A popular trend in today’s society is for a group of people, a set of ideals, or a style to return to it’s roots in contemporary culture. It is seen as almost original to bring back a popular catch phrase, wear a 1930’s style suit and tie, or own a vintage automobile. Many modern television shows and movies can be retraced back to their roots in contemporary literature as well. While they may not always directly reflect the plots, themes, or characters of their older counterparts, these pictures are heavily influenced by the works that have come before them. The 2004 film “50 First Dates” reflects Shakespeare’s “The Taming of the Shrew”, using themes of love and romance, as well as the parental involvement in those affairs, inspired by the late playwright’s comedy.

“The Taming of the Shrew” follows a troupe of men seeking to woo a duo of sisters, one a sweet, fair maiden named Bianca, and the other a seemingly bitter “shrew” named Katherine. Lucentio, the son of a rich man seeks to win the hand of Bianca, but is unable to do so because of a rule set forth by her father, Baptista - Bianca cannot get married before her sister Katherine is wed. Lucentio goes undercover as  a school teacher to woo his love, while a suitor named Petruchio takes a more forward approach in taking Katherine as his wife. In “50 First Dates”, a young playboy, Henry falls in love with a local girl, Lucy who is plagued by a mental condition; unable to form short term memories past a night’s sleep. Lucy’s father, Marlin, forbids her from forming any type of romantic relationship for fear that she may be hurt.

Shortly after Henry learns of Lucy’s mental condition in “‘Dates”, he follows her to her house to try to win her hand, however her father has other plans. In order to protect her from waking up next to a man she does not recognize for the rest of her life, he forbids her and anyone who wishes to be with her, from finding love together. “50 First Dates” reflects society’s need for a safe and comfortable life, just as “The Taming of the Shrew”’s Baptista does for his daughter.

“Gentlemen, importune me no farther, For how I firmly am resolv'd you know; That is, not to bestow my youngest daughter before I have a husband for the elder.”

(Baptista, Act I Scn I)

Baptista will not allow Bianca to marry for fear his eldest daughter will be alone forever. This fear is great enough that he is willing to sacrifice his daughter’s affections to calm his anxieties. Because there are so few suitors for Katherine, Bianca must also wait to be wed. Though this play was written hundreds of years ago, it describes perfectly today’s society’s need for certainty. As outlined by modern media like 50 First Dates, people today are unlikely to make a decision without near-complete certainty. Baptista is uncertain of Katherine’s future, and sacrifices Bianca’s, at least for the time being.

It is not until the plot of “50 First Dates” has progressed quite far that Henry is given permission by Marlin to court the forgetful Lucy. After Marlin realizes that happiness and security for his daughter can be found in Henry, he relinquishes his grip on her love life. Henry and Lucy begin to fall in love, and eventually become married with a child. The last scene finds Marlin, Henry, Lucy, and the couple’s child together on a boat in Alaska, a dream Henry has had for quite some years. The fact that Marlin is present at the end of the film says that he condones their marriage and had a large hand in completing their relationship, just as Baptista eventually finds a husband for Katherine.

“I know not what to say; but me your hands. God send you joy, Petruchio! ‘Tis a match” (Baptista, Act II Scn I)

A rich man, Petruchio, comes to the city where Baptista and his daughter live. Lucentio seize the opportunity and strikes a deal with the young suitor - Petruchio will marry Katherine, thereby freeing Bianca to be married as well. Baptista immediately takes to Petruchio and promises him his bride. Lucentio and Bianca eventually become married as do Petruchio and Katherine, all with the blessing of Baptista. Unlike Marlin from “50 First Dates”, however, Baptista’s rules never changed. He is a steadfast figure throughout the entire play, and holds his standards throughout the storyline.

The film “50 First Dates” by director Peter Segal was written hundreds of years after William Shakespeare’s play “The Taming of the Shrew”, yet it still draws heavily from ideas presented in the play. Both texts describe society’s reliance on control and dependence on certainty through their plots, characterizations, and scripts. Both follow a set of young lovers who need to find approval from the fathers of the women in the text. Though the fathers are reacting to different circumstances, they are doing so with the same intentions, and the same outcome. Maybe our society isn’t much different from that of years gone by. Maybe we’re just all trying to find love and approval for that bond.

Works Cited:

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Pp. 84. J. Tonson & the Rest of the Proprietors: London, 1734. Print.

50 First Dates. Dir. Peter Segal. Perf. Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore. Sony Pictures, 2004. Netflix.

