ABSTRACT
In The Taming of the Shrew Shakespeare synthesized English, Roman, and Italianate source. The Shrew incorporates commedia dell'arte through plot points, devices, and characters. In The Shrew, Shakespeare expanded on Gascoigne's subplot that included scenes with Bianca and Sly. With Tranio as first zanni and Grumio as second zanni, Shakespeare incorporated late-sixteenth-century commedia dell'arte practices in his Shrew. Bloom initially considered The Taming of the Shrew "as much a romantic comedy as it is a farce", but concluded that The Shrew "looks like a farce but it isn't", The intricate taglines in Petruchio's courtship of Katherina make the wordplay as vital as the sight gags of the fool, clowns, and their impostors in The Shrew. Gremio lives up to Pantalone's quest for a young wife. Because of Kate's scolding tongue, Gremio suggests that she be carted through the streets like a capital criminal.
