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Here in the induction Sly has no doubt understanding that he is the dominate one in this relationship. Giving him a raise in thought and control. Showing how in a relationship how love it not only counted for but how the control in the relationship; changes many keys.

Here Ian is getting baptised in order to fit one of the many requirements in order to marry Toula. Her father stated that Ian must be baptised in order to marry Toula. Gus tops everything off by saying,

“It is your lucky day to be baptised into the Greek Orthodox Church!”  

Later on his friend, Mike states how Toula’s family has Ian wrapped around her little finger. Ian tells Mike that he loves her and will do anything in order to be with her. Here there is a different definition of love; that you will do anything in order to keep your spouse happy and to be with them. Yet the control is used in different ways. In The Taming of the Shrew control is used in order to tame others and for that person to only get what they want. Toula’s family may be doing the same thing; just the other person in the relationship has to pay the toll. Ian does it for love, as Katherine coops with some of the things Petruchio says in order to just get to what she wants. Like a bribe ‘I will take you to your father if you prove my control on you.’

Petruchio:  I say it is the moon.

Katherina:  I know it is the moon.

Petruchio: Nay, then you lie; it is the blessed sun.

Katherina: Then, God be bless'd, it is the blessed sun;

But sun it is not, when you say it is not;

And the moon changes even as your mind.

What you will have it nam'd, even that it is,

And so it shall be so for Katherine(Act IV, Scene 5 ).

  Love has many tolls in which it’s romance may not last forever. Yet the control is something that most try at in order to show the love in the relationship. That control can also be used when trying to make the spouse meet up with the requirements. Parents have always had a huge say in their children’s spouse. With the requirements they made in order to have a good spouse for their child in order to set them for a ‘good’ future. The child’s say today is what has really changed. For when Kate got married to Petruchio she did not agree, and never tried to marry him. She was just put into that spot where she had too. While Toula had much more say and actually got what she wanted; to marry Ian. In this era the child has more say yet as requirements may differ at points in the end the one with more control, makes the other partner change in order to fit certain requirements.

Changing of the Boo

An exploration of male/female expectations in relationships in Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew and She’s All That

In Shakespeare's The Taming of The Shrew, where Petruchio, a wealthy bachelor who will do whatever it takes to find a rich wife, meets Katherine, a beautiful and unmarried, but rude and sharp-witted daughter of a wealthy lord. Bianca, Katherine's younger sister, is the object of every suitor's desire. Beautiful and wealthy, kind and sweet, Bianca has a line of suitors waiting for her father marry off Katherine before they can wed Bianca. Two of Bianca's suitors strike a deal with Petruchio, stating that he will tame and marry Katherine for money, in order to free up Bianca. The girls' father, Baptista, is ecstatic that a suitor has finally arrived to take Katherine, and orders them to be wed immediately. Since the play was released, there have been countless retellings and versions, and many take from the story directly.

The timeless tale of a man conquering and changing a woman who is inherently different is still used in movies today, shown in the 1999 romantic comedy, She's All That. In an attempt to regain status after his popular girlfriend dumps him, a popular high school jock, Zack, takes a bet offered by his friend Dean, wherein he has 6 weeks to make the girl of Dean's choice into prom queen. The girl picked is Laney, an artistic and intelligent social outcast who is known only for her love of art and her glasses. Zack has 6 weeks before prom to turn her into prom queen and reassure his status.

Romantic comedies have always changed the way society perceives romance. From early depictions of romance, such as the works of Shakespeare, love was depicted as something to live, or die for. The dramatic plays included timeless love stories, often with the play's leading man courting and winning a woman's heart. Each heroine is portrayed as the social outcast, out-shined by a more popular female. However, when the hero courts them, the difference is that Katherine is not given a choice. Both Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew and the 1999 romantic comedy, She’s All That, show the differences in male and female roles in relationships. Due to the differences in time period and culture, Laney is able to decide her own future where Katherine is not. Though societal change has made women more able to decide their own future, women being molded to shape the desires of men is still an ongoing theme in romantic pop culture.

"I can, Petruchio, help thee to a wife

With wealth enough, and young and beauteous,

Brought up as best becomes a gentlewoman.

