Act 1 Scene 1

The play proper begins when the trumpets herald the arrival of Lucentio, who proceeds to explain to his manservant, Tranio, where they are, why they have come, and where they have come from. This is a conventional technique for making sure that the audience is in possession of some necessary facts. The exposition is interrupted, however, by a family quarrel. Lucentio and Tranio stand aside to witness the problems of a father with two daughters — one of whom is the “shrew”, Katherine, whom no man will marry# the other is the fair Bianca, beloved of Gremio and Hortensio. The father, Baptista, decrees that none shall have the younger until a husband is found for the elder. Bianca’s two lovers agree to forget their rivalry and join forces to find a husband for Katherine. The watching Lucentio has also fallen in love, and he exchanges clothes with Tranio so that, disguised, he can present himself as a tutor and so gain access to Bianca. When Biondello, Lucentio’s servant, arrives from Pisa, he is taken into the secret.
1	since for: because of.
2	Padua: Padua was famous for its ancient university, which was founded in 1228 and was a great centre (“nursery”) for all branches of learning (“arts”).
3	am arrived: have arrived# the auxiliary “be” was often used (as in modern French) with verbs of motion.
for: in.
fruitful Lombardy: In some sixteenth-century maps — such as that of Ortelius — LOMBARDY was marked across the whole of north Italy# the region was commonly known as the garden of Italy.
5	leave: permission.
7	well approved in all: shown by experience to be good in every way.
8	breathe: pause, have a rest.
haply: maybe
institute: begin.
9	ingenious: intellectual.
10	renowned: famous# the line is repeated at 4, 2, 97.
11	Gave . . . being: was my birthplace.
first: before me.
12	great . . . world: involved in major international enterprises.
13	come of: descended from.
the Bentivolii: A famous Italian family — of Bologna, not Pisa.
14, 15, 16	It is only right that Vincentio’s son, brought up in Florence, should fulfil the hopes that people have had for him by adding great deeds to the fortunes he has inherited.
17	for the time: at present.
19	apply: concentrate on.
treats of: deals with.
19, 20	Aristotle’s Ethics 1 and 2 develops the idea that happiness can only be achieved through virtuous living.
21	thy mind: what you think of it.
22	as he that: like a man who.
23	plash: pool.
24	with satiety: by having too much.
25	Mi pardonate: excuse me# this, and other Italian phrases in the first act, serve to persuade the audience that Elizabethan Warwickshire has given place to Renaissance Italy.
26	“I feel just the same as you do about it all.”
27	resolve: determination.
28	suck the sweets: Tranio’s metaphor is of the bee taking nectar from the flower.
31	stoics . . . stocks: The pun did not originate with Tranio# “stoics” endure everything, and “stocks” appreciate nothing.
32	devote: devoted.
Aristotle’s checks: the Greek philosopher’s counsels of moderation.
33	Ovid: A Roman poet, popular among the Elizabethans for his erotic verse narratives# he was literally an “outcast” during his lifetime, when he was exiled from Rome.
abjured: forsworn, renounced.
34	Balk logic: engage in arguments.
acquaintance: friends.
35	rhetoric: the art of communication# this was one of the academic disciplines, like logic and mathematics.
36	use: make use of.
quicken: refresh.
38	“Eat of them when you have the appetite.”
40	most affect: like best.
41	Gramercies: many thanks.
42	come ashore: Padua is not a sea-port# but Shakespeare probably knew of the network of inland waterways that linked the cities of northern Italy.
43	put . . . readiness: get started.
47	show: entertainment.
47s.d.	Such detailed stage directions were probably written by Shakespeare himself.
pantaloon: foolish old man (a stock figure in the Italian commedia dell’arte, whose function was usually to act as an obstacle to the young lovers).
48	importune . . . further: don’t go on asking me.
50	bestow: give in marriage.
youngest: younger (the superlative form was often used when only two objects were compared).
54	Leave: permission.
55	cart: Gremio makes a pun on “court”# convicted prostitutes were punished by being whipped as they were drawn through the streets at the tail of a cart.
rough: violent.
56	Will you: do you want.
58	make . . . mates: make me a laughing-stock for these fellows. A “stale” is also a decoy: she is being used to trap husbands — “mates” — for her sister# and a prostitute. In the game of chess, “stalemate” is the final position before the game is lost.
60	mould: nature.
62	Iwis: indeed.
it . . . heart: (i.e. marriage) is not something she cares about (Katherine speaks of herself).
63	doubt not: i.e. I promise you.
64	comb your noddle: hit your silly head.
65	paint your face: i.e. with your own blood.
66	From . . . us: Hortensio paraphrases a line from the Church of England Litany: “from the crafts and assaults of the devil . . . Good Lord, deliver us”.
68	toward: about to happen.
69	froward: bad-tempered.
71	sobriety: modesty.
73	Mum: keep quiet.
74	make good: accomplish.
75	in: indoors.
78	peat: little pet.
It is best: you ought to.
79	finger in the eye: i.e. to bring tears.
an . . . why: if she had any sense.
80	content . . . discontent: be satisfied now that I am unhappy.
81	pleasure: will.
subscribe: obey.
84	Minerva: the Roman goddess of wisdom.
85	strange: unfriendly.
86	effects: causes.
87	mew her up: lock her up — as a falcon is confined in a mew during its moulting season.
88	for: because of.
89	“Make Bianca suffer for what Katherine has said.”
