Desiring the Perfect Marriage

The Taming of the Shrew and Gone Girl

In The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare uses Petruchio to show how a husband could "train" his undesirable wife to be something he would seem fit through his actions with Katherine. By “training” her, Petruchio is able to put Katherine into submission by suppressing her free will and her former unpleasant self. David Fincher's Gone Girl takes a similar approach to marital manipulation through Amy. In the story, she would constantly manipulate Nick's emotions to the extremes as a consequence of him cheating on her with Andie by framing him of a crime he initially has no idea of.

In both The Taming of the Shrew and Gone Girl, marriage would revolve around control and infatuation rather than the actual love between two people. In The Taming of the Shrew, Petruchio would rather change Katherine rather than love her for who she is and in Gone Girl, Nick would get emotionally manipulated by Amy while having to come to terms that she is not the person he initially thought she was. Although deception is still prevalent in marriages, the thought of romantic love is maintained through the perception one has for another, which is infatuation. However, unlike The Taming of the Shrew, besides the swap in gender when it comes to who is in control of the relationship, even though Amy is the one in the marriage who is orchestrating Nick's life against his will, she desires a Nick who is not necessarily his real self. From that, this shows that when it comes to marriage today compared to back then, women can be deceptive as men in relationships and in love while being able to choose the men they want to have.

"Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,

Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,

And for thy maintenance commits his body

To painful labor both by sea and land,

To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,

Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,

And craves no other tribute at thy hands

But love, fair looks and true obedience—

Too little payment for so great a debt.

Such duty as the subject owes the prince,

Even such a woman oweth to her husband."

- Katherine (Act V Scene 2 lines 155-165).

This is noted by Katherine at the end of the play when her husband bets that she would be the most obedient wife compared to Bianca and the widow. After experiencing the torment Petruchio would put her through such as not letting her sleep at night or not allow her to obtain a dress she ends up liking, Katherine has no other choice but to submit to her husband. This is evident to the reader when she states, “Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper, Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee.” By referring to him with terms such as “lord”, “keeper”, and “head”, she submits to Petruchio’s dominance over her will in their marriage by the end of the story. With the choice to have no one else to love her or have a man who would destroy her former self, there is no doubt that Katherine will choose the latter when it comes to being with the only man she could ever have, not because her actual self would be loved by that man.    

Like Katherine, in this situation, Nick has no choice but to submit to Amy’s pressure. This scene is where Nick announces on national television that he and Amy will be having a child. When he states, “We’re honest with each other,” it tells the audience that their marriage mainly consists of lies since they have been deceiving each other and have been dishonest to each other the entire movie, but Nick has no choice but to lie. Throughout the movie of Gone Girl, Amy deceives Nick into getting caught for committing a crime he initially has no intentions of perpetrating. As for Nick, with the accusations of how horrible of a person he is for cheating on his wife and how he might be the culprit for the alleged death of Amy, Nick cannot do anything else or express himself. Due to that pressure, he has to pretend to the masses that he and Amy are a happy couple. Amy, unlike Katherine, does not have to worry about her husband leaving him since she is the one in control of the marriage.  

"Look, if you love me, stay."- Katherine

(Act III Scene 2 line 176)

"Grumio, my horse."- Petruchio

(Act III Scene 2 line 177)

The quotes that are stated by Katherine and Petruchio occur during their wedding. In this scene, Katherine wants to stay at the wedding while Petruchio wants to leave. When Petruchio refuses to stay despite Katherine claiming that he is in love with her if he chooses to stay, it shows that Petruchio does not love Katherine for who she actually is. He does not care about what Katherine wants and would commit to actions that would harm her for her “own” sake. As a result of taking Katherine along with him even though she wants to stay, Petruchio proves how he would manipulate her into committing to matters she would not initially oblige to.

In this scene, Amy tells the audience her thoughts of the murder and her plans to ruin Nick. This is reminiscent to Petruchio manipulating Katherine to coercing to things she does not want since in Gone Girl, Nick does not want to be framed for murder and Amy knows this to be the case but she still orchestrates it to get Nick arrested. However, unlike The Taming of the Shrew, Amy deceives Nick to get revenge on him for cheating on her, not necessarily to make him a better person like what ends up happening in Katherine’s case. When Amy states, “He actually expected me to love him unconditionally,” the audience could see how Amy has Nick fooled to believing that and how she would not actually love him unconditionally despite being married to him. This can explain why she is willing to have revenge on him and why she is willing to hurt him: she does not love his actual self.

“You lie, in faith, for you are called plain Kate,

And bonny Kate, and sometimes Kate the curst,

But Kate, the prettiest Kate in Christendom,

Kate of Kate Hall, my super-dainty Kate—

For dainties are all Kates—and therefore, Kate,

Take this of me, Kate of my consolation:

Hearing thy mildness praised in every town,

Thy virtues spoke of, and thy beauty sounded—

Yet not so deeply as to thee belongs—

Myself am moved to woo thee for my wife.”

- Petruchio (Act II Scene 1 lines 179-189)

During Katherine’s first encounter with Petruchio, Petruchio claims that people refer to her as Kate, not Katherine despite her denial. In addition to denying her words as true when she states that people call her by the name of Katherine instead of Kate, Petruchio compliments to her in outlandish ways like calling her “bonny Kate”, “the prettiest Kate in Christendom”, and the “dainties are all Kates”. Despite it being the first time where he actually talks to her, it is clear that Petruchio idealizes Katherine rather than trying to understand her true self because if he is actually in love with Katherine, he would have trusted her when she states that people call her Katherine rather than pushing it aside as a lie. To add up to his idealization of her, without any thoughts or incentives to understand her, it shows how Katherine as a person is no valuable to Petruchio compared to his desire to marry her. Although it could be argued that Katherine is actually value to him since he is willing to marry a person who has a bad and undesirable reputation in the story, if he is truly in love with Katherine, he should try to get to know the person he is marrying instead of fantasizing about her while not trusting what she says.   

Similar to Petruchio, Amy ends up falling in love with Nick’s persona on television, not Nick himself. After coming back from hiding, Amy only realizes that Nick is not the person from his persona on television and that he wants her back so he would not be seen as a murderer in the masses, not that he actually has any affection towards her. This leads to her being somewhat different from Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew because although she has been manipulating Nick to the point where Nick has to be desirable to her to get her back to him similar to how Petruchio tries to manipulate Katherine to winning her affection, she has known what Nick can actually be like as a person due to her long marriage with him. In addition to knowing that Nick is not as desirable as she has wanted to believe prior to her life with him, she knows that Nick has been hiding his affair with Andie from her and has tried to lie about it on TV. Despite knowing Nick as an actual person, his past, and how dishonest he can be, she ends up getting fooled anyway when she comes back to Nick solely because of her idealization of him on TV.

In a lot of ways, characteristics in marriages back then are still around today like manipulation, conceit, and idealization. With many changes to societal norms such as women being given more opportunities now than ever before, this can be surprising to those who have expected society to be a lot different than before. Although there is no doubt that times have changed long after Shakespeare’s times, now that women have more marital rights, women like Amy can potentially be Petruchio when it comes to maintaining traditional characteristics of what marriage has always been. This changes how people see courtship today since with Amy actually being the one taking control of her marriage with Nick instead of the victim of that abuse, people can no longer assume that Amy is the damsel in distress while Nick is the villain without ignoring the implications that can have to victims of domestic abuse like Nick. Overall, to leave on a final note, when Nick tells Amy, “Yes, I loved you and then all we did was resent each other, try to control each other. We caused each other pain,” Amy replies, “That's marriage.”

Works Cited

“The Taming of the Shrew.” SparkNotes, SparkNotes,

nfs.sparknotes.com/shrew/page_246.html.

Milchan, Arnon, et al. Gone Girl. Twentieth Century Fox, 2014.

“The Taming of the Shrew.” SparkNotes, SparkNotes,

nfs.sparknotes.com/shrew/page_138.html.

“The Taming of the Shrew.” SparkNotes, SparkNotes,

nfs.sparknotes.com/shrew/page_90.html.

Bianca: Gamut I am the ground of all accord:

[A re] to plead Hortensios passion;

[B mi] Bianca, take him for thy lord,

[C fa ut,] that loves with all affection;

(Act 3, Scene 2, Line 77 - 80)

Bianca: Unbind my hands, I'll pull them off myself,...Or what you will command me will I do, So well I know my duty to my elders.

Katherine: Of all thy suitors here I charge thee tell. Whom thou lov'st best. See thou dissemble not.

Bianca: If you affect him, sister, here I swear. I'll plead for you myself, but you shall have him.

(Act 2, Scene 11, Line 4 - 15)

In the "The Taming of the Shrew" by William Shakespeare, the characters Petruchio and Katherine were a couple who faced lots of complications before they fell in love. In the movie "Notting Hill”, William and Anna were a couple who fell in love too, despite all of their complications, even though Anna was an actress and William was just a bookstore clerk. Anna sacrificed her paraded life to be with him. In both the play and the movie, there were two separate lives, but William and Anna were in love when they first meet. Compared to Petruchio and Katherine, who weren't in love when they met. Petruchio forced Katherine to get married. In the end, Katherine falls in love with Petruchio and made sacrifices, just as Anna did, but Petruchio’s disregard for her feelings meaning their love is not genuine. These texts reflect that if one person truly loves another person, then he or she will overcome challenges and make sacrifices to make the other happy.

In the movie “Notting Hill” audiences are introduced to two characters William Thacker and Anna Scott. The couple has it rocky start from the beginning. But one thing that brought the couple closer was their first date. Anna and William plans for their first date was sure to be romantic but seconds before the plan was cemented William remembers he had plans for his sister birthday. Anna asks her assistant to move around her actoral duty to be able to attend a dinner at the home of William’s best friend and ex-lover. Anna had to sacrifices the normal comfort and quantity of a date she is used to. Anna is used to dating big time film and television actors who take her on expensive dates around people who are also famous. She didn’t have to deal with people’s alarm in the past but because now she was dining with locals she must handle the extra attention they pay to her despite her discomfort. William is very comfortable at the party dealing with his best friends and the games that they play. If Anna wasn’t ready to sacrificed her normal comfortability in a date she would have never loved William for himself in all forms. She would have never have gotten to know “floppy” (High school nickname of William). She would have only ever know William.

“No shame but mine. I must, forsooth, be forced To give my hand, opposed against my heart”

(Act iii, Scene i, 8-9)

In this scene, Katherine says she doesn’t want to marry Petruchio. Since she is not in love with him. Petruchio has to force Katherine to love him, as well as marry him. Initially, Katharine is not content with the fact that she must marry. She had to be persuaded to marry a man she didn’t love, this shows societies view on male ideas on courtship and/or dating. At the beginning of the play, Katherine said it will be a shame for her to be with someone who she does not love but by the end of the play, she gives up on this concept. Initially Katherine believes that her hand in marriage should only belong to someone to whom she can also give her heart. Katherine struggles to get over the fact that she is not truly in love with Petruchio, while Petruchio is ready to marry Katherine knowing he wasn’t in love with her. He is ready to marry her for the challenges that it will bring forth. Her idea of courtship is that it should be mutual consent. However, by the end of the play, she accepts that in her situation, Petruchio’s desire to be with her gives her no opinion in the matter. His idea of courtship is that it should on the men desire for a women.Since Katherine’s ideas on courtship and marriage have not been satisfied, she and Petruchio cannot be in love.

