faith, as cold as can be.
Faith, as cold as can be.
Faith, as cold as can be.
Faith, as cold as can be.
Pluck up thy spirits; look cheerfully upon me.
Here, love; thou seest how diligent I am,
To dress thy meat myself, and bring it thee:
Pluck up thy spirits; look cheerfully upon me. Here, love; thou seest how diligent I am, To dress thy meat myself, and bring it thee:
Pluck up thy spirits; look cheerfully upon me. Here, love; thou seest how diligent I am, To dress th...
Pluck up thy spirits; look cheerfully upon me. Here, love; thou seest how diligent I...
I pray you, let it stand.
I pray you, let it stand.
I pray you, let it stand.
I pray you, let it stand.
The poorest service is repaid with thanks;
And so shall mine, before you touch the meat.
The poorest service is repaid with thanks; And so shall mine, before you touch the meat.
The poorest service is repaid with thanks; And so shall mine, before you touch the meat.
The poorest service is repaid with thanks; And so shall mine, before you touch the meat.
The Grumio food-teasing sequence — ox-foot, tripe, beef-and-mustard, mustard-without-beef — is structured as pure farce. Timing, repetition, logical absurdity. And for the first twenty lines, it plays as comedy. But Katherine's desperation is genuine: she hasn't eaten since arriving at Petruchio's house. She has been driven off the road, put to bed without food, lectured all night, and now subjected to a menu reading with no result. When she snaps and beats Grumio, it's both the punchline and the most human response in the scene. The comedy works because the audience finds it funny. Whether it should is a question Shakespeare leaves deliberately open — which is why directors choose very different tones for this sequence.
I thank you, sir.
I thank you, sir.
I thank you, sir.
I thank you, sir.
Signior Petruchio, fie! you are to blame.
Come, Mistress Kate, I’ll bear you company.
Signior Petruchio, fie! you are to blame. Come, Mistress Kate, I’ll bear you company.
Signior Petruchio, fie! you are to blame. Come, Mistress Kate, I’ll bear you company.
Signior Petruchio, fie! you are to blame. Come, Mistress Kate, I’ll bear you company.
Much good do it unto thy gentle heart!
Kate, eat apace: and now, my honey love,
Will we return unto thy father’s house
And revel it as bravely as the best,
With silken coats and caps, and golden rings,
With ruffs and cuffs and farthingales and things;
With scarfs and fans and double change of bravery,
With amber bracelets, beads, and all this knavery.
What! hast thou din’d? The tailor stays thy leisure,
To deck thy body with his ruffling treasure.
Much good do it unto thy gentle heart! Kate, eat apace: and now, my honey love, Will we return unto thy father’s house And revel it as bravely as the ...
Much good do it unto thy gentle heart! Kate, eat apace: and now, my honey love, Will we return unto ...
Much good do it unto thy gentle heart! Kate, eat apace: and now, my honey...
Here is the cap your worship did bespeak.
Here is the cap your worship did bespeak.
Here is the cap your worship did bespeak.
Here is the cap your worship did bespeak.
Why, this was moulded on a porringer;
A velvet dish: fie, fie! ’tis lewd and filthy:
Why, ’tis a cockle or a walnut-shell,
A knack, a toy, a trick, a baby’s cap:
Away with it! come, let me have a bigger.
Why, this was moulded on a porringer; A velvet dish: fie, fie! ’tis lewd and filthy: Why, ’tis a cockle or a walnut-shell, A knack, a toy, a trick, a ...
Why, this was moulded on a porringer; A velvet dish: fie, fie! ’tis lewd and filthy: Why, ’tis a coc...
Why, this was moulded on a porringer; A velvet dish: fie, fie! ’tis lewd and...
I’ll have no bigger; this doth fit the time,
And gentlewomen wear such caps as these.
I’ll have no bigger; this doth fit the time, And gentlewomen wear such caps as these.
I’ll have no bigger; this doth fit the time, And gentlewomen wear such caps as these.
I’ll have no bigger; this doth fit the time, And gentlewomen wear such caps as these.
When you are gentle, you shall have one too,
And not till then.
When you are gentle, you shall have one too, And not till then.
When you are gentle, you shall have one too, And not till then.
When you are gentle, you shall have one too, And not till then.
Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak;
And speak I will. I am no child, no babe.
Your betters have endur’d me say my mind,
And if you cannot, best you stop your ears.
My tongue will tell the anger of my heart,
Or else my heart, concealing it, will break;
And rather than it shall, I will be free
Even to the uttermost, as I please, in words.
Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak; And speak I will. I am no child, no babe. Your betters have endur’d me say my mind, And if you cannot, be...
Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak; And speak I will. I am no child, no babe. Your betters ...
Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak; And speak I will. I...