Her only fault, and that is faults enough,

Is that she is intolerable curst”

-Hortensio

(Act 1, Scene 2, lines 65-70)

In this quote Hortensio, a suitor to Bianca, is striking a deal with Petruchio. Bianca’s many suitors are anxious to win her, and this can only be achieved after Katherine has been wed. After Petruchio makes it clear that he’ll marry any woman with wealth, regardless of her personality or looks, Hortensio and the other suitors see the perfect opportunity to marry off the cursed Katherine. Despite her reputation as a shrew, Katherine still wants to be married like her sister. Men’s refusal to marry her this late in life is not only embarrassing for her and her family, but also gives her less and less options for the future. At this point, Katherine’s father has no qualms about giving her off to the first man willing to pay a good dowry.

Similarly, in She’s All That, the men of the story decide the terms of the relationship.

In this scene in She’s All That, Zack Siler accepts a bet that he can turn any girl at school into prom queen. Zack accepts this bet after his popular and beautiful girlfriend Taylor dumps him. He becomes eager to prove his reputation to himself, his friends, and his ex. Laney is picked out of the crowd after falling and dropping all of her books and art supplies. It is clear from her presence in this scene that she is a social outcast, and a person who Zack’s friends would never normally associate themselves with. Soon after meeting Laney, Zack sees her fierce intelligence and discovers that she, too, avoids his crowd of friends. The portrayal of both of the central women in the stories show that they are not the type of girl that these men are supposed to go for. Both women do not conform to the expectations of their time and therefore must be changed by the men.

"For I am he born to tame you, Kate,

And bring you from a wild Kate to a Kate

Conformable as other household Kates."

- Petruchio

(Act 2, Scene 1, lines 291-293)

When Petruchio first meets Katherine, he makes his intentions clear. This quote is spoken in his first conversation with her, making it clear that he is attempting to change her. He uses the nickname Kate as a demeaning expression aimed at claiming her as his own. In an earlier line, she had deliberately told told him not to call her Kate, but he persisted, making the name a symbol of his superiority over her. To Petruchio, Katherine is a possession to flaunt, and one that should behave respectably. Regardless of her features before meeting him, Petruchio believes he can change any woman into the quiet, courteous, and obedient wife that was expected of that time (much like Katherine’s sister, Bianca). Katherine is not given a choice in her taming, nor her wedding to Petruchio, because of the same, limiting expectations.

In She’s All That, Zack imposes a similar change on Laney.

On their first date together, Zack had already begun to shape Laney into prom queen. Though doing it discreetly, Zack drops hints of how Laney could improve herself and her appearance. He does this through seemingly complementary means, like commenting on how beautiful her eyes are, or citing her “potential”. These are all steps towards her becoming the prettiest and most popular girl in school, like his ex-girlfriend Taylor. The second screenshot shows Laney post transformation, without her glasses and long hair. In this pivotal scene, Zack looks at her in awe. This is arguably the beginning of his true feelings for her. Unlike Katherine, Laney goes along with her transformation more willingly, and begins to enjoy Zack’s company after his persistent interest.

The end result of each transformation is dramatically different. In Taming of the Shrew, Katherine is successfully “tamed” by Petruchio after chiding her disobedient sister for not coming when her husband calls her. In She’s All That, on the other hand, Taylor is crowned prom queen, despite Laney’s popularity. After saving Laney from the sexual advances of his friend Dean, Zack confesses that his feelings were real, and they kiss. Though the 1999 film ends on a slightly more modern note, the central themes of deception and change are at play in both productions. Because of his reputation as the most popular guy in school, Zack believed he could turn any girl into prom queen, and his vision for Laney was that of his ex-girlfriend, Taylor. Zack successfully changes Laney into the type of girl that suits his needs, and makes her previously abject attitude toward his circle of friends vanish into love for him. The portrayal of both women shows the dominance we perceive men to hold in romantic relationships, and the level of consideration for the woman’s thoughts and desires.

(Comparing “The Taming Of The Shrew” and “The Other End of The Line” )

Parents always want what’s best for their children, especially when it comes to marriage. Many parents feel that they should choose who their children marry. This may be a family tradition or a way to insure their children are financially safe. Even if parents don’t chose who their children marry they still give want to give their blessing. This is clearly shown through the play “The Taming of The Shrew” by Shakespeare. Baptista has two daughters, the oldest is Katherine and the youngest is Bianca. Bianca, being younger and tamer than Katherine, gets the most suitors. Were as Katherine viewed as a bad-tempered shrew doesn’t get any suitors, still her father wants her to get married first. The only difference between Baptista's decision in who his daughter marry is that Katherine can marry for love whereas Bianca will marry for financial stability. In the 2008 movie “The Other End Of the Line” the main character Priya’s father does the same thing.

