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Jody Walshe Disobedient Daughters and Loyal Wives in Cymbeline and The Taming of the Shrew Both Cymbeline and The Taming of the Shrew are concerned with daughters who defy their fathers. This concept is an interesting one when compared to their marital relationships and loyalty they show to their husbands. Both Imogen and Kate, then, rebel against their fathers and a large source of the conflict between parent and child is the issue of marriage. Imogen’s father is horrified that she has ignored his choice of husband (Cloten) and has married “a beggar” (Posthumus). In The Taming of the Shrew Kate’s unwillingness to marry the men suggested by her father has wider ramifications since her younger sister Bianca cannot marry until her elder sister does so. Interestingly though, both Imogen and Kate end their respective dramas as loyal and devoted wives. In Cymbeline the idea of the family as a microcosm of the state is explored with the disruption in the family between Cymbeline and Imogen spreading throughout the nation. Britain, from the outset of the play, is presented as being in a state of disorder, with the King’s only surviving child and heir, Imogen, being married against the royal will to a man not her social equal, who has been banished as a result. This presents the problem of lineage since if Cymbeline will not accept the union between his daughter and Posthumus then his line of descent will end at Imogen. The conflict between Cymbeline and Imogen creates disturbance and disruption throughout the court and society, which is instantly indicated by the confused syntax of the play’s opening speech: “You do not meet a man but frowns: our bloods 1 Jody Walshe No more obey the heavens than our courtiers Still seem as does the king’s” (I.i.1-3) Nosworthy1 notes that these lines are “rather incoherently” delivered and that this is reflect the “strange tale” the First Gentleman has to tell. More than this, an immediate tension is created by the syntactic disorder, a sense of disarray in the state manifesting itself in the language. This disturbance in Cymbeline’s court is explicitly referred to later in the scene: “But not a Courtier, Although they wear their faces to the bent If the Kings looks, hath a heart that is not Glad at the thing they scowl at.” (I.i.12-15) This makes it unequivocally clear that the courtiers’ support of the King’s rejection of Posthumus is only superficial and they are inwardly supportive of Imogen’s rejection of Cloten. It also indicates that the feeling within the court is unanimous against Cymbeline’s judgement. The popular opinion is shown to be one the side of Imogen and her “poor but worthy gentleman” (I.i.7) and against Cymbeline. There is also tension in this speech since the courtiers are deceiving their King: they only “wear” the expressions required of them but do not genuinely hold the opinion they claim to. This expression of sentiments which contradict the wishes of the King is in itself symptomatic of disorder. Cymbeline’s rejection of his daughter and her new husband equates with a rejection of fertility and prosperity when considering that he believes that Imogen is his only 1 ‘Introduction’ Cymbeline J M Nosworthy (1995) 2 Jody Walshe heir. The First Gentleman’s account of Posthumus uses an image of fertility to describe him: “And in’s spring became a harvest” (I.i.46) When this is taken in conjunction with the First Gentleman’s praise (which G Wilson Knight2 remarks is the estimation of Posthumus’ virtue which we are supposed to accept) it is clear that Cymbeline’s conflict with his daughter puts the King in opposition with the forces of youth and growth within the drama. It appears at the beginning of the play that father and daughter must reconcile their differences for the good of Britain. The issue is reiterated in the next scene, when Imogen likens her separation from her husband to death: “There cannot be a pinch in death More sharp than this is” (I.ii.61-2) The mention of death is made more striking when paralleled with the image of fertility used in the First Gentleman’s description of Posthumus. This is also emphasised by Cymbeline in his response: “O disloyal thing That should’st repair my youth, thou heap’st A year’s age on me!” (I.ii.63-4) This is a clear recognition of Imogen’s regenerative power as a young woman despite ironically denying her this role and claiming that she ages him. In addition to this, the threat of death hangs over the banished husband should he return to court: the natural regenerative function of fertility is violently denied, since any attempt at procreation 2 The Crown of Life G Wilson Knight (1946) 3 Jody Walshe will be met with death. Cymbeline’s accusation of Imogen as a “disloyal thing” rings of injured paternal feeling