Why, thou say’st true; it is a paltry cap,
A custard-coffin, a bauble, a silken pie;
I love thee well in that thou lik’st it not.
Why, thou say’st true; it is a paltry cap, A custard-coffin, a bauble, a silken pie; I love thee well in that thou lik’st it not.
Why, thou say’st true; it is a paltry cap, A custard-coffin, a bauble, a silken pie; I love thee wel...
Why, thou say’st true; it is a paltry cap, A custard-coffin, a bauble, a silken...
Love me or love me not, I like the cap;
And it I will have, or I will have none.
Love me or love me not, I like the cap; And it I will have, or I will have none.
Love me or love me not, I like the cap; And it I will have, or I will have none.
Love me or love me not, I like the cap; And it I will have, or I will have none.
Thy gown? Why, ay: come, tailor, let us see’t.
O mercy, God! what masquing stuff is here?
What’s this? A sleeve? ’Tis like a demi-cannon.
What, up and down, carv’d like an apple tart?
Here’s snip and nip and cut and slish and slash,
Like to a censer in a barber’s shop.
Why, what i’ devil’s name, tailor, call’st thou this?
Thy gown? Why, ay: come, tailor, let us see’t. O mercy, God! what masquing stuff is here? What’s this? A sleeve? ’Tis like a demi-cannon. What, up and...
Thy gown? Why, ay: come, tailor, let us see’t. O mercy, God! what masquing stuff is here? What’s thi...
Thy gown? Why, ay: come, tailor, let us see’t. O mercy, God! what masquing stuff...
You bid me make it orderly and well,
According to the fashion and the time.
You bid me make it orderly and well, According to the fashion and the time.
You bid me make it orderly and well, According to the fashion and the time.
You bid me make it orderly and well, According to the fashion and the time.
Marry, and did; but if you be remember’d,
I did not bid you mar it to the time.
Go, hop me over every kennel home,
For you shall hop without my custom, sir.
I’ll none of it: hence! make your best of it.
Marry, and did; but if you be remember’d, I did not bid you mar it to the time. Go, hop me over every kennel home, For you shall hop without my custom...
Marry, and did; but if you be remember’d, I did not bid you mar it to the time. Go, hop me over ever...
Marry, and did; but if you be remember’d, I did not bid you mar it...
I never saw a better fashion’d gown,
More quaint, more pleasing, nor more commendable;
Belike you mean to make a puppet of me.
I never saw a better fashion’d gown, More quaint, more pleasing, nor more commendable; Belike you mean to make a puppet of me.
I never saw a better fashion’d gown, More quaint, more pleasing, nor more commendable; Belike you me...
I never saw a better fashion’d gown, More quaint, more pleasing, nor more commendable; Belike...
Why, true; he means to make a puppet of thee.
Why, true; he means to make a puppet of thee.
Why, true; he means to make a puppet of thee.
Why, true; he means to make a puppet of thee.
She says your worship means to make a puppet of her.
She says your worship means to make a puppet of her.
She says your worship means to make a puppet of her.
She says your worship means to make a puppet of her.
O monstrous arrogance! Thou liest, thou thread,
Thou thimble,
Thou yard, three-quarters, half-yard, quarter, nail!
Thou flea, thou nit, thou winter-cricket thou!
Brav’d in mine own house with a skein of thread!
Away! thou rag, thou quantity, thou remnant,
Or I shall so be-mete thee with thy yard
As thou shalt think on prating whilst thou liv’st!
I tell thee, I, that thou hast marr’d her gown.
O monstrous arrogance! Thou liest, thou thread, Thou thimble, Thou yard, three-quarters, half-yard, quarter, nail! Thou flea, thou nit, thou winter-cr...
O monstrous arrogance! Thou liest, thou thread, Thou thimble, Thou yard, three-quarters, half-yard, ...
O monstrous arrogance! Thou liest, thou thread, Thou thimble, Thou yard, three-quarters, half-yard, quarter, nail!...
Your worship is deceiv’d: the gown is made
Just as my master had direction.
Grumio gave order how it should be done.
Your worship is deceiv’d: the gown is made Just as my master had direction. Grumio gave order how it should be done.
Your worship is deceiv’d: the gown is made Just as my master had direction. Grumio gave order how it...
Your worship is deceiv’d: the gown is made Just as my master had direction. Grumio...
I gave him no order; I gave him the stuff.
I gave him no order; I gave him the stuff.
I gave him no order; I gave him the stuff.
I gave him no order; I gave him the stuff.
But how did you desire it should be made?
But how did you desire it should be made?
But how did you desire it should be made?
But how did you desire it should be made?
Marry, sir, with needle and thread.
Marry, sir, with needle and thread.
Marry, sir, with needle and thread.
Marry, sir, with needle and thread.