Priya works at a credit card call center in India, at this center she has to pretend to be an American girl named Jennifer from California. One of her clients is Granger Woodruff, who makes commercial for a hotel in San Franciscan. As they talk on the phone she finds out more about him and the American things that he likes to do. For example his friend is getting married and Granger is setting up one last adventure for him. One thing that interest Priya is adventure, but there is only one problem her father. He hates her job and thinks she should have a regular job. Not only is he pressuring her to change her job but is also pressuring her to get married to the man he chose.

Both Baptista and Priya’s father have the same idea to chose who their daughters marry but they had different ways of dealing with the suitors. Take for example Katherine she had the choose to marry for love, while Priya had to marry because it was what her father wanted. These text reveal that fathers have the best interest for their daughters but they don’t realize when they are unhappy, which pushes their daughters to make distracted decisions.  

“Baptisia: I know not what to say, but give me your hands. God send you joy, Petruchio. Tis’ a match.”

(Act 2/Scene 1/Line 337)

In the following part of the book Baptista is excitedy allowing Petruchio to marry Katherine. Katherine on the other hand is not so excited. Before Baptista walked into the room Katherine and Petruchio were arguing, Petruchio was constantly trying to compliment Katherine while she shot down each attempt. But once Baptisia came into the room Petruchio claimed that they were in love, even though Katherine animatedly told her father they weren't. Her father ignored her protest and allowed Petruchio to marry Katherine.

Katherine’s problem is similar to Priya’s. Priya’s father has chosen a good family for Priya to marry into but first he makes Priya meet the family. Once Priya meets the man she is suppose to marry she notices they have nothing in common. Priya wants to travel and move to a different house. While the man she has to marry wants to stay in his mother's house and doesn’t want to travel anywhere. Like Katherine, Priya doesn’t want to marry the man her father choose.

Both fathers want what’s best for their daughters so they pressure their daughters into marrying someone they don’t love. The only difference is that Katherine gets married to Petruchio and changes who she is. While Priya won’t compromise her happiness and dreams.

Quote 2 From the Play:

“Lucentio: I have it, Tranio.

Tranio:  Master, for my hand, Both our inventions meet and jump in one

Lucentio: Tell me thine first.

Tranio:You will be a school master. And undertake the teaching of the maid: That’s your device.”

(Act 1/Scene 1/Line 191-198)

In this quote Lucentio is creating his plan with his servant Tranio to pretend to be a schoolmaster, Cambio, to woo Bianca and get closer to her. Lucentio has to pretend to be someone else because Bianca’s father Baptista isn’t allowing the suitors to get close to Bianca until Katherine is married off.

Lucentio’s use of deception is similar to Priya’s but Priya is using deception as a means of an adventure.  

In this scene from “ The Other End Of The Line” Priya is at her job at the credit card center. Her job is to provide credit card assistance, if there are unusual charges to inform the owner. While she talks to her client, and soon love interest, Granger she hears about the things he does, like spend money in himself. What catches her interest the most is when he mentions that he is throwing one last adventure for his friend.  After hearing about Granger’s finally adventure for his friend she decides she wants an adventure before she gets married to a man she doesn’t. She travels to meet Granger as Jennifer, her fake identity, at the hotel he is staying at. But once she gets there she doesn’t have the courage to meet Granger, until he accidentally falls into her, she then proceeds to introduce herself as Priya not Jenifer. Her father’s constant pressure to marry a man she doesn’t pushes Priya to want to leave and have one last adventure before she is forced into marriage.

The “The Taming Of the Shrew” and “The Other End Of the Line” are very similar. Both Lucentio and Priya use deception to get what they want. Also like Katherine, Priya is being forced into a loveless marriage. Though the “The Taming Of the Shrew” and “The Other End Of the Line” are similar in many ways they are also very different. Unlike “The Taming Of the Shrew”, Priya’s father learns that Priya can’t be forced into a marriage because she has too many dreams and already loves Granger. He soon accepts that and doesn’t force her into marriage. In the end of both the play and the movie the couples ended up together.

Is Who Someone Marries their Parent’s Choice?

Comparing “Taming the Shrew” to “Monster in Law”

In this scene from “Monster in Law,” Viola complains about Charlie to Viola’s friend Ruby. Viola states, “My son the brilliant surgeon is gonna marry a temp.” Then, after some screaming and going to upstairs to lie down, Viola complains, “She is going to destroy him. It is so clear. She’s got no money, no career goals. She was just waiting for a rich innocent to step right into her path.” Viola does not see Charlie as a good match for Kevin because while he makes a significant amount of money from a successful job, Charlie is at a lower class part time job. Viola even assumes Charlie is partly marrying Kevin because he is wealthier than Charlie.

