Signior Hortensio, 'twixt such friends as we
Few words suffice; and therefore, if thou know
One rich enough to be Petruchio's wife,
As wealth is burden of my wooing dance,
Be she as foul as was Florentius' love,
As old as Sibyl and as curst and shrewd
As Socrates' Xanthippe, or a worse,
She moves me not, or not removes, at least,
Affection's edge in me, were she as rough
As are the swelling Adriatic seas:
I come to wive it wealthily in Padua;
If wealthily, then happily in Padua.
This passage is one that uses direct characterization to describe Petruchio. Before reading this passage, the reader things that Petruchio is just your average fellow, looking for a wife in Padua. However, this passage directly quotes Pretruchio stating that he does not care about who he will marry, but only about the money she has. Shakespeare also alludes to greek mythology to exaggerate the fact that Petruchio is clearly only interested in marriage for money. The repetition of the word "wealth," is also important in that is emphasizes how important wealth is to the character. Shakespeare further proves his point by using a metaphor stating Petruchio would marry any woman even if she was "as rough as are the welling Adriatic seas."
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