But did you not request to have it cut?
But did you not request to have it cut?
But did you not request to have it cut?
But did you not request to have it cut?
Thou hast faced many things.
Thou hast faced many things.
Thou hast faced many things.
Thou hast faced many things.
In Elizabethan England, clothes were legally regulated by sumptuary laws that specified what each class could wear — velvet, silk, specific colors were reserved for the nobility. To dress above your station was literally illegal. Petruchio's rejection of the cap and gown is therefore not just aesthetic snobbery: he's controlling what class position Katherine is allowed to inhabit in public. A 'gentlewoman's cap' is the cap of someone with status. By refusing it, he forces her to go to her father's house without the visible markers of her station. The argument about whether the gown is fashionable is also an argument about whether Katherine gets to be the kind of woman she was before she married. The taming, in this scene, is about stripping away external identity along with food and sleep.
I have.
I have.
I have.
I have.
Face not me. Thou hast braved many men; brave not me: I will neither be
fac’d nor brav’d. I say unto thee, I bid thy master cut out the gown;
but I did not bid him cut it to pieces: ergo, thou liest.
Face not me. Thou hast braved many men; brave not me: I will neither be fac’d nor brav’d. I say unto thee, I bid thy master cut out the gown; but I di...
Face not me. Thou hast braved many men; brave not me: I will neither be fac’d nor brav’d. I say unto...
Face not me. Thou hast braved many men; brave not me: I will neither be...
Why, here is the note of the fashion to testify.
Why, here is the note of the fashion to testify.
Why, here is the note of the fashion to testify.
Why, here is the note of the fashion to testify.
Read it.
Read it.
Read it.
Read it.
The note lies in ’s throat, if he say I said so.
The note lies in ’s throat, if he say I said so.
The note lies in ’s throat, if he say I said so.
The note lies in ’s throat, if he say I said so.
’Imprimis, a loose-bodied gown.’
’Imprimis, a loose-bodied gown.’
’Imprimis, a loose-bodied gown.’
’Imprimis, a loose-bodied gown.’
Master, if ever I said loose-bodied gown, sew me in the skirts of it
and beat me to death with a bottom of brown thread; I said, a gown.
Master, if ever I said loose-bodied gown, sew me in the skirts of it and beat me to death with a bottom of brown thread; I said, a gown.
Master, if ever I said loose-bodied gown, sew me in the skirts of it and beat me to death with a bot...
Master, if ever I said loose-bodied gown, sew me in the skirts of it and...
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
Proceed.
‘With a small compassed cape.’
‘With a small compassed cape.’
‘With a small compassed cape.’
‘With a small compassed cape.’
I confess the cape.
I confess the cape.
I confess the cape.
I confess the cape.
‘With a trunk sleeve.’
‘With a trunk sleeve.’
‘With a trunk sleeve.’
‘With a trunk sleeve.’
I confess two sleeves.
I confess two sleeves.
I confess two sleeves.
I confess two sleeves.
‘The sleeves curiously cut.’
‘The sleeves curiously cut.’
‘The sleeves curiously cut.’
‘The sleeves curiously cut.’
Ay, there’s the villainy.
Ay, there’s the villainy.
Ay, there’s the villainy.
Ay, there’s the villainy.
Error i’ the bill, sir; error i’ the bill. I commanded the sleeves
should be cut out, and sew’d up again; and that I’ll prove upon thee,
though thy little finger be armed in a thimble.
Error i’ the bill, sir; error i’ the bill. I commanded the sleeves should be cut out, and sew’d up again; and that I’ll prove upon thee, though thy li...
Error i’ the bill, sir; error i’ the bill. I commanded the sleeves should be cut out, and sew’d up a...
Error i’ the bill, sir; error i’ the bill. I commanded the sleeves should be...
This is true that I say; and I had thee in place where thou shouldst
know it.
This is true that I say; and I had thee in place where thou shouldst know it.
This is true that I say; and I had thee in place where thou shouldst know it.
This is true that I say; and I had thee in place where thou shouldst know it.
I am for thee straight; take thou the bill, give me thy mete-yard, and
spare not me.
I am for thee straight; take thou the bill, give me thy mete-yard, and spare not me.
I am for thee straight; take thou the bill, give me thy mete-yard, and spare not me.
I am for thee straight; take thou the bill, give me thy mete-yard, and spare not me.
God-a-mercy, Grumio! Then he shall have no odds.
God-a-mercy, Grumio! Then he shall have no odds.
God-a-mercy, Grumio! Then he shall have no odds.
God-a-mercy, Grumio! Then he shall have no odds.
Well, sir, in brief, the gown is not for me.
Well, sir, in brief, the gown is not for me.
Well, sir, in brief, the gown is not for me.
Well, sir, in brief, the gown is not for me.