In order for Kevin to have become a surgeon, Viola must allow Kevin to live independently. Kevin would not have been able to study to be a surgeon and then work at a hospital without being able to make large choices without his mother. This is very different from the lifestyle of Baptista’s daughters, who cannot travel somewhere or meet with people without their father knowing, even though they are adults. By giving adult children the freedom to leave home and have careers, parents have given up the right to control who their children meet like in the times of Shakespeare. This allowed Kevin to meet and date Charlie without his mother knowing or approving. However, parents such as Viola still consider it as a part of parenting to make sure their children make good long term choices in life, such as picking an appropriate person to marry. This belief causes Viola to interfere with the wedding, but not ban the marriage altogether.

“Your father hath consented that you shall be my wife, your dowry ‘greed on, and will you, nill you, I will marry you.” 

(Act 2, Scene 1, lines 284-286)

In this quote, Petruchio is speaking to Baptista’s daughter, Katherine, after making a deal with her father that Petruchio can marry Katherine if he has her love, and negotiating a dowry. Petruchio fakes the love, but honors the rest of the deal with Baptista before marrying Katherine. Petruchio is so confident on the deal he made with Baptista that he tells Katherine he will marry her whether she likes it or not. This eliminates Katherine from making decisions over her own marriage.

Similarly, Charlie makes a deal with Viola before the wedding, but not over a dowry.

Charlie is about to call off the wedding when Viola convinces Charlie to speak to her alone. Viola tells Charlie, “Don’t blow your chance for happiness. You’ve never needed my approval. He’s loved you from the very beginning. And I promise I will get out of the way and let the two of you be happy."

“That’s not what I want. I mean, there just has to be some boundaries, Viola,” Charlie replies.

“I can do boundaries! I don’t love boundaries but I can do them,” Viola says,

“How about the number of times you call Kevin a day? Can we limit that, to, like, one,” Charlie asks.

“Oh, I need at least four minimum,” Viola counters.

“He’s 35 years old.”

“Three.”

“Two.”

“Deal,” Viola settles.

In this deal, the genders are switched. Instead of the father negotiating with the groom, the mother negotiates with the bride. Also, Viola is now persuading Charlie to marry Kevin due to Charlie giving up, instead of being a future spouse persuading a parent. The deal is over how much Viola will influence Charlie and Kevin’s relationship in the future, instead of a dowry. Viola now accepts Charlie because she realizes Charlie makes Kevin happy. Viola even gives up her right to approve the match in order to make her son happy. Now, it is more about what the children want then what the mother wants.

Since Viola is the person who makes sure the marriage happens in the end, it shows parents still feel responsible for ensuring each of their children have a good marriage. However, happiness now is a bigger factor than economic status when parents consider a match. Katherine is married to an abusive, yet rich husband. Meanwhile, Kevin marries Charlie in order to have a joyful love, even if Charlie is not as wealthy as him. While Viola did not control as much of the marriage situation as Baptista, the new couple actually wants Viola to be involved in the process. If Charlie’s parents had not died when she was young, they would likely be just as involved in the wedding.

  What these works of art show that marriage and relationships should be things chosen by consent of both people, not by one man, and not even by somebody’s parents. There was a time where women had little to no power in relationships. That is also different now since the United states gives all genders equal rights. This has given women the power to control their relationships, and has made men need to submit to them. Guess Who takes place in 2005, while Taming of the Shrew takes place in the 1000s. Back in that time, there was no such thing as a woman having power and freedom over her own marriage and relationship. It was unheard of back in those days. Now women make many rules in relationships, as well as expectations. Now men are pressured to meet them, and pressured to be a good husband/boyfriend. The movie Guess Who proves that. So, the conclusion is that marriage has changed due to women having freedom, and the domination roles being reversed.

Society’s perception of what love is and how it should relate to relationships has been skewed into the area of fantasy and wishful thinking for many centuries, and art has always sought to satirize and critique this. For instance, while they may have been both written over 300 years apart, the classic Shakespearian comedy “Taming of the Shrew” and the 1977 Woody Allen movie “Annie Hall”, both examine to some extent the expectations of relationships and how those expectations can either tear relationships apart or bond the couple in question tighter together. Through their combined commentary, “Shrew” and “Annie Hall”, both in their similar and different approaches to tackling the nebulous theme of love, create stunning and contemporary insights on the predetermined expectations of relationships, how society has taught us they should be, how they actually are, and what they mean for both of the people involved.

