Marrying for Money in The Taming of the Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew is the first romantic comedy we read, and the play focuses principally on the romantic relationships between men and women.  In this respect, the play is a typical romantic comedy. However, unlike other Shakespearean comedies, The Taming of the Shrew does not conclude its examination of love and marriage with the wedding.  It is much more of a "realistic" play that A Midsummer Night's Dream, and instead of having the love end in marriage, it offers a glimpse into the future lives of married couples, one that lets us see the social dimension of love.  The Taming of the Shrew places heave emphasis the economic aspects of marriage—specifically, how economic considerations determine who marries whom. We see this in one of the first confrontations between Katerina and Petrucio, when he claims he was worked out the financial details with her father, and the dowry is already in order.  The play tends to explore romantic relationships from a social perspective, and seems to place more importance the financial basis for marriage rather than the inner passions of lovers. As such, marriage becomes a transaction involving the transfer of money. Lucentio wins Bianca’s heart, but he is given permission to marry her only after he is able to convince Baptista that he is rich.  Bianca has almost no say in the matter, and it is purely about money to her father.