You are i’ the right, sir; ’tis for my mistress.
You are i’ the right, sir; ’tis for my mistress.
You are i’ the right, sir; ’tis for my mistress.
You are i’ the right, sir; ’tis for my mistress.
Go, take it up unto thy master’s use.
Go, take it up unto thy master’s use.
Go, take it up unto thy master’s use.
Go, take it up unto thy master’s use.
Villain, not for thy life! Take up my mistress’ gown for thy master’s
use!
Villain, not for thy life! Take up my mistress’ gown for thy master’s use!
Villain, not for thy life! Take up my mistress’ gown for thy master’s use!
Villain, not for thy life! Take up my mistress’ gown for thy master’s use!
Why, sir, what’s your conceit in that?
Why, sir, what’s your conceit in that?
Why, sir, what’s your conceit in that?
Why, sir, what’s your conceit in that?
O, sir, the conceit is deeper than you think for.
Take up my mistress’ gown to his master’s use!
O fie, fie, fie!
O, sir, the conceit is deeper than you think for. Take up my mistress’ gown to his master’s use! O fie, fie, fie!
O, sir, the conceit is deeper than you think for. Take up my mistress’ gown to his master’s use! O f...
O, sir, the conceit is deeper than you think for. Take up my mistress’ gown...
Take no unkindness of his hasty words.
Away, I say! commend me to thy master.
Take no unkindness of his hasty words. Away, I say! commend me to thy master.
Take no unkindness of his hasty words. Away, I say! commend me to thy master.
Take no unkindness of his hasty words. Away, I say! commend me to thy master.
Well, come, my Kate; we will unto your father’s
Even in these honest mean habiliments.
Our purses shall be proud, our garments poor
For ’tis the mind that makes the body rich;
And as the sun breaks through the darkest clouds,
So honour peereth in the meanest habit.
What, is the jay more precious than the lark
Because his feathers are more beautiful?
Or is the adder better than the eel
Because his painted skin contents the eye?
O no, good Kate; neither art thou the worse
For this poor furniture and mean array.
If thou account’st it shame, lay it on me;
And therefore frolic; we will hence forthwith,
To feast and sport us at thy father’s house.
Go call my men, and let us straight to him;
And bring our horses unto Long-lane end;
There will we mount, and thither walk on foot.
Let’s see; I think ’tis now some seven o’clock,
And well we may come there by dinner-time.
Well, come, my Kate; we will unto your father’s Even in these honest mean habiliments. Our purses shall be proud, our garments poor For ’tis the mind ...
Well, come, my Kate; we will unto your father’s Even in these honest mean habiliments. Our purses sh...
Well, come, my Kate; we will unto your father’s Even in these honest mean habiliments....
I dare assure you, sir, ’tis almost two,
And ’twill be supper-time ere you come there.
I dare assure you, sir, ’tis almost two, And ’twill be supper-time ere you come there.
I dare assure you, sir, ’tis almost two, And ’twill be supper-time ere you come there.
I dare assure you, sir, ’tis almost two, And ’twill be supper-time ere you come there.
It shall be seven ere I go to horse.
Look what I speak, or do, or think to do,
You are still crossing it. Sirs, let ’t alone:
I will not go today; and ere I do,
It shall be what o’clock I say it is.
It shall be seven ere I go to horse. Look what I speak, or do, or think to do, You are still crossing it. Sirs, let ’t alone: I will not go today; and...
It shall be seven ere I go to horse. Look what I speak, or do, or think to do, You are still crossin...
It shall be seven ere I go to horse. Look what I speak, or do,...
Why, so this gallant will command the sun.
Why, so this gallant will command the sun.
Why, so this gallant will command the sun.
Why, so this gallant will command the sun.
The Reckoning
The deprivation campaign is in full swing, and this scene makes it funny in a way that keeps undercutting itself. Grumio's food-baiting routine is pure comic timing, but Katherine's hunger is real. The gown scene is farcical farce — Petruchio raging at perfectly good fabric — but Katherine's desire for a normal dress is also real. By the end, when Petruchio announces it's seven o'clock regardless of what the clock says, the play begins to show how the taming's logic extends beyond food and clothes to perception itself.
If this happened today…
A husband comes home with a takeout bag and opens it in front of his hungry wife, narrating each dish — 'What do you think of this? Too spicy. What about this? Too rich. This one? Actually, never mind.' Then when she snaps and throws him out, he arrives with the food and apologizes — only to refuse to let her eat until she thanks him elaborately. When she finally does, he announces they're visiting her parents — then rejects the outfit she'd bought for the occasion as not fit for purpose. He tells the tailor it's a disgrace. He declares they're leaving, and oh, also, it's seven o'clock, not two. She knows it's two. He knows she knows. He leaves anyway.