Expectation is a broad term, so before we begin to compare and contrast these two pieces of media, we need to solidify what both are trying to say about the subject of expectation. “Shrew” was written during a time where men were expected to hold control over a marriage while the woman wasn’t so much as a person as a medal. She was a way to either show off prideful arrogance or attain money and land. This is reflected in the play. The two sisters: Bianca and Kate, aren’t so much courted because of love as they were because of interior motives from the suitors. The reader doesn’t so much see Bianca is being courted by her three suitors Gremio, Hortensio and Lucentio pursue Bianca because they love her as much as her land-renowned beauty is something to be won. The pitifulness of this venture is reflected in the play’s own genre, the comedic nature of the play is a way to reflect just how silly the whole situation is: that Bianca’s suitors disguise themselves as other people to win her love, or rely on dirty tricks so they can be the one’s to inherit Bianca’s wealth and land. It makes it all the more ironic and satisfying when the one who Bianca marries at the end of the play is Lucentio, the one suitor who impersonates a man(the literature teacher Cambio) who does not have money or family renowned to offer in exchange to Bianca’s father Baptista for Bianca’s hand.

As for Kate, her objectification is a little more obvious. Her suitor Petruchio only seeks to woo her initially for the money from her father, who in turn is also actively using Kate as a literal roadblock in order to get her married, not allowing for the more desirable Bianca to be married until Kate is first engaged. It’s in this sexist expectation of the time period that the play finds its most potent point, however. This is where the critique of the expectation of love is found in “Shrew”. The last scene of the play is a narratively integral culmination of the satire that Shakespeare has been building up until that point, and while it is true that the finale of “Shrew” is extremely interpretive, for the purpose of this paper, we will interpret it as it relates to the theme.

“To offer war where they should kneel for peace;

Or seek for rule, supremacy, and sway,

When they are bound to serve, love, and obey.

Why are our bodies soft and weak and smooth,

Unapt to toil and trouble in the world,

But that our soft conditions and our hearts

Should well agree with our external parts?”

-Kate(Act V, Sc 2)

Kate’s passionate monologue at the end of the play is essentially complete contradiction of how she has acted throughout the entirety of “Shrew”. What she is saying here is contrary to her beliefs about the relationship dynamics between man and wife should work, and neither is she simply repeating hammered in ideals from her newlywed Petruchio. Petruchio after all, has been one of the less misogynist people we’ve met in the play, since he’s mostly just here for the money and doesn’t directly give Kate power over the marriage, but not exactly taking it away from her either. Rather, his aptitude to leave her to fend for herself during their honeymoon suggests that he completely understands Kate’s strength and will, but just needs to show her that such an attitude will only drive people away, so she best calm a bit. So, if not Petruchio to who Kate delivers this speech, then who? The answer, as well as who Shakespeare was mocking in “Shrew”,  is simply the audience, and by extension the reader. Though it could be read one way or another, “Shrew”could be regarded as a biting commentary on the unequal gender-dynamics of the time, playing up the stupidness of it for laughs, before ending it with a speech that can easily be seen as completely false given what the audience have seen throughout the play. And, just to spit in the face of those who may be taking the speech seriously, Shakespeare has given the most important, longest and most thematically significant speech, the last grand monologue before the curtain drops… to a woman. It’s a combination of thematic comedy and tonal identity, that shows just how much expectations towards marriage have changed during the centuries. It ends the play on a note saying that while society may still hold these sexist expectations, Kate and Petruchio know it not to be true, though that won’t stop them from holding a mutual understanding of how they’re being perceived by other, and exploiting that expectation to win the bet of the play’s last scene.

Annie Hall, on the other hand, takes on an expectation much more relevant to modern society and marriage as a whole, and the whole affair is decidedly much less upbeat than the comedic “Shrew”. Tackling the modern expectations of how relationships should be right now rather than the sexist ideals of Shakespeare’s time, Annie Hall questions whether happiness necessarily constitutes whether two people are in love. In the modern day world, happiness for both parties is in any expectation for marriage or relationship, but Annie Hall directly challenges this notion.

In this quiet scene in a bookstore, the protagonist of Annie Hall: Alvy, a neurotic comedian, explains his philosophy of life to the titular female lead. According to Alvy, in life, you’re either horrible or miserable. If you’re horrible you’re either terminally ill of psychically disabled, so if you’re neither of those things, you should be grateful to be miserable. It’s an extremely negative outlook on life as a whole, and while it’s one that only Alvy seems to hold in the movie, it’s an outlook that the movie seems to want to transfer to the audience. Life is a miserable experience, and so by extension, are relationships. But just because life and relationships are horrible, that doesn’t mean they still don’t hold some kind of value.