Romantic Love / Love at First Sight Alyssa Winner

“Taming of the the Shrew” to “The Wedding Planner”

The book “The Taming of the Shrew” shows, how love at first sight is possible and does occur in both the book and in the movie, “The Wedding Planner. In Shrew by Shakespeare, a character name Baptista who is the father of Katherine and Bianca has different expectations on having a relationship with his daughters. In the 2001 movie “The Wedding Planner”, the two characters Mary Flore & Steve Edison fall in love at first sight when Mary is in a rush and her heal gets caught and she almost gets hit by a dumpster but Steve saves her, and later takes her to the hospital he works at. It is obvious that there is some love connection between them but it turns out, Mary, a wedding planner turns out the be planning Steve and his fiancee’s (Fran) wedding. Love at first sight shows up in the book and also the movie but there are different ways it appears.

Although the film and the book aren’t directly related, they share many of the same qualities. Mary and Steve meet in an awkward situation but right away, it is obvious to the viewers that there is a love connection boiling. In The Shrew, Lucentio who is acting as Cambio to win Bianca over. It is a tough situation because he is lying about who he is to her so she will never know what he is truly about unless he tells her which is unlikely to happen. On the flip side, Steve is doing the same thing by not telling her the he is engaged to another women. This is another bump in the road because he is leading Mary on when the truth is she has no idea what is actually happening. In the book one of the characters says, “I see a woman may be made a fool. if she had not a spirit to resist.” This is saying that since a woman can’t resist the man they are in love with then that will make them a fool. Being in love like that turns them into a fool because there is really no other choice. Everything they say or do goes back to the man they are in love with. Not only does that occur in the book, but it also occurs in the movie. Steve and Mary meet in that weird situation, but from there she is in love. In the snapshot below from the movie, Steve is laying on top of Mary right after he saves her and right before she passes out in his arms. Mary has always been the type to keep away from men and just remain focused on her career, but when Steve saves her in this extremely romantic way it is tough to stay on track and not get lost in the fantasy of love. As you can see, although these scenes don’t match up 100 percent, they are very similar and shows how long love has been a pressing issue in the lives of so many.

In another instance, Mary meets up with Fran at a dancing lesson in preparation for Fran’s wedding but of course things don’t go according to plan when Mary find out that the man she is in love with is also her new gigs fiancee (which is shown in the snapshot below). Similar to the Shrew when Tranio finds a random old man and tricks him into pretending he is Lucentio’s father so that he could take care of some things before Lucentio could marry Bianca. That is until they run into problems when Lucentio’s real father, Vincentio appears in the picture. Both the book and the movie show why it is hard to lie about who you are and the people you are involved with because it indeed in a small world and no matter what precautions you may go through to hide the truth there is always a hole in the fence that will show your true colors. Both Lucentio and Mary were doing everything they could to be with the love of their life but ultimately who knows if it would be worth it or not. In Act 2 Scene 1 of the Shrew, Petruchio is going on a rant about Kate and how they are happy together. He says “If she and I be pleased, what's that to you?” He is trying to say that since they are happy, people need to back off and let them be. During the same scene previously discussed from The Wedding Planner, if Fran would have known about Mary and Steve’s little lingering love affair she would have said the same thing Petruchio said. In both of these stories, there is some jealousy and fear of losing their lovers although they are presented and shown in very different ways.

In conclusion, the movie ended the way the fans wanted, with Mary and Steve being together. It was expected through the whole movie, even through all of the setbacks. The strong love connection shined through and everyone, even Fran ended up happy. On the other hand, in The Taming of the Shrew, Kate says a long speech at her wedding and says many things obtaining to her husband and how he should be treated and how every man should be treated that way. It was unclear whether she was saying those things to make her husband happy or if she actually meant them Overall the movie and the play are extremely similar and have close endings although the characters and their love connections can be drastically different.

Honesty and deception in relationships

In Shakespeare's written play, “The Taming of The Shrew”, I examined it a bit more and found that it very relative to one’s life today. The Mighty Petruchio  was so out to get Katherine, which was perfect because everyone else wanted Bianca. Everyone had dressed up, pretending to be someone else, or rather, pretending to love someone just for the fortune in the play. Just like in the 2009 movie “Confessions of a Shopaholic”, the main character seeks after all the clothes & shoes she can get her hands on, and pretends to be someone she is not. In both movies, It is evident that in one’s relationship, it can be more deception than expected, and can affect two people’s view on one another, so honesty & communication is key.

