Visual Essay -Mindy Saw

A Manipulation of Love

Comparing “Taming of the Shrew” and “Revenge of the Bridesmaids”

In Shakespeare's “Taming of the Shrew,” the manipulation of love is proved through the character Petruchio. Petruchio manipulates Baptista and others by telling them that he has wooed Katherine and she will be married to him without her actual consent at the time. As manipulation is a common action done to make people “fall in love” back in the days, it also happens in present day as well. In the movie “Revenge of the Bridesmaid,” Caitlyn, the soon-to-be bride manipulates her soon-to-be husband into being pregnant in order for her to marry him.

Although Caitlyn and Petruchio share the same tactics to get what they want, they feel differently about their situations. As for Caitlyn, she’s going through with her plans for the sake of her mother’s bankruptcy in return for getting the perfect wedding that she’s always dreamed of. As for Petruchio, he’s going through with his plans because his goal was to get a wife and that wife was to be Katherine. Even though everyone tells him that she is almost impossible to wife, he claims that he will woo her and she will be the one he marries.  It almost becomes a game to him, if he can woo her, he proves his victory in winning the woman that no one wants or can woo.  Based off of the play and movie we can see that they are conveying how people manipulate their significant other into love so that they can get what they want from them without having to actually love them.

“What, with my tongue in your tail? Nay, come again, good Kate. I am a gentleman --”

“That I’ll try” (she strikes him)

(Act 2, Scene 1, lines 231-233)

At this point of the play, Katherine and Petruchio meets for the first time and Katherine, as expected, does nothing but deny his request and proposal with all her attitude. At this point, the reader can predict that the wedding is not going to happen because Katherine was not being wooed by Petruchio. Though Petruchio does not give up whatsoever. Petruchio continues to try to woo Katherine, but the moment she strikes him, he loses his motivation for a slip second saying “I swear I’ll cuff you if strike again.” In this part of the play, Petruchio is trying to manipulate her into loving him by saying he is a gentleman and he loves her although they just met. Katherine clearly denies him and does not love him.

(Caitlyn pushing Tony’s buttons about the cake.)

(Tony pulling her to the side away from everyone else.)

(Caitlyn nervously looking around.)

In “Revenge of the Bridesmaids,” Caitlyn, the soon-to-be bride and Tony, the soon-to-be groom is cake tasting for their wedding. Caitlyn says to Tony as they taste their third option, “Tony-bear, participate. C’mon we need an opinion from the groom.” Tony then pulls her to the side away from everyone else in the room to respond with, “Look Caitlyn, I’m doing what everybody wants here. It’s just cake.” Looking at Tony’s dialogue, the audience can predict that Tony is not very excited nor cares about the wedding. Caitlyn then nervously looks around and smiles to fake an “everything is okay” and loudly says to everyone, “Yes, you do like milk with your cake. Why don’t you go get some milk.” Tony then walks away with disappointment all over his face mumbling, “I think I will” as Caitlyn nervously continues to smile at everyone else. At this point of the movie, it is clear that Tony has no love for Caitlyn, but he knows he has to marry the woman only because he got her pregnant. Unlike Petruchio’s situation, he’s stuck in a loveless marriage for a mistake he has made. But similar to Petruchio’s tactics, Caitlyn continues to act like everything is fine because she will marry Tony regardless of his actions and the way he feels personally.

"I tell you 'tis incredible to believe How much she loves me. O, the kindest Kate! She hung about my neck, and kiss on kiss She vied so fast, protesting oath on oath, That in a twink she won me to her love. How tame when men and women are alone, A meacock wretch can make the curestest shrew."

(Act 2, Scene 1, lines 325-332)

At this point in “Taming of the Shrew,” Petruchio and Katherine has met for the first time. Although this meeting does not go as Petruchio expected, he claims that all is well and he has done his duty and wooed her into marrying him. During the meeting, Katherine is rude and denies everything Petruchio proposes, but when Petruchio comes back to speak with Katherine’s father Baptista, he says that he was successful in his duty. He manipulates the father by telling him that Katherine is now in love with him and they will be married soon even though she has not given consent, if anything, she has denied his proposal.

(Rachel telling the girls that Caitlyn is pregnant with Tony’s baby.)

In this specific scene Rachel tells Abigail and Parker that Caitlyn is pregnant, “No they have to get married, it’s a secret it’s a big secret, I’m not suppose to tell anyone, Caitlyn’s pregnant” and therefore he has no choice but to marry the her. By the looks of Rachel’s reactions and dialogue, the audience would be able to assume that Caitlyn is pregnant because no one finds out that it’s a lie until later on in the movie. Rachel tells the girls which OBGYN Caitlyn went to to get her results. Similar to what Petruchio does in the play, Caitlyn has already manipulated everyone in believing that she is pregnant with Tony’s baby.

"Then tell me, if I get your daughter's love, What dowry shall I have with her to wife?"

"After my death, the one half of my lands, And in my possession, twenty thousand crowns."

"And, for that dowry, I'll assure her of Her widowhood, be it that she survive me, In all my lands and leases whatsoever. Let specialties be therefore drawn between us, That covenants may be kept on either hand."

"Ay, when the special thing is well obtained, That is, her love, for that is all in all."

(Act 2 Scene 1 lines 126-136)

By this scene in the play, Petruchio is conversing with Baptista before his first meeting with Katherine. The reader can tell that some type of deal is going on here for the marriage of Katherine. Baptista approves of Petruchio’s ideas and offers all that he can to Petruchio if he does win Katherine over by wooing her. The idea of manipulation falls into this action because of how Baptista manipulates Petruchio to marry Katherine in order to get his ownings after his passing.

(Caitlyn showing her mom (Mrs. McNabb) that her dress is the wrong color.)

(Caitlyn coming at her mom for promising her the perfect wedding in return of getting all of Tony’s fortunes.)

At this point of the movie, it has finally come to the day of the wedding and everything seems to be going wrong. It starts out with the wedding dress. Caitlyn receives her wedding dress and it’s a different color than what she actually ordered. She cries in distress to her mother, “Look look look at it see?!” Her mother responds, “What? What am I looking at?” Caitlyn then has a mental breakdown saying, “Look blind mother! It’s summer pearl.” Along with that Caitlyn reveals and discusses their deal to the audience, “You promised me! Every detail of this wedding has to be exactly right. I’m only marrying this guy because of all the money you went through. I don’t mind a loveless marriage, but I will not tolerate anything less than a perfect wedding!” In these few lines, Caitlyn reveals the huge secret of why she’s been manipulating people into believing that she is pregnant in order to marry the guy with money only for his money.  Unlike Baptista, Mrs. McNabb wants the money and that’s why she wants her daughter to be married, whereas Baptista is paying off Petruchio to marry his daughter with whatever it takes.

The manipulation from both the movie and the play shows how love is portrayed in society’s attitudes towards courtship/dating. Since back then, parents of the individual in the relationship has always been involved in some way. Baptista, the father of Katherine (from the Shrew), proves through his actions of paying Petruchio and manipulating him into wooing his daughter in return to get his fortunes after his death.  Whereas in “Revenge of the Bridesmaids,” Mrs. McNabb manipulates her daughter for her to decite others into believing that she is pregnant so that she can marry Tony for his wealth since the McNabbs are going bankrupt. In return of this manipulation, Caitlyn will get her prefect dream wedding. This shows us that in society, people’s attitudes on love and romance is that more wealth equals more happiness in a marriage.