and gives an obvious sense that there is an expected part for Imogen to play as the daughter of the King of Britain and that in disobeying her father’s wishes and marrying Posthumus she has deviated from this role. This is also emphasised by his assertion that she “should’st” repair his youth, since it implies that this is her expected task to undertake there is a sense of reproach that she has not done so. The opening scene of The Taming of the Shrew portrays a similarly tempestuous relationship between father and daughter. Unlike in Cymbeline where the royal family and its disorder have outward effects on the nation, in The Taming of the Shrew the mercantile society is reflected in the bargaining for daughters. This bargaining on the part of Baptista to attempt to get a husband for Kate sparks their first argument, which takes place within seconds of them entering the stage. Not only does Kate show her father a compete lack of respect but she also shows contempt for those around her, threatening to: “comb your noodle with a three-legged stool” (I.i.64) In addition to publicly being embarrassed by how his daughter treats him, Baptista is shamed by association when Kate threatens to beat Hortensio over the head. She clearly abhors the traditional social notions that she should obey her father and show gratitude to her suitors. The sense of a daughter’s duty to a father is also brought up in Cymbeline where the King is annoyed at Imogen’s absence: “She hath not appear’d 4 Jody Walshe Before the Roman, nor to us hath tender’d The duty of the day. She looks us like A thing more made of malice than of duty, We have noted it.” (III.v.30-4) The importance of “duty” is stressed by its repetition twice in two lines and the claim that “she look us like / a thing more made of malice than of duty” the implication is clear that Imogen, in her role as daughter and heir to the throne of Britain should be a “thing of” duty. Kate’s disregard for her duty to her father can be seen in striking contrast to her eventual devotion to her husband. Much of what we know about Kate initially comes from what other people say about her. In Act I, for instance, we see her only briefly and hear her speak even less, yet our view of her is fairly well established. She is introduced to the audience with comments such as: “she is too rough for me” (I.i.54) and “though her father be very rich, any man is so very a fool to be married to hell?” (I.i.124) and it is made clear from the play’s first scene that her father wants to be “rid” of her: “Her elder sister is so curst and shrewd That till the father rid his hands of her…” (I.i.180-1) Kate has already shown herself to be fiery and determined in arguing with her father and the suitors to her sister and this speech indicates that she is in a world where the men have no idea what to do with her; her father is desperate to marry her off (offering an enticingly large dowry) and the men of Padua are horrified at the concept of a her as a wife. 5 Jody Walshe This horror on their part seems unfair: despite the opening images of Kate as inherently “shrewish” it is more than possible to see this as a natural response to her “dreadful father”3 and his clear favouritism of her “insipid”4 sister. There is a strong underlying notion that Kate's shrewish behaviour is a consequence of the mistreatment by her sister and father. Her father continually humiliates her in public and his decision that Bianca may not marry until Kate has is degrading in itself. This is most apparent in Act II when Baptista enters and comes to Bianca’s rescue after she has been tied up by her sister; Kate’s jealousy is clear in her claim that Bianca is her father’s “treasure” who “must have a husband.” Kate’s feeling of humiliation is made explicit in the accompanying image of her being forced to “dance barefoot on her wedding day” (II.i.33) using a phrase which became proverbial for remaining unmarried. When looking at Kate’s behaviour in the light of this treatment perhaps it is less surprising that she is “renown’d in Padua for her scolding tongue” (I.ii.99) and frequently striking whoever she is arguing with. Her transformation from disobedient daughter to loyal wife is fascinating, as although it may seem that she has lost her independence and been “tamed” in fact she has just matured. Perhaps there is nowhere in the play when Kate is seen as more enigmatic than in her final speech. Although it is possible to read this at face-value, what we know of Kate’s character makes this impossible. What has been termed ‘the Elizabethan world picture’5 asserted a hierarchy which descended from God to inanimate nature and on this ladder a wife stands on the rung below her husband. Kate’s speech accepts this notion and reiterates it: 3 Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human