The Taming of the Shrew as keeping her from eating and drinking, until she becomes a desirable, compliant, and obedient bride. The subplot features a competition between the suitors of Katherina's younger sister, Bianca, who is seen as the "ideal" woman. The question of whether the play is misogynistic or not has become the subject of considerable controversy, particularly among modern scholars, audiences, and readers. "The Taming of the Shrew" has been adapted numerous times for stage, screen, opera, ballet, and musical theatre; perhaps the most famous adaptations being Cole Porter's "Kiss Me, Kate" and the 1967 film of the play, starring Elizabeth Taylor and
The Taming of the Shrew the same text for the purposes of copyright, i.e. ownership of one constituted ownership of the other, and when Smethwick purchased the rights from Ling in 1609 to print the play in the "First Folio", Ling actually transferred the rights for "A Shrew", not "The Shrew". One of the most fundamental critical debates surrounding "The Shrew" is its relationship with "A Shrew". There are five main theories as to the nature of this relationship: The exact relationship between "The Shrew" and "A Shrew" is uncertain, but many scholars consider "The Shrew" the original, with "A Shrew" derived from it; as