In the play “The Taming of the Shrew” by William Shakespeare and in the movie “Notting Hill”, each of the characters make critical sacrifices and take on challenges in the name of true love. However, whether or not the love is authentic depends on the character’s actions and intentions. William and Anna are genuine with each other and sacrifice for each other.  In their relationship all they want is to make each other happy. Petruchio does not sacrifice for Katherine, only Katherine does giving up her independence. Her intention is to make him happy by being loyal to him, Petruchio’s intentions are not to take care of Katherine and her happiness, but to tame her. Petruchio marries Katherine despite her protest to gain her dowry. Therefore, only couples who truly love each other seek to make the other happy without self-interest.

Work cited

Shakespeare, William, and D. J. Donovan. The Taming of the Shrew: Shakespeare. W. B. Clive, University Tutorial Press, 1929.

Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew shows how love can be perceived in many ways and how it may conflict with a character's state of mind. The root of love stems many questions within itself, and can be very hard to boil down to one sole ideal. Because of this, people who may believe themselves to be in love can find themselves questioning this fact and second guessing their feelings. This idea is seen throughout Dennis Dugan's Just Go With It. 

Comparing “She’s All That” and “The Taming of the Shrew”

In William Shakespeare’s play "The Taming of the Shrew", relationships are only seen as a status symbol and possessions. Suitor Petruchio only wants to be with Katherine to prove his manliness and assert dominance. He cares more about having her as a possession and gaining status in Padua more than he cares about her as an actual person. He wants the money and glory that comes with marrying Katherine, he has no interest in actually loving her.

In the cult classic “She’s All That”, Zack Siler’s girlfriend Taylor Vaughn breaks up with him after coming back from Daytona Beach from Spring Break. Taylor is dating a reality television star, Brock Hudson and tells Zack that she can’t be with him anymore. Zack, fearful of losing his status as popular and wanting to prove that he’s still “top dog”, agrees to a seemingly impossible bet to turn any girl popular due to the association. He accepts a challenge from his shady friend Dean to get the “scary and inaccessible” outcast Laney Boggs to fall for him and become the school’s prom queen.

These texts reflect the timeless theme that both men and women use their relationships as a way to maintain or improve social status. Whether if it’s for proving their machismo to their peers or trying to earn notoriety and wealth, people will use their significant others as a stepping stone to get what they really want; a higher position in society.

PETRUCHIO: "And therefore, if thou know

One rich enough to be Petruchio’s wife,

As wealth is a burden of my wooing dance,

Be she as foul as was Florentius' love,

As old as Sibyl and as curst and shrewd

As Socrates' Xanthippe, or a worse,

She moves me not, or not removes at least

Affection’s edge in me, were she as rough

As are the swelling Adriatic seas.

I come to wive it wealthily in Padua;

If wealthily, then happily in Padua."

(Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 51-62 )

This quote is said shortly after Petruchio arrives in Padua from his town Verona. He tells his friend Hortensio that he has come to Padua in search of a wife who is wealthy. He is then pointed in the direction of Katherine. He is warned about her unattractive attitude but decides to brush it off. He doesn’t care that she’s a shrew, he’s just in it for money. This passage of text reveals Petruchio’s true intentions. He doesn’t need to marry someone he actually loves or someone who is gorgeous. He wants to marry someone who is rich because he wants to enjoy the same luxury since worrying about money is a burden for him. He wants to marry someone for the status that comes with it.

In the film, “She’s All That” mean girl Taylor Vaughn also uses relationships as a way to gain notoriety and to improve her status.

In this scene of the film, Taylor is explaining to Zach why she has to break up with him. She explains that when she went to Daytona Beach over spring break she ended up meeting reality television star Brock Hudson and claimed that they were “meant to be”. Although Brock isn’t that handsome or intelligent, the audience realizes that Taylor wants to be with him because he has a higher position in society, being a celebrity. However, Taylor is still concerned with maintaining her hierarchy in school so she tells Zach that they should still go to prom together because it’s only right that the two most popular people will be crowned king and queen. Similar to Petruchio, Taylor wants to live a luxurious lifestyle and achieves that by entering relationships with those who have a higher rank. She doesn’t care about Brock’s looks or intellect. Her main concern is his social status.

PETRUCHIO: “And therefore [for] assurance, let’s each one send unto his wife, and he whose wife is most obedient to come at first when he doth send for her shall win the wager which we will propose."

(Act 5, Scene 2, Lines 67-69)

During Bianca’s wedding, Baptista, Lucentio, and Hortensio are all teasing Petruchio about having a shrew for a wife. In order to prove them wrong, Petruchio comes up with a wager that whoever’s wife comes when she is called, will win twenty crowns. Hortensio and Lucentio accept this bet because they know Kate’s personality and that she is very headstrong. They believe that there is no way that she will come once she is called. Petruchio does this a way to not only assert his dominance over Katherine but to prove his machismo to his friends. He wants them to know that when it comes to manliness, he holds a higher status over them because of his ability to manipulate women and to be able to tame Katherine. He wants to prove his hierarchy over his male companions.

Popular jock Zach Siler agrees to a bet as a way to prove his machismo to his friends as well.

This scene of the film occurs after Taylor has publicly broken up with Zach. The audience can see that Zach is trying to keep his masculinity intact, by saying “There are over 2,000 girls in this school and I can bump uglies with every one of them.” Dean (Zach’s friend) decides to use this opportunity to present a bet. Zach has 6 weeks to get any girl of Dean’s choosing to fall in love with him and turn her into the prom queen. Zach agrees as a way to prove his manliness to Dean. Similar to how Petruchio’s actions were able to “tame” Katherine, Zach has the ability to manipulate women so that they will conform to his standards and he can improve what he truly cares about; his status and his hierarchy over others. Zach wants to do this because he wants to maintain his popularity after being publicly disgraced by Taylor.

Petruchio:

“Why came I hither but to that intent?

Think you a little din can daunt mine ears?

Have I not in my time heard lions roar?

Have I not heard the sea, puffed up with winds,

Rage like an angry boar chafèd with sweat?

Have I not heard great ordnance in the field,

And heaven’s artillery thunder in the skies?”

(Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 170-176)

In this scene of “Shrew,” Petruchio has just told Gremio that he knows of Katherine and that he knows of her scolding and harsh demeanor, yet that won’t stop him from pursuing her. The reader can see that he isn’t phased by her because he has been in difficult situations before, so handling a woman like Katherine is the least of his worries. This allows the readers to see that proving his manliness is all that matters to Petruchio. He wants the status that comes along with “taming” a woman like Katherine. When he proves his manliness, it makes him feel higher than others.

In the film, Dean Sampson decides to insert himself into the bet as a way to gain notoriety as well and to prove his manliness over Zach. He thinks he can do this by trying to sleep with Laney before he does.

In this scene of the film, the audience witnesses a dispute between Zach and Dean after their team loses a soccer game. Dean says that Zach hasn’t been on his game because he hasn’t “gotten any action lately”. It is then revealed to the audience that Dean is tired of watching Zach walking around school like a god, receiving all of the fame and glory for managing to form a relationship with the newly popular Laney. He wants to change the conditions of the bet and decides to put himself in the running as a way to sabotage Zach. He also does it because he is tired of being in Zach’s shadow and wants to prove that he is just as good as Zach and worthy of being more popular. Dean believes that once he enters a relationship with Laney and manages to sleep with her, it will help improve his social status and knock Zach off his high horse. Just like Petruchio, Dean wants to be known as the guy who “tamed the Shrew” (hooked up with Laney first) as a way to prove his machismo and to gain a higher position over Zach.

Humans have always felt the need to compete with each other, which is why they have to prove that they are higher not only in historical periods but in modern society as well.  In “The Taming of the Shrew”, Petruchio only wanted a relationship with Katherine for money and as a way to prove his machismo and his “shrew taming” abilities. He did it to earn notoriety and hierarchy over his male counterparts. In the film “She’s All That”, the characters Zach, Taylor, and Dean all seem to play the role of Petruchio and use people as a way to improve their social status or to prove their rank over those around them.The text and film both show us that relationships are built on what you can provide for the other person. People won’t enter a relationship unless it is beneficial to them.

Works Cited:

She’s All That. Dir. Robert Iscove. Miramax, 1999. SolarMovie. Web. 13 April 2018.

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. William Shakespeare, 1770.

A Comparison of “The Taming of A Shrew” to “The Parent Trap, 1998”

All throughout “The Taming of the Shrew,” The scholar Lucentio uses a falsified identity in order to woo the beloved Bianca without her father’s interference. Several others characters of the play also change their name and status to either support Lucentio’s ruse or woo Bianca themselves. Although Lucentio lied to the others about his identity at first, he immediately told Bianca upon their first meeting, which resulted in successful courtship. Similarly, in the 1998 film “The Parent Trap,” reunited twin sisters Hallie and Annie, who have been unaware of each others' existence due to their divorced parents separating them since infancy, also switch identities secretly, but in order to meet the other parent for the first time. They also plan to use the switch in order to get their parents to meet face-to-face and fall in love, so they can be a family again. However, there is another more malignant false identity in this movie. When the twins’ father reveals that he wants to marry the gold digger and child-despiser Meredith, the girls must also work together to reveal her true identity to her fiancé. This play and movie reflect that although it was easy for audiences to accept that lying to win one's hand in Shakespeare's time was okay, by the time “The Parent Trap” came out in theaters, it became less effective in winning someone's heart.

"Love wrought these miracles. Bianca’s love

Made me exchange my state with Tranio,

While he did bear my countenance in the town,

And happily I have arrivèd at the last

Unto the wishèd haven of my bliss.

What Tranio did, myself enforced him to.

Then pardon him, sweet father, for my sake."

(Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 127 - 133)

At this time in the play, Lucentio is apologizing to his father and Bianca’s father for marrying Bianca without his consent, in addition to explaining why Tranio had lied that Vincentio was a fake in order to preserve Lucentio and the Merchant’s fake cover stories. He stated that all his actions; dressing up as a schoolmaster, charging Tranio to pretend to be him, wooing Bianca without her family knowing, setting up a fake Vincentio to ensure that the Minola family would receive a dowry, and more was all in the name of love. This argument somehow meant his logic was irrefutably justified. The extreme reasoning for almost having his father sent to jail and ditching the education his father was paying for was naturally acceptable 430 years ago. Although Lucentio lied a lot in order to win Bianca’s hand, this play was written so the reader would perceive his reasoning as not only simple, but correct.

On the other hand, “The Parent Trap” makes a big deal out of making it obvious to the audience that pretending to be someone you’re not doesn’t usually work out for you. The movie looks down on the character Meredith Blake, as she is only marrying Nick Parker for his money and is not actually in love with him. This intention is confirmed in a scene where Meredith tells her father to behave because, “He’s everything you ever wanted for your little girl, plus millions more.” This sentence insinuated that Meredith is only interested in Nick for the millions he has.

Towards the end of the movie, Hallie and Annie have resorted to playing a series of pranks on Meredith in order to basically make her life miserable. The last trick that they played on Meredith was to drag her blow up mattress into the lake to float there all night. When she woke up the next morning, she was in the middle of the lake, confused and angry. When she managed to drag herself out of the water, she explained that once Nick and her were married, the twins would be sent off to Switzerland. She furiously demanded that Nick choose between the twins or her. This demand alerted Nick to her true nature, and he chose his daughters. Meredith threw her engagement ring at him and left town. This movie tells the audience that lying about your true nature to your partner isn’t the best choice in a relationship and that it will often go wrong for you as it did for Meredith.