H Bloom (1998) ibid 5 ‘Introduction’ The Taming of the Shrew B Morris (1981) 4 6 Jody Walshe “Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper Thy head, thy sovereign.” (V.ii.147-8) Her language is excessive and she gives Petruchio more than he bargained for when he charged her with informing the Widow and Bianca “what duty they owe their lords and husbands” (V.ii.132). Kate’s speech does not reflect a tamed shrew but a more mature woman than she was in the play’s first scene with an ability to control herself and what goes on around her. Kate’s later lines would have had a particular resonance with the Elizabethan audience since they would all have been familiar with the ‘Homily Against Wilful Rebellion’ from what they would have heard in their parish churches: “What is she but a foul contending rebel, And graceless traitor to her loving lord.” (V.ii.160-1) Morris6 notes that this would also have been more powerful for Shakespearian audience since they would have witnessed the heads of rebels exposed in public places. This is made more powerful because “graceless” does not only mean ‘unpleasing’ but also carried religious overtones in terms of ‘lacking the grace of god.’ In stressing the importance of a wife’s duty, “to serve, love and obey” Kate alludes to the well-known phraseology of the Book of Common Prayer, where in the Marriage Service the Priest asks the woman: “Wilt thou obey him, and serue him, loue, honor and kepe him in sickenes and in health?”7 She shows that she is her husband’s equal by giving as good as she gets and goes beyond this, showing that despite his “taming” she still has a degree of control which she can exercise, in this case giving such an exaggerated view of the conventional ‘Introduction’ The Taming of the Shrew B Morris (1981) In ‘The Forme of Solemnizacion of Matrimonie’ The First and Second Prayer-Books of Edward VI (1910) 6 7 7 Jody Walshe opinion of women that it could even be seen as embarrassing to Pertruchio. Despite this possibility, by using a speech imbued with religious references Kate makes her understanding of duty clear; she is a far cry from the “a devilish spirit” (II.i.26) described by her father in the second act of the play. The conclusion of Cymbeline is also intriguing in its happy resolution. Shakespeare’s use of Jupiter in the final act is an interesting choice since there is no external evidence of direct intervention by the god and it would have been possible to conclude the play without him. Despite this, Jupiter’s presence has a fundamental role in giving his approval to the establishment of peace and harmony at the dramas conclusion. His appearance gives a sense that the happiness of the play’s end will be long lasting and gives it a sense of certainty. The Soothsayer takes advantage of this by presenting a new interpretation of his vision of the eagle, as confirming for all that the heavens have arranged and condone the final state: “The fingers of the Powres aboue, do tune The harmony of this Peace” (V.v.467-8) This supports Nosworthy’s8 claim that without the deus ex machina, the restoration of order would have been impossible, such was the state of disorder and violence before it: “the situation is so fantastically chaotic that no mere human being could be expected to control it. Such disorder can only be remedied only by god.” The concept of the family as a microcosm of the state can be seen at the end of the play where “the final acceptance of Posthumus’ marriage with Imogen typifies the matrimonial peace of the individual, the social integrity of the nation.”9 8 9 ‘Introduction’ Cymbeline J M Nosworthy (1995) ibid 8 Jody Walshe Both the disobedience of Imogen and Kate to their fathers, then, is understandable. Kate “shrewish” behaviour stems from the unfair treatment given to her when compared to Bianca and Imogen’s rebellion against her father is because she does not want to marry man whose first mention in Cymbeline is as “a thing / too bad for bad report” (I.i.16-17). Kate’s final acceptance of her marriage and role as dutiful wife in her final speech illustrates her understanding of the importance of compromise in a marital relationship, and that she considers Petruchio a husband worthy of her love and service. Imogen’s disobedience is to her father in showing allegiance to Posthumus above him comes from the acknowledgement that she and Posthumus are figures of youth and fertility. Nosworthy10 asserts that “national and sexual degeneration are concurrent, but Imogen [is] a regenerative force and the circumstances of the play yield a massive union.” Her disobedience is necessary for her to be obedient to her husband and her correct judgement is proven by the deus ex machina in the penultimate scene of the play. 10 ‘Introduction’ Cymbeline J M Nosworthy (1995) 9