Each movie and situation is different, but can be connected in many ways. Lucentio and Hortensio dress up to be someone they are not, just so they can win the heart of Bianca. They work to be as close to her as possible, Lucentio dressing up as her Latin Teacher, Hortensio as the Music teacher, and Tranio as Lucentio. They are all suitors of Bianca, and each of them are determined to woo Bianca. In the movie “Confessions of a Shopaholic”, Rebecca Bloomwood is actually a Shopaholic that is drowning in debt. When her closet is filled with all the Gucci bags, Prada shoes, and Chanel coats you can dream of, her mind is crammed with all the overdue bills she is supposed to be paying off. When she goes shopping for a new dress for an interview to get a job at Elitte (a really high-class fancy shmancy Fashion Magazine she has been wanting to work for ever since she was 14), she ends up being denied, and gets another interview at a finance company. This is extremely ironic for her because she isn’t very good with managing money, however, she ace’s the interview and gets a job as a Journalist for a column in the Finance Magazine. Her friend Suze makes a point of how she needs to take her own advice that she metaphorically compares and contrast to fashion in the column, so that she can become debt-free. Rebecca also tells Suze her plan of winning another job at the Elitte magazine industry, since the Financial company she works for now is somewhat owned by Elitte, and she is willing to do anything to work there.

QUOTE:

One rich enough to be Petruchio’s wife—

As wealth is 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.

(65-73)

Here Petruchio describes his ideal wife-a rich woman, who is able to provide a large dowry for himself in the near future. He does not care how rude, stubborn, or upright blunt she is, he is just in it for the riches. He also mentions no matter how wild she is, he is more than able to tame her through the “loving kindness he is determined to woo her with”.

Miss Rebecca felt the same way-just a different message, along with a different approach.

In this scene, Rebecca rushed to the hotdog stand to get cash back, in order to pay for a “magical green scarf” for her interview, that she was unable to pay for with her expired cards. She hurries to the front of the line, cutting in front of everyone, and even pushes her future boss (the guy right next to her in the suit) to get what she needed. This green scarf that she is rushing to get is actually another statement piece a manikin figuratively convinced her to get for this interview, so that she would be later known as “The Girl in the Green Scarf”. Getting this scarf would guarantee her spot in the Elitte magazine industry. Like Petruchio, Rebecca is willing to do anything to get this position, and go through great extent to get it. She will even lie to herself and the hotdog man that this scarf she "needs", is for her great aunt who is very ill.  

QUOTE:

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,

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.

  (V.ii.140–183)

In this scene, Petruchio tells Lucentio to watch as Katherine comes with obedience to him when he calls for her. When she comes, Petruchio already predicted that she will drag Bianca along with her, degrading her behavior towards her husband by not obeying his orders of coming to him. Her persuasive words that she speaks to all of the wives and everyone else in the audience was touching, especially to Petruchio. She explained as to why obeying your husband shows respect towards him, but also there is “too little payment for so great a debt” that is to be payed towards the husband. She shows that she has been somewhat “tamed” by the great Petruchio, and she no longer is the defiant, obstinate, Katherine everyone was very familiar with in the beginning of the play.

   In this part of the movie, Rebecca is walking down the street, past all the beautiful windows of New York with the most beautiful clothing, that she realizes that she doesn’t need. Once again, she was almost tempted by another Manikin that those red sparkly heels were going to go with that green dress she has been dying to wear. However, after selling a large amount of her clothes, hats, shoes, bags, and jewelry to pay for all of her overdue bills, she realizes she doesn’t want to ever feel that way again. She wanted to have control. When Luke stated “What about Honesty? What about credibility?” when he found about who the crazy boyfriend she accused her debt collector to be, she realized something was to happen so she can make everything right again. She persuaded herself at that window that those shiny things aren’t necessary for life, and she go on without them. She broke her old habit of buying, and became a new person. She “tamed” her passion of spending money she doesn’t have. As she walks down the street, the Manikins applaud her for making the right decision, and she later walks into the love of her life, Luke, ending the movie in a romantic kiss.

“The Taming of the Shrew” “No Strings Attached”

In the play “The Taming of the Shrew” Petruchio, one of the main characters, is trying to win over Katherine, a stubborn, misunderstood woman who has no intentions on marrying him, yet he continues to try to pursue her and control her through “love” and “kindness”. This is similar to the modern day movie called “No Strings Attached”. This movie shows a sort of switched analogy with instead of the girl wanting to settle down and commit, the guy wants to, such as in “The Taming of the Shrew”.  Through both the “Taming of the Shrew” and “No Strings Attached”, love can be based off of perspective and not necessarily the sex stereotype of a woman always wanting a man.