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

to! But I will be revenged for this villainy.”

(Act 5, Scene 1, Lines 138 and 139)

These two lines in Act 5 are spoken by Vincentio to Baptista, Bianca’s father when he finds out about Tranio and Lucentio’s plan to woo Bianca in disguise. He felt anger at Tranio because not moments before, in order to maintain cover on Lucentio himself, he called Vincentio fake and demanded that he be taken to jail. Thankfully, Lucentio came back in time to stop them, and the ruse was uncovered. This part of the play is one of the times when lying is not acceptable in the eyes of the play: when you are lying to those who employ you. In this play, any time one is lied to or does something wrong in the eyes of their superior, there is often major consequences on the servant. Vincentio did not take kindly to how Tranio lied to him and tried to sent him to jail, but there were often other times when the master Petruchio, husband of Katherine, sister of Bianca, rained down fury on his servants those employed to him, or those he sees as inferior when they lied to him. These actions suggest that although it is okay to lie to loved ones, it is absolutely unacceptable to betray your master or employer in the eyes of the play and most likely in the 1600s as well.

In “The Parent Trap,” there are literally no instances of when servants of the main characters are mistreated or punished during the entire movie. In fact, both servants in the movie, Chessy and Martin, are seen as close family friends that simply also work for the family, which is not the case at all in “The Taming of the Shrew.”

Elizabeth James had brought Hallie to the hotel where Nick, Meredith, and Annie were at in order to switch her back with Annie. Hallie had lied to Liz, saying that Nick knew they were coming to the hotel, when in fact he still didn’t know that the daughter he had was not Hallie. Liz and Nick catch sight of each other in the lobby as the elevators close before Nick. Liz realized that Nick had no idea she was coming, and reprimands the girls for lying to her. However, when she find out that Nick is marrying Meredith, and that everyone knew but her, she simply lets it go that the people that work for her lied to her about it. The movie seems to minimize the consequences of lying to those you are demanded to respect and honor as the Shakespeare play illustrates. Simply put, the play is validates lying to loved ones, but not to those superior to you. On the other hand, the movie is not validating lying to loved ones, but that when someone who works for you lies to you, as long as they have a great excuse or reason for it, there is no need for a large punishment.

“I come to wive it wealthily in Padua;

If wealthily, then happily in Padua.”

(Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 76 and 77)

This quote is when Petruchio, Katherine’s future husband, agrees to Gremio’s plans to have him marry Katherine only because she is wealthy, and not because he loves her or that she has a good temperament. Later in the story, we see that Petruchio uses many methods to tame Kate’s wild nature, all of which are forgiven and seen in a positive light by the end of the story, even though it is never clear whether or not they actually really love each other by the end of it all, or even if this matters. This reflects for the characters and the setting that in this time, money was actually an acceptable reason to marry someone, and they did not actually have to love you. In addition, since this play was looking at this behavior so positively, it can be inferred that the audience of this time was more agreeable to this behavior then as well. Such was the 1600s.

Contrasting Petruchio’s relationship with Katherine in “The Taming of the Shrew,” to Nick and Meredith in “The Parent Trap,” both relationships were quite similar. Both Petruchio and Meredith seemed well off, but were still only marrying each of their fiance's for money. In addition, both Nick and Katherine were wealthy as well. However, the play and the movie views Petruchio and Meredith in completely different ways. In the play, he is seen as the good guy, the beast tamer, who makes his wife obedient properly. In the movie, Meredith marrying Nick is a secret she keeps from him, and is looked down upon by the twins and Nick himself towards the end of the movie.

When Annie first arrives in Napa, she finds out about Meredith Blake, a publicist Nick hired to sell his wine. However, Chessy, Nick’s housekeeper, chef, and family friend speculates that Meredith is, “doing a better job at selling herself than the grapes,” because she is suspicious of why someone as young and beautiful as Meredith is hanging around an older, less in his prime man like Nick. She then stated, “then I realized there were about a million reasons that girl is giggling. All of them are at the Napa Valley Community Bank.” The movie is saying that the only reason someone of Meredith’s social level will go out with someone like Nick is because of their money or financial potential. Throughout the entire movie, this is seen as wrong. Therefore, Meredith is portrayed as the antagonist of the movie. This change reflects that modern entertainment is less open to gold diggers as the good guys, unlike 400 years ago. They paint them as shallow, manipulative, and evil. In this story, she does not marry Nick because as soon as he finds out her true nature, he dumps her. Modern entertainment trends toward lying to your partner of loved one as a very bad thing.

As we moved through each the play and the movie, we saw very similar relationships developing between each of the couples mentioned in both texts. However, the way that each author portrays their relationship is very different. Shakespeare was more open to marrying for love and not really caring if they lie to you, but looked down on insubordination. Disney, however, fiercely fought against marrying for money and a lying spouse, but were particularly lenient towards those who worked for them. Once again, these were very similar relationships, but viewed in opposing lights. The way Shakespeare wrote Petruchio suggested that it was more acceptable then to marry for money only, and that the rift between servant and master was much deeper then than now. The way Disney wrote Meredith suggested that marrying for love instead of money was better and more morally okay. Servant and master lines barely existed, and were looked down upon through the way that Meredith treated Chessy throughout the movie. To sum it all up, 400 years ago, lying to win someone’s heart had more chance of success then than in the modern era.

Tai-Monae Bailey

Air Stream

04/13/2018

Honesty and deception in relationships

Cruel Intentions- directed by Roger Kumble is a movie about romance, honesty, and deception at its finest. Briefly summarizing the movie, it's about two step-siblings who enjoy  plotting and scheming on other people's lives just for the fun of it. Sebastian and his step-sister Kathryn devise a plan to hurt Kansas city Resident Annette Hargrove whose morals differentiate from Sebastian and Kathryns. Annette wants to stay a virgin until marriage and Sebastian and Kathryn bet that he will or will not be able to break the morals of Annette slowly but surely to win the ultimate prize of having intercourse with his very own stepsister. Comparing Cruel Intentions to Taming of the Shrew which is about two siblings- Bianca and Katherina who both need to be married but Bianca feels the need to marry first. Throughout the book, Katherina is verbally abused but her two suitors but only solemnly loves her servant.  Both the play and movie, show that siblings negatively affect each others relationships & views on real love because they aren't able to experience it themselves, which is why they act out and perform ploys  & stratagems.

Act 2, Scene 1

Bianca ¨Good sister, wrong me not, nor wrong yourself, to make  a bondmaid and a slave of me. That I disdain. But for these other goods-- Unbind my hands, I´ll pull them off myself. Yea, all my raiment to my petticoat, Or what you will command me will I do, So well I know my duty to my elders.¨

Katherine ¨Of all thy suitors here I charge thee tell, Whom thou lov´st best. See thou dissemble not.¨

Bianca ¨ Believe me, sister, of all the men alive I never yet beheld that special face Which I could fancy more than any other. ¨

Katherine ¨ Minion, thou liest. Is ´t not Hortensio?¨

Bianca ¨If you affect him, sister, here I swear I'll plead for you myself, but you shall have him¨

Katherine ¨ O, then belike you fancy riches more. You will have Gremio to keep you fair.¨

Bianca ¨ Is it for him you do envy me so? Nay, than, you jest, and now I well perceive You have but jested with me all this while. I prithee,sister Kate, untie my hands¨

*Katherine strikers Bianca*

In this scene Katherine ties up Bianca. She threatens her, hits her and attempts to make her do things because she´s ultimately jealous of her. Kathrine is jealous because men don't find her appealing but are head over heels for Bianca who is ultimately happy with life and grateful with the people who are affectionate of her.  I can compare this to the scene in Cruel Intentions because Kathryn saw how happy Sebastian was and how unbothered he was with the fact that he had major feelings for Annette so she took it upon herself to do something that would ruin that out of jealousy. Readers can see that Katherine wants Bianca´s life from personality, suitors and her fathers love.

Monolonge-

Kathryn :  ¨Ronald ?¨

Ronald : ¨Whats up ? Is everything okay ?¨

Kathryn : ¨No its Sebastian, He's out of his mind.¨

Ronald : ¨What do you mean ?

Kathryn : ¨He hit me and then took off…  There's more, it involves Cecile¨

*Two Scenes, first two pictures is Kathryn & Ronald talking & second picture is Sebastian forcefully coming clean to Annette*

Monolonge-

Sebastian : ¨I have something to tell you¨

Annette :  ¨What is it ?¨

Sebastian : ¨This isnt working out for me anymore… It's me not you . Im completely fu*ked up.¨

Annette: ¨What are you saying ?¨

Sebastian :  ¨ I thought I was in love with you but it's just a lie.. I wanted it to work but I feel nothing¨

Annette: ¨ Why are you doing this ?¨

Sebastian : ¨ I just wanted to see what you were like in bed¨ -lies-

In this scene from Cruel Intentions, Kathryn came to a realization that Sebastian was falling in love with Annette and completely obliterating the bet they had in place. She called Ronald- another innocent person muddled into their bet, lying and making up stories about Sebastian and Ronald´s significant other, knowing how Ronald would react.Kathryn lives for ruining peoples lives and dallying with their happiness. So she made a few calls and sabotaged Sebastian´s relationship with Annette by making it known about their little speculation that was made in the beginning of the movie. I can compare this to the scene in Taming of the Shrew because both Katherine and Kathryn can´t stand to see each other siblings happy. They both have the same characteristics which include jealousy, supremacy and  insecurity. Viewers can see that Kathryn does not like the nonchalance attitude that Sebastian possessed,when she realizes that the bet is meaningless to him; she wants him to care and react and show interest in her since before Sebastian knew Annette genuinely he would devote his time and attention all to Kathryn. All that change when he fell for Annette slowly than all at once. Lastly When Kathrine ties up her sister and is pressuring her to give her all her suitors and do this and do that it also relates to Cruel Intentions because In that moment Sebastian had no other choice but to come clean about the bet and be honest about the relationship he has with his stepsister, which changed over time when he started caring for Annette. Both Kathryn and Katherine blackmail their siblings in different ways.

Act 5 : Scene 2

Kathryn : Fie, fie! Unknit that threat’ning unkind brow,

And dart not scornful glances from those eyes

To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor.

It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,155

Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,

And in no sense is meet or amiable.

A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,

Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty,

And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty 160

Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.

Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,

Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,

And for thy maintenance commits his body

To painful labor both by sea and land, 165

To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,

Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,

And craves no other tribute at thy hands

But love, fair looks, and true obedience—

Too little payment for so great a debt. 170

Such duty as the subject owes the prince,

Even such a woman oweth to her husband;

And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,

And not obedient to his honest will,

What is she but a foul contending rebel 175

And graceless traitor to her loving lord?

I am ashamed that women are so simple

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.180

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?

Come, come, you froward and unable worms!185

My mind hath been as big as one of yours,

My heart as great, my reason haply more,

To bandy word for word and frown for frown;

But now I see our lances are but straws,

Our strength as weak, our weakness past compare, 190

That seeming to be most which we indeed least are.

Then vail your stomachs, for it is no boot,

And place your hands below your husband’s foot;

In token of which duty, if he please,

My hand is ready, may it do him ease

In this scene from Taming of the Shrew, Katherine finally lets go of all her emotions and anger that she's been holding on to and just speaks what is truly on her mind. She stops fighting everyone else and basically tells them what they want to hear. Readers can see that  Katherine is actually very genuine and loving under that alleged crazy shell everyone sees and knows of. They can see that someone like the author labeled her as in the beginning is capable of love. And that she was jealous of her sister (Bianca) because she just wanted love and to feel and have the same experiences as she did. I can compare this scene to the scene in Cruel Intentions because at the end of the book and movie both Katherine and Kathryn finally let go and let things be. They accept their predicament and stop running from it.