The conclusion of both media pieces ultimately hinges on whether the couples of “Shrew” and “Annie Hall” reject or deny the expectations about love and marriage that have till that point driven the narrative. In “Shrew”, both Petruchio and Kate have defied the sexist expectations of the time, and as a result, while they may not be in love with one another depending on how the dialogue is interpreted, they are certainly both are happy at the end of the play. They hold each-other in a certain amount of respect, and the reader can gather that their relationship, even if it was not romantic, still persevered long after the last scene.

“Come, Kate, we’ll go to bed.

We three are married, but you two are sped.

[To Lucentio] ‘Twas I won the wager, though you

hit the white,

And being a winner, God give you good night”

-Petruchio(Act V, Sc 2)

In this quote, Petruchio lays out why exactly he thinks he is the “winner” at the end of the play. Though Lucentio has won the jewel of the play: Bianca, the ultimate symbol of purity and “victory” throughout the plan, Petruchio knows that his relationship, built on a bedrock of mutual understanding rather than the sneaky underhand tactics that Lucentio stooped too, will ultimately prove more sustainable. This again, is shown by Shakespeare in the play. When the men make a bet to see which of their wives will come first when called, it is only Kate who comes to Petruchio, and not only that, but drags the non-obedient Bianca by the ear along with her. This could be seen as Kate being fully indoctrinated into the gender politics of the time, but more likely, it’s to show that the woman and men who built their marriages on the norm, and by extension, expectations of the time will not have a healthy, mutually respected relationship.

On the other half of the coin, Annie Hall shows how relationship dynamics falter when both sides of the relationships believe wholeheartedly in the romantic expectations of the time, which is in this case, that love equals happiness. Building up to the finale, Alvy and Annie have broken up and reconciled multiple times, but now that he’s about to lose Annie perhaps for good to a handsome music producer, Alvy flies to California to get her back. His attempt utterly fails, even an attempted marriage proposal, and he flies back to New York. The film closes on a slight fast-forward to chance meeting Alvy and Annie have back in New York, and it’s Alvy’s closing narration over this final scene that truly ties the thematic core of this piece together.

As the ending credits start to roll, Alvy describes an old joke he once heard. In the joke, the narrator tells a doctor that his brother believes that he is a chicken, and when the doctor asks the narrator why he doesn’t turn his brother in, the narrator says that he “needs the eggs”, which strikes a chord with Alvy about his experience with relationships. In Alvy’s opinion, while relationships may be chaotic and stupid and miserable, everyone still puts up with them because they “need the eggs”. This is a direct parallel to the film’s thematic message about happiness in relationships. While modern day expectations say that relationships should be happy, Annie Hall says that they are in reality, well… chaotic, stupid and miserable. But despite that, relationships still “give eggs”, that human connection that we call love, and the hurt is worth it. The ending of Annie Hall shows what happens when expectation about relationships get in the way of actual relationships, that that human connection crumbles.

Both “Shrew” and Annie Hall are critics of relationship expectations in terms of the time period they were both created. While they go about it different ways, both pieces of media agree that these expectations that society create around the concept of relationships destroy those same relationships. Proper relationships can only work if both parties look past the expectations created by society, and see their human connection for what they are eggs that worth harvesting despite the nasty stuff around them.

In The Taming of the Shrew, the plot revolves around Petruchio “taming” wild and angry Katharine to be a proper and decent wife as part of a challenge. Pat in Silver Linings Playbook does the same to Tiffany unintentionally by falling in love with her.

Though the methods that the two men use may seem different, the end result and the stereotypes the pieces carry out are very similar. Both men see possession over the women in their lives that they wish to date/marry, and both men end their journeys with a docile partner as a result of their actions, whether intentional or unintentional. The idea that women need to be fixed by a partner is perpetuated by both literature and media that portrays men as the changing force of a “troubled” woman’s life. He uses his tools of strength and affection to sedate her ways and convince her to act “normal”. Even though the movie has some more egalitarian themes because it is a more modern piece of work, both The Taming of the Shrew and Silver Linings Playbook show us that outspoken women are seen as something to be loved or taught how to be loved when they are incapable of doing so.

