A pun is otherwise known as a play on words and is often
when one character says something that is deliberately misinterpreted by another
character, who shows his or her wit by doing this. We can see this in play in the very
first exchange between Petruchio and Grumio in Act I scene 2, as Petrucio enters and
asks his erstwhile servant to "knock" on the door of Hortensio's house to altert him to
their arrival. Note how Grumio responds:
Knock, sir? Whom should I knock? Is there any man
has rebused your worship?
Of
course, Grumio is wilfully misinterpreting the word "knock," taking it to mean hit or
punch, which is why he asks "whom" he should "knock" and if there is anyone who has
insulted Petruchio. Grumio seems to play the stereotypical role of a witty Shakesperian
servant who engages in such banter with his master, who is not much
better.
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