No monolonge

In this scene, after Sebastian passes away he and all the other victims of Kathryns games help expose her true self by giving copies of Sebastian's journal to the entire school and faculty. Which include every interaction and conversation he had with every person he came in contact with. Kathryn is finally exposed but this scene isn't about just that but finally she reached her breaking point and her cry for help has been heard. Throughout the book Kathryn has been doing cocaine not because she wanted to but because she needed to she relied on it so she wouldn't feel how she really felt. Viewers can see that, Kathryn will finally become sober and face her real world problems instead of hiding behind chemical messenger dopamine. Lastly she will take the advice of her parents and finally let go of all that anger and just be her true self and accepting it. I can compare this scene to the Taming of the Shrew scene because Kathrine finally accepts herself and she lets every thought and feeling out, basically she's letting her faults just be and making them known, coming to reality with how she really feels.

In conclusion, the antagonist may have seem to win in both the novel and movie since Kathryn is finally free of Sebastian and able to help herself from her addiction and Katherine who finally knows what love is and will do anything to have it even if it means bettering herself and accepting herself and her faults. Nevertheless the protagonist in this story- Sebastian and Bianca both won in reality. Sebastian may have passed away but he still felt that intensifying love that he deeply desired and broke out of his phase of having intercourse with a manifold of women; he learned to not treat women as if they were a game. He could finally say that he was happy and for once didn't allow his step sister to control how he felt about a person. For Bianca she was finally free to live and love and be herself without having the anxiety and stress of her once jealous sister who now is happy and at ease with life and leaving her alone. To conclude, each character won, but also each character took a loss in order to gain their happiness, struggling with themselves mentally and taking it out on the people who care for them , when in reality it was just cruel intentions that turned out good.

WORK CITED

Cruel Intentions -  March 5, 1999,Roger Kumble.

Taming of the Shrew- March 8, 1967, William Shakespear.

50 First Hates

Kimberly Gucciardi-Kriegh

Comparing "Taming of the Shrew" and "50 First Dates"

William Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew deals with many themes involving romance, relationships, and the roles of men or women. The play is about two very different sisters getting married to two very different men. Petruchio sets out to marry Katherine even though she is considered to be a shrew with a hot temper that no man wanted to marry. He then tries to “tame” her and make her more ladylike. Meanwhile, her beautiful younger sister Bianca had many suitors, but finally chose to marry Lucentio because they were genuinely happy together.

In the 2014 movie 50 First Dates, Henry falls in love with Lucy, who has short-term memory loss from a car accident that happened over a year ago. Henry has to get Lucy to fall in love with him everyday because she forgets the next day. The two go through many family, health, and trust problems. Both have many connections involving the roles of men and women. Through it all, Henry, Petruchio, and Lucentio always stay dedicated to their partner. In both 50 First Dates and Taming of the Shrew, the characters are in  relationships that carefully balance control and dedication. This reflects to audiences that control is a sign of dedication.

“Your husband is your lord, your life, your keeper, your head, your sovereign, one who cares for you... And in exchange, he seeks no more from you but love, kind looks, and true obedience—too little payment for so great a debt. A woman owes her husband the same loyalty a subject owes his king."

(Page 219, Act 5 Scene 2, line 161)

In both the film and the play, the women doing something unnatural to their personalities to please a man.In this scene from Shrew, Katherine is giving her final monologue. At this point, Petruchio has tamed Katherine. She is no longer disobedient of her husband, starts fights, or acts out of turn. Petruchio had to “tame” Katherine by not letting her eat or sleep, this taught her that bed and food was not important and the only thing she had to care about was her love for him.  Katherine and Bianca’s husbands, Petruchio and Lucentio, are sitting with their father, Baptista, and their friend, Hortensio, who is recently married. They all make a bet to see whose wife is most obedient and would come when they call. Katherine won and this is her reaction to the other girls not going when their husbands called. Katherine started out as a head-strong defiant woman and Lucy had complete control over her life and got to make conscious decisions everyday.

Henry tells Lucy, “I love you very much, probably more than anybody could ever love another person." she responds "Wow. And how do I feel about you?" He answers “You’ve been dying to make out with me for quite some time now.”

In that scene, Lucy asks Henry if he loves her. His answer is a big turning point in their relationship and is something the viewers have not been told before.

In both the play and the movie, Katherine and Lucy are both under complete control of men. Some could say the biggest difference between Katherine and Lucy is that Katherine is letting this happen and she is choosing to listen to her husband. But, in reality, she was abused and deprived to be trained to act like this. Due to Lucy’s short-term memory loss, she has no choice in any parts of the relationship. It is true that each day she is happy being with Henry, but their relationship is so unhealthy. Henry could cheat, abuse her, do her wrong, and she would forget the next day, She also has no recollection of how she feels the relationship is developing and grow. This quote shows that just from saying he loved her, he got her to kiss him, even though she has no memory of him. Luckily, Henry really does love Lucy, but nevertheless, he still has all the control over the relationship.

"We have not yet been seen in any house, nor can we be distinguished by our faces for man or master. Then it follows thus: thou shalt be master, Tranio, in my stead, keep house and port and servants as I should. 'Tis hatched, and shall be so. Tranio, at once Uncase thee. Take my colored hat and cloak."

(Act 1 Scene 1, page 45, line 204.)

The quote above comes from Taming of the Shrew. Bianca’s father, Lucentio, has stated that no one will see Bianca unless they are school teachers visiting their home to give her school lessons. Lucentio and Hortensio are suitors to Bianca, they have devised a plan to dress up as teachers and go into Bianca’s house to try to win her over and seduce her. The two men were not concerned with the fact that their true identities would eventually be revealed, even long after they came up with the idea. They were ready to charm Bianca no matter what. Both Henry, Lucentio, and Hortensio were lying to a woman in hopes that they can captivate a beautiful woman by controlling her every move.

Before Henry met Lucy, her family and friends worked extremely hard to make her think that it was the day after the car crash. It worked very well and even though she was being lied to everyday. One day, Lucy realized she was being lied to and that was very hard for her. One thing she discovers is the newspaper dates are all the current date, not a year ago.  She discovers all the tricks they used and begins to scream and cry on the dock.

In both Taming of Shrew and 50 First Dates, Bianca and Lucy’s loved ones performed elaborate schemes in hopes of very different things. Lucentio and Hortensio completely erased their identities. The two men proved their dedication to the woman they loved, but they also had lots of control over Bianca by intruding in her home and time to learn. In the end, their lie worked and made Bianca very happy. Unlike in the film where Lucy was unaware that she was being lied to everyday but it made her happy, so they all continued. Until, their lies were exposed and she felt heartbroken and betrayed. These relationships, reflect that being very dedicated to controlling the ones they love is important, but it has to deal with control. These lies and all the control over the women was the start of their relationship and was the key to making their relationship last.

"For in Baptista’s keep my treasure is. He hath the jewel of my life in hold, His youngest daughter, beautiful Bianca, and her withholds from me and other more, suitors to her and rivals in my love, supposing it a thing impossible, for those defects I have before rehearsed."

(Act 1 Scene 2 page 57, lines 120-125)

This scene from Taming of the Shrew is right after Lucentio and Hortensio devise the plan to be school masters. Hortensio announces how much he loves Bianca, a girl he doesn’t even really know. He is addressing Baptista, her father, who will not let her get married until Katherine does. Hortensio and Henry both felt they had to stay dedicated to a woman they don’t even know. These characters reflect the idea that male suitors will stop at nothing to get a woman.

At the beginning of the movie, Henry was considered a ladies’ man because he went on lots of dates and never called the women back. In this scene, right after Henry met Lucy, he went on a date with another woman, Noreen. They were drinking and she invited him to go home with her, Henry thought of Lucy and declined her offer.  

Noreen says, “I’d like to do something extra fun tonight… so, what are you thinking?” “What am I thinking?” He then thinks of Lucy and turns her down.

These characters represent the idea of love having to start from dedication and control. The biggest difference between the two decisions is that Hortensio did not get the woman he was dedicated to, but Lucentio did the same thing and he did. They also had to do a lot more to prove their dedication. Henry was making a clear choice to go against his typical character and leave a beautiful woman.

The characters from the play, The Taming of the Shrew and from the movie, 50 First Dates, represent the two values that are important in a long term relationship; control and dedication. The ideas shown in these stories represent the crucial parts of a real life relationship, even if the movie was made long after the play.

Works Cited-

50 First Dates. Director, Segal Peter, 2004

Shakespeare, William “Taming of the Shrew”

The Great Chase

A comparison between “Taming of the Shrew” and “Ella Enchanted”

Prince Charmont had been visiting Frell when a mob of his fangirls began to chase after him. While escaping, Prince Charmont runs into Ella as she is walking home, and tries to hide behind her. Ella, who is avidly against royalty and their treatment of the kingdom’s species, is not thrilled by this turn of events and brushes him off. Prince Charmont isn’t used to this treatment from the ladies and develops an interest in Ella. Despite Ella’s attempts at driving him away, Charmont insists on seeing her home. Unlike in the “Shrew,” Charmont and Ella interact before Charmont starts to like her and wants to pursue her. He hopes that by being courteous, she will warm up to him and eventually return his feelings. Prince Charmont’s infatuation with Ella when they first meet is much more subtle than Lucentio with Bianca -- he simply hopes that they’ll meet again instead of trying to trick her by impersonating her teacher.

Ella and Prince Charmont are resting in an giant’s pub after several days of adventure. The two are sitting by the fire together and talking about their lives prior to meeting each other, along with other current events. After an especially touching moment where Ella tells Charmont that he will be a good king, he decides that he wants to kiss her. Similar to the scene from the play, this moment between Ella and Charmont shows the beginning of their relationship and how Ella was able to overcome the prince’s shortcomings (much like how Bianca overlooked Lucentio’s lies). This scene and the scene from the “Shrew” both reflect that a strong bond can be formed in only a few days as long as the effort is there.

Ella and Prince Charmont have just met and are arguing with each other when Hattie bumps into them. Hattie is shown to be an expressive fangirl of Charmont, and gets jealous upon seeing Ella close to the prince. Even though her reasoning for interfering and end goal differs from Baptista, she is also trying to prevent a relationship happening between Charmont and anybody but herself. Hattie realizes that there are already romantic feelings growing between her step-sister and the prince, and she wants to avert those feelings -- thus, becoming an obstacle in Charmont’s path to Ella.  

In both the play, “The Taming of the Shrew”, and the movie, “Ella Enchanted”, the main couples -- Lucentio and Bianca, and Charmont and Ella -- successfully marry each other in the end. In these cases, the pursuit of a person resulted in the “happy ending” for the characters involved. Even though this isn’t the most realistic scenario, there is a grain of truth in that when something or someone is desired, then it is worth striving towards.

Works Cited

Haver, Tommy O, director. Ella Enchanted . Netflix, Miramax, 2004

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine, Washington Square Press, 1992.