“I will be master of what is mine own./She is my goods, my chattels; she is my house,/My household stuff, my field, my barn,/My horse, my ox, my ass, my anything./And here she stands, touch her whoever dare.” Act 3, Scene 2 (235-239)

In Shrew, Petruchio is a suitor from another land who arrives to purposefully tame and marry infamously untameable and always single Katharine. In this particular scene, Petruchio is announcing to a crowd the power that he has over Katharine, the woman who, as made clear to us, does not wish to marry him. Petruchio acts as if he deserves to own Katharine as both his wife and property. He demeans her by comparing her to objects and animals. He implies how obedient and inanimate she can be under his care. Here, Katharine is shown as something to be taught how to love because she is so “wild” she was previously incapable of doing so. The idea that a loud or rude woman is presented as an inanimate thing waiting to be taught love is sexist by nature.

The man in this scene is named Pat, and the woman Tiffany. They both have ambiguous mental illnesses and violent mood swings, and because of this they do not get along at first. But after meeting through a mutual friend and then establishing a complicated friendship, they manage to find some common ground through their honesty. Pat was imprisoned because he beat up a man that he caught his wife with. In this particular scene, he has recently been released a few days before and is out on a job when he runs into Tiffany. Here, he is explaining to Tiffany why it will work out when he meets up with his past wife, Nikki, again.

“Okay, yeah, we wanna change each other, but that's normal, couples wanna do that. I want her to stop dressing like she dresses, I want her to stop acting so superior to me, okay? And she wanted me to lose weight and stop my mood swings, which both I've done. I mean, people fight. Couples fight. We would fight, we wouldn't talk for a couple weeks. That's normal. She always wanted the best for me … our love's gonna be f---ing amazing.”

Pat acts as if he deserves to win back Nikki and that she should accept his advances, even after their separation was because of an explosion caused by his possession over her body. He sees Nikki as something that he must teach how to love. He implies she was incapable of loving him before he “improved” himself and vice versa. Though this may seem like a more egalitarian way of considering love (both partners must improve for the other), Pat still presents it as if the only reason they will ever be happy together in the future is because they both changed they way they looked/acted.

“Katharine the curst,/A title for a maid of all titles the worst.”

Act 1, Scene 2 (130-131)

In this particular scene, Grumio is speaking to Hortensio about Katharine, and how mad and difficult she actually is to handle. The implication that Katharine already had this nickname assigned to her in the past, since mentioning it is a point of humor. Katharine is obviously seen as a woman who does not fit the societal standards of female obedience, and therefore is labelled as “curst” and “the worst”. But we are shown later in the play that Katharine has always continued to act this way because of the contrast between her and her docile sister, Bianca. She even criticizes her father for not favoring her and instead giving Bianca all of the affection and good marriages. Katharine is a real person acting on real emotions, not a madwoman like she is made out to be.

In this scene, Tiffany has just finished opening up to Pat about her depressive sexual behavior after her husband died. Then, Pat is discussing the dinner they had with a mutual friend and whether his behavior there would impress Nikki if Nikki had been there. They are speaking about the opinion of the actual woman who held the dinner, Tiffany’s sister. Tiffany is telling Pat what her sister said about him.

“She said you were cool, but … you know.”

“No, I don’t know.”

“Sort of like, how you are … sort of like me.”

“Sort of like you? I hope to God she didn’t tell Nikki that.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s just not right. Lumping you and I together, I mean, it’s just wrong, and Nikki wouldn’t like that. Especially after all the sh-t you just told me.”

“You think I’m crazier than you.”

“Because … I mean, well, we’re different.”

Tiffany is shamed by Pat because Tiffany does not meet the societal standards for female sexual activity. Therefore, Pat treats her as if she is a mad person and unable to be seen as anything acceptable. This is especially true because the purpose of the conversation is for Pat to woo Nikki again, and he condemns Tiffany’s behavior as not something that would attract a partner. Again, we return to the standards set for single women who do not want to marry.

It is made clear that Tiffany is a real person acting on real emotions, not a madwoman like she is made out to be.

Pat is Petruchio and Tiffany is Katharine. Both Tiffany and Katharine are labelled as onry and untamed. Except in Playbook as opposed to Shrew, both Pat and Tiffany are tamed by each other instead of the man taming the woman on purpose. Pat makes that clear when he says, “The only way to beat my crazy was to do something even crazier. Thank you. I love you.” Still, there are underlying implications of Pat taming Tiffany by loving her, and by the end of both the movie and the book (Shrew), both women are passive. Both Tiffany and Katharine are shown as people who need to be loved, and then are taught how to love once it is obvious that they are “unable” to. These portrayals show us that society’s attitudes toward heteronormative courtship/dating are largely skewed. Women are not seen as equals in the relationship in relation to men. Instead, they are first seen as something to be edited in order to fit patriarchal expectations. The moment they express themselves, outspoken women are seen as something to be loved or taught how to be loved when they are incapable of doing so.