90	content ye: you must be satisfied.
am resolved: have made my mind up.
92	for: because.
97	Prefer them hither: introduce me to them.
cunning: skilful.
98	liberal: generous.
99	bringing-up: education.
101	commune: discuss.
105	Gremio seems to be uttering some proverbial wisdom — although no parallels have been found.
105	the devil’s dam: the devil’s mother — said to be worse than the devil himself.
gifts: qualities.
106	hold: detain.
106	Their love . . . great: loving women is not so very important.
107	blow our nails: wait patiently.
108	fast it fairly out: manage to survive.
Our . . . sides: it’s the same for both of us.
110	light on: find.
111	wish: recommend.
113	brooked parle: allowed us to talk to each other.
114	upon advice: on consideration.
toucheth: concerns.
116	to labour and effect: to get to work and achieve.
119	Marry: by (the Virgin) Mary (a mild oath).
123	so very a fool: such a complete fool.
126	alarums: war-cries (literally, the trumpet-calls to battle).
127	an: if.
128	and money enough: if there’s enough money.
130	I cannot tell: I don’t know about that.
as lief: just as soon.
131	the high cross: the market cross, in the middle of the town.
133	small . . . apples: not much to choose between the two evils# in their use of clichès, there seems to be “small choice” between the commonplace minds of Hortensio and Gremio.
134	bar in law: legal obstacle — Baptista has a parent’s legal right to prohibit Bianca’s marriage.
135	so . . . maintained: let us keep up the friendship to a certain extent.
137	have to’t: on with the fight (their rivalry).
138	Happy . . . dole: he’s a lucky man that gets her.
138	he . . . fastest: In medieval jousting, “tilting for the ring” was part of the sport# the winner carried off the ring with his lance.
140	am agreed: agree with you.
him: any man.
142	woo . . . bed her: A commonplace description of love’s progress.
rid . . . her: Gremio has something of his own to add.
149	“I fell in love.” Idleness and amorousness are commonly associated by poetic writers, and the pansy, sometimes called “heartsease” or “love-in-idleness”, was thought to have magic powers as an aphrodisiac.
150	in plainness: in all honesty.
151	secret: trustworthy, able to keep secrets.
152	Anna . . . Carthage: In his play Dido Queen of Carthage Christopher Marlowe (Shakespeare’s greatest contemporary) showed Anna as the trusted confidante of her sister Dido, whose story is told in Virgil’s Aeneid, Book IV. Lucentio’s sudden passion seems almost like an imitation of Dido, who burnt herself to death when Aeneas deserted her.
154	achieve: secure as a wife.
158	is not . . . heart: cannot be driven out of the heart by scolding.
159	naught . . . so: all you can do is this.
160	“Now that you have been caught, buy yourself out as cheaply as you can.” The quotation (originally from a play by Terence) comes in Lily’s Latin Grammar, the textbook used in Shakespeare’s school.
161	Gramercies: thanks very much.
this contents: I like your advice.
163	longly: for such a long time.
164	marked . . . all: didn’t see what is really going on# in classical comedy it is often the function of the servant to explain the plot to his love-sick master.
166	daughter of Agenor: Europa, who was carried away from her father’s kingdom by Jupiter (Jove) disguised as a bull. The lover’s rhapsody seems to mistake the story slightly: Jupiter courted Europa in Tyre, before abducting her to Crete.
171	hardly: scarcely.
178	curst and shrewd: bad-tempered and sharp-tongued.
181	mewed her up: confined her# compare line 87 note.
182	because: so that.
184	art . . . advised: didn’t you notice.
185	cunning: skilful# but Lucentio’s meaning almost embraces the modern (= crafty) sense of the word.
186	’tis plotted: I have a plan.
187	for my hand: at a guess.
188	inventions: schemes.
jump in one: coincide.
191	device: plan.
May it be done?: will it work?
192	bear your part: take your place.
194	ply: work at.
196	Basta: enough# Shakespeare remembers the Italian setting of the plot.
full: all worked out.
203	meaner: humbler (i.e. than Lucentio himself).
205	Uncase: undress.
coloured: Elizabethan servants were soberly dressed# the coloured clothes were worn by their masters.
207	charm: make him promise.
208	“You will need to.”
209	sith: since.
210	tied: bound.
211	at our parting: when we left.
212	be serviceable: do your best to serve.
218	thralled: enslaved.
wounded eye: Cupid’s arrow, inducing love, wounded Lucentio in the eye when he saw Bianca.
222	what’s the news: what’s going on.
225	frame: fit.
227	countenance: identity.
229	This seems unnecessary# Lucentio is over-enthusiastic about his plot.
230	descried: seen.
231	as becomes: in the proper way.
233	Ne’er a whit: not at all.
234	“Not a word about Tranio.”
237	A doggerel verse marks Tranio’s change from servant to master.
240	use your manners: behave yourself.
244	rests: remains.
that thyself execute: which you must carry out.
246	Sufficeth: let it be enough for you to know.
246s.d.	Presenters: commentators (actors playing the parts of spectators).
247	nod: fall asleep.
mind: pay attention to.
248	Saint Anne: mother of the Virgin Mary.
matter: subject.
252s.d.	sit and mark: The stage direction seems to indicate that the “presenters” remain in their positions for the rest of the play, but Shakespeare seems to forget about them: they never speak again in The Taming of the Shrew. See Appendix A.