Married to Money

Comparing The Taming of the Shrew to My Fake Fiancé

The Taming of the Shrew shows that marriage as an economic institution has been around for a while, or in other words, both parties do it for the money involved. In this play, Baptista, a father of two daughters, Bianca and Katherine, has to deal with multiple suitors trying to gain the attention of his two very different daughters. Bianca is the youngest so she must wait until Katherine gets married. Multiple suitors want Bianca, who is seen as the more level-headed sister, while Katherine only has one man who thinks he can change her ways. Shakespeare wants the reader to see that emotions don’t really play a primary role in marriage. Money plays the main role in which man gets to marry one of Baptista’s daughters. The more money they have, the greater chance they have with getting married to one of them.

In the 2009 movie My Fake Fiancé, Jennifer and Vince meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and decide to get married for the monetary benefits. Both of them were in need of money and didn’t have any real feelings toward each other. Like The Taming of the Shrew, money has a primary role in the movie. These texts reveal that, while men are not as expected to offer money to the future wife’s family, marriage is still viewed as an economic institution rather than solely being based on love.

“I come to wive it wealthily in Padua;

If wealthily, then happily in Padua.”

(Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 76-77)

In this scene, Hortensio is sort of pitching an offer to Petruchio about marrying Katherine so that he can be able to marry her younger sister Bianca. Petruchio is being very straight forward in his response about his opinions on marriage and money. Now that he is in Padua, he wants to find a wife that has money so that he can continue to live happily. This part of the text shows the importance this character believes money has in a marriage. Rather than saying he will be happy meeting the woman he will eventually marry, he says that he will be happy when he marries a woman with money. This sets aside all other aspects of the woman like her looks, her personality, or if she even loves him. Jennifer and Vince find themselves in a similar discussion about money when they first meet each other.

In “My Fake Fiancé,” when Vince and Jennifer first talk about how many gifts the bride and groom are getting, Vince says “I guess in theory It’s like a savings account. We’re supposed to get that money back one day when we get married.” Both Vince and Jennifer view the wedding as something that is just bringing in money for the bride and groom. Rather than talking about the couple being in love, they focus on what the couple is going to be receiving because they are getting married, such as money or gifts, and how they will benefit from that. It makes them think of their own future wedding in a similar fashion when comparing it to money they will receive back. Like Petruchio, they value the monetary aspect of getting married.

“I promised we would be contributors

And bear his charging of wooing whatsoe'er.”

“And so we will, provided that he win her.”

(Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 218-220)

At this point in the play, there are multiple suitors trying to go after Bianca. As stated before, Katherine must get married first. Hortensio and Gremio are still trying to talk Petruchio into marrying Katherine in order for them to be in competition to win over Bianca. They even go as far as saying they will cover Petruchio's expenses. The discussion of who will “win” either sister is highly based on how much the man can provide for her as well as offer her father. This applies more to Bianca since she is the only one with more than one suitor. This is more of a business deal rather than a competition of who can win over her heart. The discussion of who will “win” Bianca plays in societal idea of what it means to be husband and wife. That the husband should be able to provide for the wife and the wife should please the husband. That wives should aim to be “trophy wives” or simply let the man do all the work and bring in all the money. The situation between Jennifer and Vince is completely based on the money they will bring in from wedding gifts.

In this scene, Jennifer and Vince are discussing the fact that Jennifer just lost furniture during her move and Vince owes someone over 10 grand due to gambling. In order to fix this, they decide to stage a fake wedding. Vince says, “It’s perfect. I’m in. We stage a fake wedding. We invite everyone that we know. You register for all the stuff you want to replace, I get to keep all the cash.” Both Jennifer and Vince are agreeing to use the wedding as a way to support themselves financially. Like the suitors, money determines their future actions. If not enough money is offered from the suitor, they can not get married to Bianca. If it weren’t for the money involved, Jennifer and Vince wouldn’t be discussing a marriage. In this case, the societal roles of the husband having to provide for their wife does not apply because they don’t plan on forming an actual relationship after they get what they wanted from the fake wedding.

“Be patient, gentlemen. I choose her for myself.

If she and I be pleased, what's that to you?

'Tis bargained 'twixt us twain, being alone,

That she shall still be curst in company.”

(Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 321-324)

When the other men see how Katherine is talking to Petruchio, they begin to question whether or not they have a successful relationship. Petruchio thinks that the “bargain” made over the couple, specifically between him and Baptista, should be kept to themselves and not important to the other men. It doesn’t matter how rude Katherine is to him as long as he still has an amount of money agreed upon with her father. Petruchio’s opinion shows that the qualities of the woman don’t really matter to him as long as her or her family has money. He doesn’t see the negative behavior of him or his wife as a reasoning for the marriage not to work since they are both pleased with having money. Jennifer and Vince fall into a similar situation when they reveal that neither of them are happy with the other person’s attitude.

In this scene, Jennifer was finally able to get in contact with Vince in order to talk over a deal that will make money for the both of them. Although this deal involves a marriage, her and Vince aren’t very fond of each other. This doesn’t stop them from going through with the plan. Like Petruchio, they know what they are getting themselves into and the behavior each will have to deal with but they still get married for the money. To both of them, whether or not they actually like each other is important. Petruchio knows about Katherine’s bad attitude from what Bianca’s suitors told him and Vince and Jennifer already butt heads at the wedding when they first met.

The similarities between the movie and the play show that over the years, the audience can still relate to that topic. This idea of marriage being an economic institution leads to people getting into relationships for the monetary benefits. Families during the time of Shakespeare’s writing would want to get married for the wealth while the modern day version of it was Jennifer and Vince using the wedding gifts to benefit themselves. Even though the play and the movie were created centuries apart, the ideas of marriage as an economic institution are still relevant to people today.

Works Cited

My Fake Fiancé. Dir. Gil Junger. ABC Family, 2009. DVD.  

Comparing “Taming of the shrew” to “17 Again”

Taming of the shrew is a play that Starts as Lucentio arrives in Padua. Lucentio hears that the merchant Baptista has two daughters. One daughter is prettier and respectful but she cannot be married until Katherina the second daughter and the oldest gets married. Blanca is the youngest daughter that Lucentio wants to marry.

In the film 17 Again Mike O’Donnell is a high school basketball star, but he has a girlfriend that he really cares about. Scarlet has some shocking news to tell Mike before the biggest game of his life. Twenty years later Mike’s has married Scarlet. Their relationship has been rocky and failed that Scarlet filed for divorce. He has a chance fix his past by transforming back into a teenager in high school.

17 Again and Taming of the shrew have a different but similar idea of what is a relationship.  Lucentio and Bianca have a vitalized relationship because Lucentio and Bianca love spending time together and also have a common vision of what they want in the relationship. While Petruchio controls Katerina in the relationship because he believes the only way a relationship works, is if one partner takes control. Mike and Scarlett’s relationship is similar to Lucentio and Bianca but Mike wants Petruchio’s type of relationship. Scarlett wanted a relationship like Bianca’s relationship, which means she wants Mike to spend more time with her and the children, and also wants common need.  The play and the movie show that men are still interested in basing the relationship off of control. However, the play and the movie are also different because Petruchio has control of his relationship, but Mike because his relationship to fail. This reflects the audience’s belief that vitalized relationship seems to be a healthy relationship but true relationship depends on the Personality of the couple.

“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 house, my ox, my ass, my anything. And here she stands, touch her whoever dare.”

(Act 3, Scene 2, line numbers 235-239)

In this quote, Petruchio describes himself as domineering husband and take control of the relationship. He makes it seem that Kate is his property. Once married, women had no legal right to their own.

In 17 again the connection of Mike Petruchio has been shown

In the early scene from “17 Again” Mike and Scarlet are having a dialogue about how their relationship has been ruined. Scarlet is changed her yard but Mike told her “Yeah, Well, the divorce isn’t final for another two weeks, so you have no right.” Isn’t Scarlett given “Really? So I’ve spent the last 18 years of my life listening to you whine about the things you could’ve done without me, and I have no right?” This prove any answer of why their marriage has failed.

“Why, gentlemen, you do me double wrong To strive for that which resteth in my choice. I am no breeching scholar in the schools. I’ll not be tied to hour nor ‘pointed times, But learn my lessons as I please myself.”

(Act 3, Scene 1, line numbers 16-20)

Bianca describes her relationship by saying that she does not control by anyone. Bianca knows that Lucentio is actually suitor trying to prove his love to her. She believes that a relationship should be controlled by one partner.

A vitalized relationship is caring about a person

Naomi is trying to Persuade Scarlett to start dating again. Scarlett wants to her men to tell her that she is beautiful and have a common connection also respect. This proves that Scarlett wants a vitalized relationship.

“Well, I say no. And therefore, for assurance Let’s each one send unto his wife, And he whose wife is most obedient To come at first when doth send for her Shall win the wager which we propose.”

(Act 5, Scene 2, line numbers 67-71)

Petruchio has made a wager with Lucentio and Hortensio about who the wife is more obedient. The plan was to call each wife into the room. Whoever wife that come in the room will win the wager. Hortensio calls his wife in a nice way but she said no because she has something do. Lucentio calls Blanca and she said no because she was with the other wives. Petruchio calls Kate and she walks in the room ask him for anything he wants.

Each relationship need a happy ending

Mike is giving one of the heartfelt speech about his relationship before Scarlet divorce him. “Scarlet, before you go through this, I want to remind you of September 7th, 1988. It was the first time that I saw you. You were reading Less Than Zero, and you were wearing a Guns 'n' Roses t-shirt. I'd never seen anything so perfect. I remember thinking that I had to have you, or I'd die... then you whispered that you loved me at the homecoming dance, and I felt so peaceful... and safe... because I knew that no matter what happened, from that day on, nothing can ever be that bad... because I had you. And then I, uh... I grew up and I lost my way. And I blamed you for my failures. And I know that you think you have to do this today... but I don't want you to. But I guess... if I love you, I should let you move on.”  The speech has proven that he should try to listen to Scarlet.

In the 17 Again Scarlett want a husband who compliments and shows love to her. Also, she was happy with both partners. A vitalized relationship isn’t for every couple. In taming of the shrew Kate relationship was different because in the book Kate has a change to adapt to her relationship by being control by Petruchio. The ending of the film Mike and Scarlett give another chance at their relationship.

Work Cite:

Shakespeare, William, et al. The Taming of the Shrew. Pocket Books, 1963.

Steers, Burr, director. 17 Again. 17 Again, New Line Cinema, 14 Apr. 2009.

Miguel Rivera

Ms. Pahomov

English 3

16 April 2018

Control is the Key to Any Relationship

Clueless and The Taming of the Shrew

Love and its legitimacy has caused many debates over the years. Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew(1590s) shows how control has more to do with relationships than actual feelings. He shows this through the relationship between Petruchio and Katherine, which involves Petruchio consistently demanding that Katherine change her personality and agree to fictitious ideas just for the sake of saying he could do it. Katherine has to stay with him due to the pressure of the institution of marriage. Amy Heckerling's Clueless (1995) displays a similar relationship between characters Dionne and Murray, as Murray constantly disrespects and invalidates Dionne.

Although Shakespeare's work and Heckerling's film take place three centuries apart, the theme of control is prevalent in both portrayals of romantic love in relationships. In both relationships, the male is seen controlling their partner and showing disrespect. Murray does it by purposefully doing or saying things he knows Dionne dislikes, such as calling her 'woman', to get a reaction from her. Petruchio uses physical and mental abuse to force Katherine into a docile state. Not only does this show how men abuse their power in relationships, but also how women are pressured to stay in these relationships despite being mistreated, as Dionne and Katherine are. Both these texts show how societal pressures cause women to stay in toxic relationships, which in turn instills more power in men causing them to be more controlling.