A Comparison of "The Taming of the Shrew" and "Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhunia"

The play “The Taming of the Shrew”, explores the complexities of love and how it can eventually turn into marriage based in the past. On the other hand, the hindi film Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania (Humpty Sharma’s Bride) takes a look at love and marriage in the 21st century. In the play and the movie, the parents have a huge say in the marriage part of their children’s love story. The parents in both stories wish to see their daughters secure financially. While there are similarities between the concerns the parents have about their daughters, the way that their concerns evolve and they come to a compromise throughout the stories are different.

In the play, Baptista is only concerned about the money that the suitors can offer his daughter. This idea doesn’t budge or change at all throughout the play. In the end, he’s happy that both his daughters were able to get married to such rich men and doesn’t really ask for much else. In the movie, Kavya’s (Humpty’s lover) father is unaccepting of Humpty’s financial situation. However, after getting to know Humpty and who he is, he changed his mind. These stories reflect that while fathers can still be concerned about financial security in marriage for their daughters, today they are more flexible and willing to accept marriage from a suitor with a good heart and personality.

“Faith, gentlemen, now I play a merchant’s part;

And venture madly on a desperate mart.”

(Act II, Scene i, 345-346)

In the quote, Baptista is referring to himself as a merchant. It’s almost as if his daughter’s marriage means he’s selling her, like a merchant would sell his goods in a marketplace. By this point in “Taming of the Shrew”, Petruchio convinced Baptista that his daughter has agreed to marry him and that they will be married by Sunday. Baptista is very happy. What else could he ask for? Petruchio had everything he wants which consists of money, money and even more money. By playing merchant and essentially “selling” his daughter, Baptista can rest assured that there will be plenty of money involved in this marriage.

In the film, Kavya’s father, Mr.Singh, finds himself in a dilemma. Her daughter loves Humpty, who doesn’t have much to amount for financially. However, her marriage is already fixed with a man who is the perfect match in his opinion. Mr.Singh tries to immediately break Kavya and Humpty’s relationship, but seeing his daughter’s persistence he gives Humpty a chance.  

The conditions are simple. Humpty has to find just one reason why Kavya’s shouldn’t marry her fiance. This shows that even from the start, Kavya’s father is measuring Humpty on his brains and wit, not just his bank account. He wants to put Humpty in his shoes

“Fear not, Baptista, we will content you.”

(Act V, Scene ii, 139-140)

During this scene, Baptista finds out that Cambio is actually Lucentio. At first, he is completely outraged. He sternly asks why Lucentio married his daughter without his blessing. Vincentio comforts him, by promising that Baptista will be content with what Lucentio will be able to offer. Everyone in this time period knows that a father wants nothing more than a financially stable husband for his daughter. Vincentio understands and can promise money to Baptista, who’s now worried about this new identity reveal. After the promise, Baptista quickly forgives Lucentio for his trickery. Even though he knows nothing about Lucentio other than his finances, Baptista doesn’t mind his daughter’s marriage with him anymore and doesn’t ask any questions.

By the end of the film, Humpty realizes that there’s nothing wrong with Kavya’s fiance. In fact, he’s an amazing guy. However, there was no guarantee that the perfect suitor would make his daughter the happiest. He tells Mr.Singh that people weren’t created to be perfect. It is the strength and love of a relationship that helps make two people perfect. Still, Mr.Singh is not fully convinced. Kavya’s wedding with Angad proceeds.

It took his daughter to give Mr.Singh the final push towards acceptance. She doesn’t beg, just simply speaks her heart. Humpty and Kavya love each other very much and would figure the rest out. Humpty reminds Mr.Singh of himself as a young man. Once a simple mechanic when he met his wife and now a successful businessman. Soon enough Mr.Singh realizes that Humpty is the one for his daughter. Humpty is smart, sweet, humble and everything that one could ask for in a partner. Mr.Singh happily gets his daughter married to Humpty.

The simple fact that Mr.Singh gets his daughter married to Humpty even though his financial situation does not change throughout the movie shows reinforces the idea that the 21st century dad understands that there’s more than money to happiness to a marriage. Though initially Kavya’s dad doesn’t approve, he takes the time to listen to his daughter and her feelings. Per her request, he gets to know Humpty and eventually changes his mind. It’s all about what his daughter wishes for, finds happiness in and loves. By the end of the movie, everyone is ecstatic. Kavya gets Humpty, her father’s blessing and a fun filled wedding!