The Taming of the Shrew Education Quotes

How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Act.Scene.Line). Line numbers correspond to the Norton edition.

Quote #4

LUCENTIO
Hic ibat, as I told you before, Simois, I am
Lucentio, hic est, son unto Vincentio of Pisa,
Sigeia tellus, disguised thus to get your love, Hic
steterat
, and that 'Lucentio' that comes a-wooing,
Priami, is my man Tranio, regia, bearing my port,
celsa senis, that we might beguile the old pantaloon. (3.1.33-38)

When Lucentio reads an excerpt from Ovid's Heroides and reveals his love for Bianca instead of translating the Latin lines to English, education becomes a disguise (like any other costume in play) for the act of courtship. The theme of education in this passage can also help us think about how the act of translation (turning words from one language into another while retaining the same sense or meaning) is a kind of transformation. While Lucentio's outside appearance changes (from Lucentio to "Cambio"), the person on the inside remains exactly the same.

Quote #5

SLY
Are you my wife, and will not call me 'husband'?
My men should call me 'lord.' I am your goodman. (Induction.2.105-106)

Sly's ignorance of the social customs of the nobility is pretty evident here, as he is upset when his "wife" calls him her "lord." It's not apparent that Sly will ever learn how to be like a nobleman, calling into question the idea that experiential learning is useful and valuable.

Quote #6

LUCENTIO
Counsel me, Tranio, for I know thou canst.
Assist me, Tranio, for I know thou wilt.
TRANIO
Master, it is no time to chide you now.
Affection is not rated from the heart.
If love have touched you, nought remains but so:
Redime te captum quam queas minimo. (1.1.159-164)

Tranio's role as advisor and mentor is unusual because elsewhere in the play, servants don't subvert the typical dynamic of power between master and servant. Tranio is helpful when it comes to Lucentio getting his way, but it's doubtful that Lucentio's father would see the servant as a good "teacher" for his son.