“Katherine: Now must the world point at poor Katherine; And say ‘Lo, there is mad Petruchio’s wife, If it would please him come and marry her.’”

(Act III Scene II, 17-20)

In this scene, Katherine is waiting for Petruchio on their wedding day. Katherine is telling her father, Baptista, about how she would be unhappy in their marriage if it happens. Petruchio not showing up on time to the wedding was one of the first things that he did to control Katherine and disrespect her. He knows that the wedding day is important to Katherine like many women during this time. Petruchio has power over her if he makes Katherine wait for him. He knows that Katherine would wait for him because she is pressured by her father and society to get married. Also, Katherine is fearful of the public option and how others would see their marriage. She doesn’t want people to think that she was left at the altar or marrying a mad man. In Clueless, Dionne also feels a social pressure to stay with her boyfriend who is not respectful.

In this scene of Clueless, Dionne is talking to Cher about how Murray was constantly paging her over the weekend then Murray walks up to Dionne. He confronts Dionne about not answering his pager and calls her “woman.” The word “woman” is something that Murray knows Dionne dislikes, but he constantly says it throughout the movie. It is a way for Murray to control Dionne and make her feel like she doesn’t has a voice. The use of the word “woman” tells Dionne that she doesn’t have control over his words. Also, the word causes Dionne to have a negative reaction and get upset. Murray enjoys this reaction and attention that he gets from Dionne. Murray knows that he can disrespect Dionne in this way because he is popular and having a popular boyfriend is a status symbol for Dionne like many other girls in their high school. Dionne is willing to handle his disrespectful comments to keep her popular boyfriend. This is similar to the relationship of Petruchio and Katherine because Katherine is also fearful of public opinion and being alone.  

“Petruchio: Now by my mother’s son, and that’s myself, It shall ne moon, or star, or what I list, Or e’er I journey to your father’s house. [To Servants] Go on and fetch our horses back again,-”  

(Act 4, Scene 4, 7-15)

In this scene, Petruchio and Katherine are on their way to Baptista's house. Petruchio says that the moon is the sun, but Katherine knows that he is wrong. When Katherine corrects Petruchio and says that the moon is the moon, he threatens to take Katherine back home and not allow her to visit her father. Katherine agrees with Petruchio’s claim that the moon is the sun because he has power over her and could control her. If she disagrees with him then she wouldn’t be able to leave their house or see other people. The idea that Petruchio wants Katherine to believe anything that he says, even things that are nonsense, is to belittle Katherine. Katherine is not able to push against his control because it would end with Katherine being abused in some form. In other words, the institution of marriage and public option are forcing Katherine to stay with Petruchio. Petruchio is using these social pressures to control Katherine.

In this scene of Clueless, Dionne confronts Murray about cheating on her. Murray tries to convince Dionne that the hair that she found in her car belongs to her. However, Dionne knows that she doesn’t wear that type of hair. Murray tries to distort the truth just like Petruchio. Dionne, unlike Katherine, has more power in her relationship. This causes Murray to shift the focus on the hair found in the car to inferring that Dionne is moody or emotional because “it is that time of the month.” Instead of making Dionne believe in a lie like Petruchio did with Katherine. This reaction belittles Dionne and causes her to lose focus on the cheating. It rails the whole conversation and Murray doesn’t have to tell the truth. The rails of the conversation leave viewers feeling that cheating is a topic that is not that important. This scene reinforces the norms that “boys would be boys” and an angry woman must be on her period. These social norms create pressure for women to accept the disrespectful behavior of men.

“Katherine: I never saw a better-fashioned gown, More quant, more pleasing, nor more commendable.”

(Act 4, Scene 3, 106- 109)

In this scene of The Taming of the Shrew, a tailor makes a gown for Katherine, but Petruchio doesn’t like the dress. He says that the dress is ugly and not in style, but Katherine loves the dress and wants to wear it. In the end, Petruchio doesn’t allow Katherine to wear the dress, but he pays the tailor for making it. Petruchio wants to control everything about Katherine down to her clothes. He wants Katherine to be codependent on him causing Katherine to change her personality. She changes from being strong and independent to being obedient and passive to Petruchio.

In this scene of Clueless, Murray and Dionne are at a house party. Dionne is running around for most of the party trying to find Murray. When she finds Murray, he is cutting all of his hair. He doesn’t let Dionne know about it. Murray is controlling Dionne by changing his image. He takes one of the most important things that Dionne cares about the public image by cutting his hair and embarrassing her. A bald head is something that Dionne doesn’t find cool or popular. Murray is cutting his hair two weeks before picture day. Murray shows Dionne that he has all the control in the relationship by cutting his hair and that he doesn’t care about the opinion of Dionne. This is similar to the scene with the dress and Katherine because it shows the male in the relationship taking away something that the female in the relationship wants. Petruchio takes away a dress from Katherine and Murray takes away a good image from Dionne.

In Clueless, the relationship of Dionne and Murray is toxic because of the controlling actions by Murray. Control is also the main reason for the toxic relationship of Petruchio and Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew. The idea that works three centuries apart can have very similar relationships shows that audience throughout the ages can relate to controlling relationships.

Work Cited

“The Internet Movie Script Database (IMSDb).” The Internet Movie Script Database, www.imsdb.com/scripts/Clueless.html

Rudin, Scott, Amy Heckerling, Alicia Silverstone, and Paul Rudd. Clueless. Hollywood, Calif: Paramount Pictures, 1995.

Shakespeare, William B. The Taming of the Shrew. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York, NY: Washington Square, 1992. Print.

Social Relationship Status: What “Superbad” and “Taming of The Shrew” tell us about clout chasing

“The Taming of the Shrew” is a Shakespeare written play that depicts a harsh reality of marriages at that time period. It mainly revolves around the marriage between Katherine and Petruchio. They are forced into a marriage where Katherine is expected to be controlled by Petruchio because she is a woman. It can be implied that Petruchio enjoys marriage for the control more than for the love between a man and a woman. The 2007 film Superbad has a similar take on sexual intercourse within the movie. This film mostly revolves around Seth and Evan who are trying to lose their virginity before they finish high school. However, the main reason for Seth’s sexual desires is due to the fact he wants a higher social status.Both “The Taming of the Shrew” and Superbad present worlds   where individuals pursue both sexual experiences and relationships as a way to improve their social status and become more popular.

“Superbad” and “The Taming of the Shrew” both reflect how relationships, specifically romantic ones, can be used for superficial personal satisfaction. In The Taming of the Shrew every male character in the play does not consider women’s thoughts and feelings towards marriage. Those men had an expectation for women to follow all of their orders and marry whoever was assigned to them no matter the cost. Occasionally men from this book would use marriage as a way to show a luxurious lifestyle, or boost their social status. It allowed men of that time period to appear successful towards other men.

Petruchio: “To me she’s married not unto my clothes Could I repair what she will wear in me, As I can change these poor accoutrements.”

(Act 3 Sc. 2 119-121)

This quote “The Taming of the Shrew” when Petruchio dressed in a ridiculous outfit at his wedding with Katherine. Petruchio did this to make a point about how Katherine would marry him no matter what he did in order to boost his own ego. That action also models how Petruchio lacks empathy towards Katherine because he did not restrain from embarrassing her to make himself appear in full control. The movie “Superbad” puts a similar emphasis into sexual intercourse and dating that “The Taming of the Shrew” put into marriage.

“Are you insane?! Look at Jules's dating record, she dated Dan Remmeck who's had a six pack since like kindergarten. Jason Stone who looks like Zack Morris, and Matt Muer he's the sweetest guy! Have you ever stared into his eyes? It was like the first time I heard the Beatles.”

-Seth

One of the main characters Seth implied in the beginning stages that he felt worthless due to the fact that he is a virgin and less sexually desirable to women than his peers. His best friend Evan tried to cheer him up by bringing up his crush Jules and saying that Seth had a chance to get in a relationship with her. At first Seth was discouraged because he noticed how many men Jules dated prior were much more physically and emotionally appealing. However, later in the movie he gets invited to a party by Jules which makes him believe that she has mutual feelings for him. Despite this opportunity Seth only had sex on his mind instead of trying to get in a relationship with Jules. This is similar to the way marriage was viewed in “The Taming of the Shrew”. Instead of being a gesture made by love it was one indulged with selfish intentions to fulfill one’s ego. Seth’s main reason for wanting to have sex with his crush Jules was because he wanted to feel an accomplishment from a task. He initially preferred this over any type of emotional connection and initially only saw her as an opportunity to boost his social status.

Despite the similarities between The Taming of the Shrew and Superbad there are certain drastic differences. The most crucial difference is the overall presence of men in each story. In The Taming of the Shrew just about every male character has the same views towards women as Petruchio Their philosophy was that women should always sacrifice themselves to men, especially in marriage.

“Hortensio: Yea, and to marry her, if her dowry please.”

(Act 1. Sc. 2 186)

This quote shows how women were auctioned off for marriage and treated as a product to men. The lack of remorse for their situation displays how embedded this mentality was within their time period and reflects of most men from that era.

However, in Superbad there are characters to balance out Seth’s lust driven mentality. The most notable character with a different view from Seth was his best friend, Evan. Throughout the film Evan is also pursuing a romantic encounter with a girl named Becca. He has a different mentality towards Seth because he is open towards having sexual intercourse, but he does not let it become his main focus. His main focus was trying to connect to her as a person in order to eventually have a successful relationship with her. At one point in the movie Evan refuses to have sex with Becca because he did not want to take advantage of her while she was intoxicated. This action is gigantically unlike the men from The Taming of the Shrew, as they would often force sex upon their wives and other women throughout the play. Finally, the last way Superbad and The Taming of the Shrew and Superbad differ is because of the character growth, or lack thereof.

At the end of Superbad Seth runs into Jules at a mall after failing to hook up with her at party the previous night. Instead of continuing his immature tendencies he decided to grow as a person and admit his mistakes. Seth apologized to Jules for being shallow towards her and he offered to buy her makeup to cover the black eye he had caused from the party. That moment implied that Seth began to realize there is more to romantic relationship than sex and status symbols. In The Taming of the Shrew Petruchio did not become a less abusive person than the reader was first introduced to in the play. Petruchio remained the twisted person he was from start to finish.

Work cited:

Rogen, Seth, and Evan Goldberg. “Superbad” . Performance by Jonah Hill, and Michael Cera, 2007.

Shakespeare, William. “The Taming of the Shrew”. Dover Publications , 1770.

Amado Alfaro-Allah

English 3

4-11-18

Fire Stream

The Wedding Shrew

The Wedding Singer is a 90’s movie that takes place in 1985, it follows the story of a locally famous wedding singer named Robbie. When he tries to get married it turns out that his fiance, Linda doesn’t feel the same way so she abandons him at the altar and leaves Robbie. As Robbie’s depression sets in his gigs become more and more mediocre until he meets a waitress named Julia and instantly falls in love. Robbie later finds out that Julia is marrying a Wall Street shark named Glenn Gulia. Throughout the movie Robbie tries his best to woo Julia with his singing and save her from marriage.

