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Adriana is the wife of Antipholus of Ephesus. She is an assertive woman who grows irritated when her husband fails to show up at the appointed time for their midday meal. Her frustration with Antipholus E. leads her to express views that Renaissance audiences likely would have called “shrewish,” but which modern audiences might describe as “feminist.” Thus, speaking with her sister Luciana, she asks why it should be that men enjoy more liberty than women. When Luciana responds that it’s a woman’s place to be mild and obedient, Adriana brushes her sister’s words aside, boldly declaring, “There’s none but asses will be bridled so” (2.1.14). Adriana’s frustration soon explodes into fury when she learns that the man she has mistaken for her husband—Antipholus S.—has made a move on her sister. This incident inflames Adriana’s predisposition for jealousy and leads her to believe that her husband may be cheating on her with women other than her sister. Though she gets caught up in the increasing chaos and confusion of the day, Adriana eventually takes part in the happy resolution that concludes the play and restores her rightful husband to her.
