Research Summary

Over the semester, my research has been on Female Shaming Rituals in the public and private sphere, and how it’s portrayed in The Taming of the Shrew. I was fascinated by the presentation on Female Shaming Rituals and wanted to focus on that for my research.

I found the things done to women back then to be extremely horrific and wrong. I recognize that, at the time, this behavior was completely acceptable and encouraged, but to read about it now is completely infuriating. I wanted to do research on this topic to gain a better understanding of why these rituals were performed and, if possible, see if there were any similar, modern-day rituals. I did gain more understanding on the topic: I still find it infuriating, and the more I learned, the sorrier I felt for women at the time. The only possible justification for this type of treatment could have been fear. The patriarchal society was afraid of women having agency and voice. They were afraid of being

overtaken by people who were seemingly weaker than them.
My examination of The Taming of the Shrew focused on the oppressive state Katherine lived in and the reasons for this. It all boiled down to the fact that the men in her life [and the man who wanted to be in her life] wanted her to act like a proper woman in order for them to be seen w