A lot of the instances in the movie correlate with the book Taming of the Shrew, the theme of of men competing for the heart of a young promising women with sidekicks who help the hero win the heart of the lady. Lucentio’s wing man in Taming of the Shrew, is Tranio, when they switch places and Tranio keeps putting in good words of Lucentio, while the wingman in the wedding singer is Sammy, Robbie’s best friend . The main idea of both the book and the movie is that the competition of whoever can marry Julia the fastest. While Glenn is marrying Julia for her to just have a wife when he admits to Robbie he cheats on her contanlly and will continue to do so , like how Petruchio is marrying Kathrine for the money partly. While Robbie truly loves Julia and keeps her in his songs. Just like how Lucentio gives Bianca secret messages in latin. Both Robbie and Glenn want to marry Julia for different reasons but they both know if they marry her then for Glenn it would mean full access of Julia’s father money but for Robbie it would be true love.The whole idea of the Wedding Singer is that Robbie loves Julia so much, he would do anything while its not said if Petruchio truly loves Katherine or he is just marrying her for the money, like how Glenn’s goal to to marry Julia then cheat on her with other women. The money affects how people behave in marriage

(Act 1, Scene 2, Line 117-129)

O Tranio, till I found it to be true,
I never thought it possible or likely.
But see, while idly I stood looking on,
I found the effect of love in idleness
And now in plainness do confess to thee
That art to me as secret and as dear
As Anna to the Queen of Carthage was,
Tranio, I burn, I pine, I perish, Tranio,
If I achieve not this young modest girl.
Counsel me, Tranio, for I know thou canst.
Assist me, Tranio, for I know thou wilt.

This scene in the beginning of “Taming of the Shrew” happens when Luciento and Tranio just arrived in town and are getting ready to attend university until Lucentio sees Bianca for the first time and instantly falls in love. In this scene Lucentio is talking to Tranio how he has instanlly fallen in love with Bianca and asks Tranio to help him out. This connects to the scene in “The Wedding Singer” when Robbie is in a bar and realizes Julia is going to marry Glenn who will constantly cheat on her with other women. While he is talking about how much his loves her with his best friend Sammy, just like how Lucineto talks to Tranio about Bianca.

In this scene Robbie is having a drink with his friend Sammy right after he learns that Julia is really going to marry Glenn, Robbie explains to Sammy how much he loves Julia and wants to be with her but Robbie still thinks that Julia likes Glenn more because he has money in the stock market and a big house. I decided to compare this with the scene where Luciento talks to Tranio and explains his grand plan to Tranio to woo Bianca. Some constraints between the two are that when Sammy gives Robbie the pep talk about love he goes straight away to Julia’s house to try to tell her how he feels, while Lucentio quietly sits back and makes his plan to woo Bianca.

In the plan Lucentio once he begs Tranio to help him while they’re together, like in the movie Sammy and Robbie are talking in the bar while Robbie opens up to Sammy about his feelings about Julia.

(Act 3, Scene 1, Line 32)

Luciento: Hic ibat, as I told you before, Simois, I am Lucentio, hic est, son unto Vincentio of Pisa, Sigeia tellus, disguised thus to get your love, Hic steterat, and that “Lucentio” that comes a-wooing, Priami is my man Tranio, regia, bearing my port, celsa senis, that we might beguile the old pantaloon.

In this scene of “Taming of the Shrew” Lucentio and Hortensio are both giving their “lessons” to Bianca and during their lesson Lucentio while teaching Bianca latin he sneaks in some messages explain who he is and how he is trying to woo her. I compared this to the scene in “The Wedding Singer” when Robbie is playing guitar for Julia in an empty venue singing about love. The reason why I decided to compare these to together because while Lucentio is wooing Bianca directly with fake latin translation, Robbie is wooing Julia indirectly by singing his song about love, being together forever and being happy together married and partly how his ex fiance abandoned him.

Up until this point of the movie Robbie and Julia have spent a lot of time together, Robbie has been helping Julia plan her wedding with Glenn, when they’re trying to find a person to do the music at the wedding Julia convinces Robbie to show off one of his songs he wrote. When Robbie performs it in front of Julia she visibility is interested and is feeling somewhat woo’d to this point, she starts to fall for Robbie at this point. I decided to compare this part of the movie to the part of the book “The Taming Of The Shrew” to the scene where Luciento gives Bianca a fake message in Latin about him. While Bianca tells Lucentio he needs to try harder she is a little interested in him at this point. This scene is comparable because Robbie because although a bit indirect both male characters successfully build there chances with the female leads. While Robbie is focusing on singing his song Julia isn’t worried about money right now she’s thinking about him. Just like how Bianca didn’t know that Luciento was loaded with money but she did start to fall for him even though she almost knew nothing about him.

(Act 5, Scene 2, line 145-180)

Katherine: Fie, fie! Unknit that threat'ning unkind brow
And dart not scornful glances from those eyes
To wound thy lord, thy king, thy governor.
It blots thy beauty as frosts do bite the meads,
Confounds thy fame as whirlwinds shake fair buds,
And in no sense is meet or amiable.
A woman moved is like a fountain troubled,
Muddy, ill-seeming, thick, bereft of beauty,
And while it is so, none so dry or thirsty
Will deign to sip or touch one drop of it.
Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper,
Thy head, thy sovereign, one that cares for thee,
And for thy maintenance commits his body
To painful labor both by sea and land,
To watch the night in storms, the day in cold,
Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe,
And craves no other tribute at thy hands
But love, fair looks and true obedience—
Too little payment for so great a debt.
Such duty as the subject owes the prince,
Even such a woman oweth to her husband.
And when she is froward, peevish, sullen, sour,
And not obedient to his honest will,
What is she but a foul contending rebel
And graceless traitor to her loving lord?
I am ashamed that women are so simple
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?
Come, come, you froward and unable worms!

In one of the final scenes in Taming of the Shrew, Katherine gives a big speech on how she really loves Petruchio and she wants to stay loyal to him. She explains how she wants to be with him and heckles the other women for not having the same amount of compassion and loyalty towards their husbands. At this point it is unclear if Katherine is being loyal to Petruchio for the money or she genuinely loves him This relates to the scene in The Wedding Singer, where Robbie gives his big song explaining how much he loves Julia and how marriages should be between the people you love.

Just before this scene Billy Idol hypes Robbie up by explaining to him that “You can tell if someone really loves you, if they’re willing to be with you no matter what and it's not about money, fancy cars or anything like that”. Robbie is currently on a plane trying to woo Julia one last time before she flies to vegas and gets married to Glenn. In Robbie’s song he explains how money and a big house doesn’t matter as long as he is with her in which Julia kisses him. This compares to the scene in Taming of the Shrew where the last speech Kathrine gives on being a loyal wife and in response after her big speech Petruchio commands Kathrine to kiss him. This relates to the thesis because it could be said that Katherine is only marrying Petruchio for his money but in the wedding singer, Robbie wants to marry Julia because he has such strong feeling towards her.

Both this movie and book hold many differences and similarities when they’re compared side by side. The main issue in this movie was that Robbie assumed he could never be loved or get married because (like his rival Glenn) he didn’t have a lot of money or a big house. Giving the viewer the idea of “If you're not financially stable, no one will want to marry you” or “It’s easier to get married, if you have a lot of money. While the theme in Taming of the Shrew is the competition of who can woo Bianca the fastest and how Petruchio “tames” Kathrine. At the end of the book even if Kathrine did just marry Petruchio for his money it wouldn’t be as frowned upon as it is today. In the movie when Robbie tells Julia that “She’s just marrying him for the money” she gets upset, the reason for this is because people who usually marry rich people without really loving them are labeled “gold diggers” which refers to someone who is only interested in someone for money. This shows us that society even if its a little bit , thinks its dignified to marry someone for who they are and not there money.

Work cited

Crowther, John, ed. “No Fear The Taming of the Shrew.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2005. Web. 26 Mar. 2018.

Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616. The Taming of the Shrew. New York :Signet Classic, 1998. Print.

The Wedding Singer, Robert Simonds, Jack Girraputa,

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.

How Michelle in Southside with You and Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew show a major shift in relationship and gender dynamics

Though William Shakespeare’s play The Taming of the Shrew has been celebrated as an early example of romantic comedy, it has also garnered plenty of criticism from literary scholars and modern audiences for its seemingly misogynistic politics with women and courtship. In the play, a man named Petruchio tries to win both the heart and submission of his romantic partner, Katherine, the titular “shrew” of the play. Though Katherine is rather resistant to Petruchio’s efforts, he eventually converts Katherine from a headstrong and asocial woman to a overly obedient housewife by depriving her of necessities, such as food and sleep.

The 2016 drama film Southside With You displays a more modern and reformed idea of courtship. In the movie, a 28 year-old Barack Obama attempts to woo his colleague, Michelle Robinson, on an innocent summer date in the South Side of Chicago. Though Michelle is also rather resistant to Barack’s advances, his charisma and ebullient personality eventually win her over by the end of the date.

Though Barack and Petruchio may have similar goals in mind, their tactics are markedly different, and that is indicative of a major shift in worldview. They both want to win over a woman’s heart, but while Petruchio finds it perfectly fine to force Katherine into showing him affection through inhumane means, Barack is much more respectful of Michelle’s discretionary freedom. He is understanding of her reluctance and acknowledges that it would be abusive to use coercion tactics to achieve his end goal. This shows that though the concept of male pursuit is still very much alive, coercion is now generally looked down upon while the personal freedom of romantic partners is championed.

Petruchio: Come, come, you wasp; i' faith, you are too angry.

Katherine: If I be waspish, best beware my sting.

Petruchio: My remedy is then, to pluck it out.

(Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 222-225)

In this scene, Petruchio and Katherine are arguing somewhat comically as Petruchio plots his “taming” of her. He tells Katherine that she is too angry and compares her to a wasp. In response, Katherine says that Petruchio should then fear her sting, and Petruchio says that he will pluck her stinger out. This is Petruchio’s way of asserting that Katherine is powerless against him because he will always find ways to control her and stifle her disobedience.

In all likelihood, Shakespearean audiences would have laughed heartily at this scene, and it would not have offended many or garnered much controversy. This is because it was normal for men at the time to assert conjugal control, even if that meant threatening violence to their partner. This scene is a key example of the overbearing tendencies of men at the time of Shakespeare. Women were scorned and punished for trying to declare any type of control, just as Katherine is here.

Many modern romance movies are on the complete opposite end of the spectrum.

In Southside with You, Michelle Obama is depicted as a strong-willed woman, similar to Katherine in The Taming of the Shrew. One of the main differences between the two is how their willfulness is perceived. In this scene, Michelle, maddened by the fear that the date will cost her her job, fires up at Barack, saying that he should have been more respectful of her request to keep everything professional. Barack is silent the whole time Michelle is talking, carefully listening to her without trying to shoot her down, as Petruchio does to Katherine. Viewers of the film can see that Barack has is doing his best to understand Michelle’s point of view, though he may not agree with it. This major difference reflects a more modernized perception of how women should be treated—with unwavering respect as a peer and not property. Unlike the play, the film does not celebrate taming, but rather it seeks to put the lead male character and lead female character on a more equal level of control.

No shame but mine. I must forsooth be forc’d

To give my hand oppos’d against my heart

(Act 3, Scene 2, Lines 8-9)

This line comes from Katherine on the day of her wedding, shortly before Petruchio’s arrival. Petruchio’s tardiness to his own wedding makes Katherine go into a fit of both anger and sadness, as she mourns the fact that she is being forced by her father to marry a man that she does not have romantic feelings for. This is reflective of the marriage regime at the time of Shakespeare. Marriage was an extremely important cornerstone of societal structure, and unfortunately, women were often left disenfranchised from the process of courtship and marriage. Many women, like Katherine in this scene, were forced to marry men whom they did not love.

