Petruchio is a poverty-stricken gentleman from Verona who journeys to Padua in search of a wealthy wife. There he meets Katharina, a self-willed shrew who leads Petruchio on a merry chase before he successfully circumvents her attempts to avoid marriage. After the honeymoon, Kate helps Petruchio win a wager that he has the most obedient wife. In reality, Kate has found a more effective way to dominate her mate.

This short silent film, made by the American Mutoscope & Biograph company and directed by the famous D. W. Griffith, is an extremely abbreviated version of Willian Shakespeare's marriage comedy The Taming of the Shrew.