Pregnant Power: Jaazaniah Hayes

Taming of the Shrew (The Play), and Knocked Up (The Movie)

    Taming of the shrew is a tale between many characters. There are various situations that happen in this play, many romances that happened, and many males wanting to woo 2 sisters. One sister had way more men. However the part thats interesting is Katharine and Petruchio, and their fight for who had more power. In the romantic comedy Knocked Up characters Ben and Allison have a one night stand, and then decide that they didn’t work well as a couple. Weeks later Allison figures out she is pregnant, and her and Ben try to make things work. Though in Shrew and Knocked up relationships were based on power, modern day relationships are based more on having things in common.

“And, for that dowry, I’ll assure her of her widowhood, be it that she survive me, in all my lands and leases whatsoever.”

(Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 130-133)

    Petruchio is saying to Katherine's father that he wants to marry her. Before this quote he expresses how deeply he wants her. Everybody who is this scene is telling him how bad she is, but he simply says he doesn’t care. He is telling everyone, but mainly her dad that he will marry her. However for he can get worse that they say she is, so hopefully she survives what he is going to do. This quote shows how people think that she will keep the power, and boss him around. He simply says she has to survive me, and whatever she does i’m going to do something worse. A few lines before this quote, Katherine's father says that he will have to woo her, but he thinks he doesn’t need to. Power beat love back then, and even though love isn’t a must, having something in common needs to be there.

   In this scene they decide to go out to learn more about each other. Allison learns that Ben doesn’t have a real job, and is living off a settlement check. She starts to think that maybe they aren’t a match, and maybe this was a mistake. She just comes out a says she is pregnant. Then Ben finds out that there was a misunderstanding between him and Allison. He thought she was telling him to take of the protection he was struggling to put on, but that wasn’t the case. After Allison tells him the news, he tries to make it seem like she isn’t really pregnant. They realize they have nothing in common, because she has a real job that pays, and he doesn’t. He is more of a laid back not worried guy, and she is a little expressive. Their lives and personalities don’t really match. This shows how “Taming of the Shrew” and “Knocked up” display similar ways as modern day relationships, and of not wooing someone.

“I swear I’ll cuff you if you strike again”

(Act 2, Scene 1, Line 234 )

    In this scene Petruchio is telling Katharine that if she tries to hit him, he will handcuff her. Katharine thinks she has the power by putting her hands on him. He tries to take the power and control back by saying that if she tries to hit him again he will handcuff her. By handcuffing her, he will have her in his hands. To get out the cuffs, she has to listen to her. The way he took the power back was by cuffing her. Modern day relationships might be about wooing a person, and things people have in common. However relationships back then were about who had the power to run stuff.

This picture is the reaction of their faces when the doctor says that she is pregnant. They are confused as to like why did this have to happen. We aren’t a match, and now we are having a baby together. This is a problem because since they don’t match, how are they going to raise a baby together. So both Ben and Allison were shocked, and they had a decision to make. The 2 people had to try to match, and make their relationship work.

“Thus have I politicly begun my reign, and ‘tis my hope to end successfully. My falcon now is sharp and passing empty,...”

(Act 4, Scene 1, Lines 188-190)

    This quote was about how he was going to teach her how to act, and for him to be in control. Petruchio thinks that he train her, to be at his will. He has a master plan to get all the power in his hands. His plan will take the balance from 60-40 to 100-0. The power balance would be in his favor. He would be able to control her. The power balance in Knocked up is about 40-60 in Allison’s favor. Only because she is having the baby. Both Ben and Allison consider each other opinions. Even though they aren’t compatible, they still need to get along. Compatibility was important in Knocked up, but not so important in Shrew.

  The play “Taming of the Shrew” and the movie “Knocked up” both show relationships, and don’t account for wooing someone. Both Shrew and Knocked up relationships are based on power, however modern day relationships are based more on having things in common. Knocked up a modern day movie, not only focuses on power but also demonstrates the need for compatibility. Where as Shrew focuses on one person overpowering the other person. “Taming of the Shrew” and “Knocked up” didn’t incorporate wooing the other person, however Knocked up focused on Ben and Allison being compatible.

BiB:

Shakespeare, William. N.p.: William Shakespeare, n.d. Print.

Knocked up. Dir. Judd Apatow. Prod. Judd Apatow, Shauna Robertson, Clayton Townsend, and Seth Rogen. By Judd Apatow. Perf. Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl. Universal Pictures, 2007. Film.