While this line may have been dismissed by the Shakespearean audiences as normal, audiences today would likely have much more empathy for Katherine. Marriage now is more of a consensual covenant, usually involving vows and legal documents. This alone shows a societal leap in ideology: women are now expected to have dominion over their own romantic affairs. This means that, in most cases, a father no longer decides whom his daughter marries, like Katherine’s father does for her.

The new system of courtship surfaces notably in Southside with You.

In this scene from the beginning of the movie, Michelle expresses her reluctance to Barack about going on a date, saying that it would make her look bad if she dates her coworker. Barack, understanding of her situation, then eases her angst by telling her that it is not officially a date until she wants it to be. Unlike Petruchio, he is considerate of Michelle’s disinterest and his pursuit subsides a bit. The mere fact that Michelle is able to express her disinterest to Barack shows a huge difference in power structure from Shakespeare’s time. Had Katherine told Petruchio she does not care for him, she likely would have been dismissed or perhaps even violently punished. Here, Barack is able to relent pretty quickly, without so much as a heated argument. Viewers should take close notice to this small scene because it illustrates the modern customs surrounding relationships: women have a much more prominent role in the courtship process, as they are more easily able to reject suitors without major backlash.

“Now, go thy ways, thou hast tamed a curst shrew”

(Act 5, Scene 2, Line 205)

This line is spoken by Hortensio at the very end of the play, as all the male characters feast cheerfully and commend Petruchio on his successful taming of Katherine. The most important detail modern audiences will notice in this scene is how Petruchio’s coercive abuse has earned him acclaim among all the men, as if he had proved himself a valiant and respectable man. The scene is communicative of the history of marital coercion, and how it was not uncommon for men to find coercion perfectly fine in a relationship. This play is an example of a larger historical pattern: love being won not with the heart, but with the fist.

Romance has conceptually changed for the better in this regard.

Unlike Taming of the Shrew, Southside with You ends on a precious note of romance and the power of wooing with charm and chemistry. There are very few words in the last scenes, allowing room for body language to come to the forefront. After a long date with ups and downs, Michelle and Barack share a special moment after he buys her chocolate ice cream, which she mentioned was her favorite dessert earlier in the date. Though Michelle’s infatuation with Barack had become gradually more evident throughout the course of the date, this act is the one that finally wins Michelle over. It is important to note how Barack did not use any type of coercion to romance Michelle. Instead, he used his naturally alluring personality, which distinctly sets his actions apart from that of Petruchio, who does not even seem to have a genial conversation with Katherine throughout the whole play. In the end, things work out favorably for both Barack, the pursuer, and Michelle, the pursuee, which truly highlights the contrast in what 21st century movie-goers want to see in a romance film: gentle courtship that ends in consensual happiness.

Both of these works can be interpreted as romanticized capsules of real-life attitudes when it comes to love. While it tends to be very easy to overlook entertainment history, by analyzing the romantic works of a time period, one may arrive at a deep understanding of how relationship ideals and gender roles have evolved over the course of time. Truth be told, The Taming of the Shrew and Southside with You are not that different in that they both use the plot device of a man pursuing a woman. However, with the rise of modern feminism and an always maturing civil culture, these movies offer two opposing archetypes of how that should be done. The ideological divergence here is evident, and it may be a guide in objectively studying where the impressive change has come and where change is due next.

The book “The Taming of the Shrew” reflects how romantic relationships between man and woman were in the past. Petruchio, one of the main character of the play who is arrogant, confident and, a man who sees himself as a superior over the other people and even more over woman who he  claim to love. With the romantic love story of love at first sight such as Lucentio and Bianca who fall in love and both of them abandon the standard relationship ideas of the time period . It’s possible to appreciate these two situations, in the movie, “ Crazy, Stupid, Love” where The Character Jacob has in a way really similar values to Petruchio's. However, this values seem to be forgotten when he meets Hannah a young woman who, he seems to love at first sight. She isn’t delighted by Jacobs’ tactics initially and forced to turn around Jacobs ideas of what a relationship is. As the text and the movie show, man ideas on relationships had been and still are stereotyped as the males are supposed to be the Alpha of the couple and even more they are supposed to be always self- confident . However, when love is involved  it changes the way both member of a relationship behave and the stereotypes that are normally put into play disappear.

"Petruchio:

You knew my father well, and in him me,

Left solely heir, to all his lands and goods,

Which I have bettered rather than decreas'd.

Then tell me, if I get your daughter's love,

What dowry shall I have with her to wife?"

(Act 2, Scene 1, 960)

At this specific moment of the play, Petruchio is fighting and negotiating with to get Katherines handIn this quote and earlier in the text, we can see how he is justifying his possible marriage with Bianca showing his amount in power and richness as if he was supposed to show his “manhood” with this. And trying to show how he is the “Alpha male”, in the relation. How he is supposed to be in that way in order to be a good husband. Just like Jacob is going to try to prove Hannah how he is the Alpha Male of the club.

In this scene Jacob is showing Cal how to pick up girls in a bar and his strategies to convince a woman to be with him. He is asking girls to invite them for a drink. In this way he shows firstly that he has the ability of carrying on a relationship as, like said before, the Alpha male. Really close of the showing of that Petruchio did with Baptista in order to marry Katherina. However something will change in Jacob life as he will learn about true love.

In this scene of the movie, the public is able to see how the eventhough Jacob is use to be a player and to be able to control his emotions, he now is eboked to a romantic love that he can not control and would take this idea, that he had of himself, of being an Alpha male down. Love towards Hannah has changed his mind in a complete way and no matter how he tries to show off is not going to work because love will interfire and this idea of the Alpha male will end up disappearing.

“Lucentio:

Tranio, I burn, I pine, I perish, Tranio,

If I achieve not this young modest girl"

(Act 1, Scene 1, 156-157)

During this scene Lucentio realizes that he is in love with Bianca. His stereotypical manhood is blown and even at the end of the play it gets proven that he is not the Alpha of the relationship. He just like Jacob and Lucentio change their attitude in a way proving how this Idea of the Alpha male is just an stereotype and in the relations no one should be the dominating.  However, in the play love is used also as a way of control when Petruchio justifies his actions over Katherina with it.

In both the movie Crazy, Stupid Love and in the book The Taming of the Shrew is easy to appreciate how society during the years has ruled how man should be the leaders in a couple and how they have to proof their manhood during their life. However, as it’s shown in both the play and the movie when love appears all this stereotypes are vanished and in many cases the relationship doesn’t have a leader but a team.

Guess Shrew

Shamus Keough

    The Taming of the Shrew is a romance story that is about two men trying to start relationships with two women who are partially being controlled by their father. Baptista, who is the father of the women (Katherine and Bianca) doesn’t want one of them to get married without the other one getting married. Because he doesn’t want this, he is not letting either of them get married unless the other one is setting up a marriage too. Both Petruchio and Lucentio wanted to marry Bianca but had to set up a plan where both of them would marry a daughter.

    Guess who is a movie about a black girl named Theresa, who is in a relationship with a white man named Simon, and are planning to get engaged soon. Theresa and Simon are very happy together, the one problem is, Theresa’s family doesn’t know Simon is white. After Percy (Theresa’s father) meets Simon, he starts to criticize him a lot and tries to get his daughter to stop dating him. These two stories both are about a father trying to involve himself in the daughter’s relationship, mainly because he cares about his daughters and wants to make sure they are okay. The stories also differ, like in the way that Baptista wanted to make sure his daughters get married, and Percy is mostly against who his daughter is dating. In every romantic relationship, family should be involved to protect their child even if it can cause negativity.

"And for I know she taketh most delight in music, instruments, and poetry, schoolmasters will I keep within my house fit to instruct her youth."

(Act 1, Scene 1, 94-97)

This quote is from Baptista, trying to speak highly about his daughters and their intelligence. He is speaking about them highly so any men that meet them may hear about them and think they are great women that they would want to marry. He is showing that he cares a lot about his girls and their relationships, and doing it in a very nice way.

Baptista is showing his concern for his daughter’s relationships in a positive way, trying to get some men to be interested in dating his daughters. Percy on the other hand, cares about his daughter, and shows it in a slightly negative way.

Percy in this scene is about to sleep next to Simon, in an effort to try and scare him. He also does it  to make sure Simon doesn’t wake up in the night, sneak in to Theresa’s room, and have sex with her. Percy is obviously showing that he cares about his daughter, but in a more negative way. His method of trying to scare Simon is negative, and he could have just tried to be polite and make sure Simon doesn’t do certain things.

“Faith, gentlemen, now I play a merchant's part and venture madly on a desperate mart.”

(2, 1, 345-348)

In this quote, Baptista says a metaphor as if he was a businessman and it is his job to work out his daughter’s marriages. He is speaking about it because getting his daughters married is extremely important to him. This is a nice way to show that he cares about his daughter’s relationships. (It is also a little negative since he is caring about himself partly, but it’s still positive in a way.)

Again, Baptista is trying to help his daughter’s out with their relationships in a nice way, and not really being negative to anyone. In this scene from the movie on the other hand, Percy is caring about his daughter, but trying to make the things he has been doing to Simon seem okay.

In the current scene, Percy is talking to his daughter, and she just asked him about why he has been so mean to Simon. Percy says it is because he doesn’t trust him, and he doesn’t want his daughter starting a relationship with someone who might do something wrong to her. While it is nice that he is doing something to try and protect his daughter, Percy is still being rude and trying to scare away Simon. Simon is someone who genuinely cares about Theresa and loves her, and doesn’t deserve what Percy is doing to him.

"I come to wive it wealthily in Padua; if wealthily, then happily in Padua."

(1, 2, 76-77)

This quote is from Petruchio, and he is speaking about how he only really cares about the money he will get when he marries one of Baptista’s daughters. The important thing about this quote is that it shows why Baptista has been caring about his daughter’s marriages, because he wants them to both to get married and to get married to men that actually care about them.

Baptista, once again was trying to be nice, and protect his daughters from people like Petruchio because they could treat his daughter’s badly if all they care about is the money. Percy, in the movie scene, is once again showing why he was treating Simon bad, and why he will treat him okay now.

In this movie scene, Percy and Simon are home alone at the house, just after Percy’s wife, Marilyn, and Theresa just left them and are currently staying at Marilyn’s sister’s house. Percy at this time is starting to see that Simon isn’t a bad person, and is now treating him nicer. Now that Percy knows Simon is a good person who cares about his daughter, he isn’t feeling like he needs to try and scare him off, and can be nice to him.

Both of these stories deal a lot with the idea of parents trying to be apart of their children’s romantic relationship. They both have fathers that show that they care, but both show them in different ways. In Taming of the Shrew, Baptista shows that he cares about his daughter’s and their relationships in nice ways, like when he speaks nicely about them to make men want to be in a relationship with them. He talks about how he will set up many of the things in their relationships for them, and overall is showing he cares in many different nice ways. Percy on the other hand shows that he cares by trying to get his daughter to date someone else. Percy doesn't trust Simon with dating his daughter and tries to scare Simon off. Overall, showing that he cares in a negative way. Both fathers show they care about their daughters a lot and show that they do throughout both of the stories. The ways they care show that while some parents can show how much they care about their children’s relationships in a nice way, many can still show it in negative ways like scaring away a person they don't trust with their child. While it is shown that negativity can be caused, the stories still show that family should be involved in romantic relationships to protect their children.

Work Cited

• Shakespeare, William. The Taming of The Shrew