In the movie, “No Strings Attached”, Emma and Adam are lifelong friends who never really managed to keep in touch with each other, only speaking to each other when they run into one another occasionally during their adulthood. Until one day Adam finds out that his girlfriend has left him for his dad. Out of deviation, Adam goes to a bar, gets drunk and begins to text all the girls in his phone. The next morning he finds himself at Emma’s house with no clothes on. Assuming that he had sex, Emma explains that he came to her house, undressed himself and then went to sleep. As Emma escorts him to the next room to get his clothes, they end up having sex. When they have sex again, they make an agreement to keep their relationship “causal”. Adam obviously thinks that Emma will fall in love first, assuming that she can’t just have sex without gaining any feelings since women are more likely to gain feelings faster through things like this. She commits to the decision that she won’t and so they agree that they will keep this up with no strings attached.

“Women are made to bare children and so are you.” - Petruchio Act 2, Sc.1,

In the following quote, Petruchio is trying to win over Kate. In doing so, he says the following pick up line to show his attraction for Kate. He wants to get Kate amused by telling her all the opportunities she can have with him including the sexually opportunities. He thinks that if he tries to “woo” her with sexually lines, that she will see him as sweet and take the bait, since she is a woman and women tend to get softened up much quicker than guys do when put in the same predicament. Though Kate fails to fall for it and commits to not wanting a man and feels as though he’s just another guy that wants a woman to slave by him. Just as Emma, in No Strings Attached, relationships tend her make her uncomfortable and she feels as though she doesn’t need a man to make her happy or to fulfill her life. She’s content with the way her life is and finds Adam to be just another distraction in her life that she has to commit to.

In the picture, Emma explains to Adam that she’s not really into relationships and that she would rather continue having sex instead of trying to pursue to the next level. Making commitments and having relationships tend to ruin things and don’t always go the way they’re planned. During and after the conversation, Adam still believes that it’s impossible to keep up with this “causal” relationship, though he tells her that he will back off with trying to date her, yet at the same time, he continues to try to win her over as a boyfriend, subconsciously and when asked about if he’s trying to date her, he continues to deny it. Petruchio and Adam both want to have a woman by their side, yet they don’t understand why it’s taking so long and why it’s so hard to win both women over. They both had the mindset that sweetness and the thought of having a man by the women’s side would surely have the women in their arms by now, but they learn that it’s much harder than they thought but don’t show a drop of sweat.

“‘Moved’, in good time! Let him that moved you hither remove you hence. I knew you at the first you were a moveable.” - Katherine pg. 89 Act 2 Sc. 1

Kate fails to be impressed with the way the Petruchio tries to compliment her and win her over. She feels that she’s only wanted by him because everyone wants her sister. She sees him as every other guy that just uses her to get to her sister. Kate remains to be content with being without a man and refuses to be anyone’s wife. She just doesn’t see Petruchio as any different from every other guy that wants her to quickly marry, to get her out of the way, so that they can get to Bianca instead. Unlike Petruchio, Adam sees Emma for who she is and wants to be with her for who she is.

In this picture, Emma realizes that she actually does have really strong feelings for Adam. She finds that when she’s with him, she’s happier and a better person. She says that all this time she has been denying the way she feels because she was afraid to feel the way she felt, which was love. Emma finally understands that love isn’t meant to be easy and she doesn’t mind trying the new relationship Adam. Just as Emma, Kate found herself falling for Petruchio a little too. With the little things he did, she found them to be how she always wanted to be treated. Everyone saw her as mean and cruel and just misunderstood but Petruchio saw the beauty in her, even if it wasn’t real, the little things made her day and broke her out of her shell more and more.

In conclusion, both Emma and Kate decide to step out of their comfort zone and try something they never thought they would try, being in a relationship. At first they saw relationships as trouble and not worth the time, but once they began to understand Adam and Petruchio, they realized that these two men may be for real. Along with the women having their realization, they men had theirs too. That getting the girl isn’t always easy like they planned. They both just wanted the women just because but as time went on, they found themselves falling for them just as hard. In the end, The Taming of the Shrew and No Strings Attached display how love can play a role in a part that most of us never imagined.

"Taming of the Shrew" By William Shakespeare

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Teion Ensley-Ellerbe

Fire Stream

12/5/13

Think Like Man, Be Compared To A Shrew

Comparing “Taming Of The Shrew” To “Think Like A Man”

In every parents life there comes a time when their child is going to want to date, and even get married. In shakespeare’s “Taming of the Shrew” the father Baptista has a rule with his daughters saying the younger daughter (Bianca) will not be allowed to marry until the elder daughter (Katherine) is wed therefore making it demanding to want find Katherine a husband so that bianca can find her own. In the 2012 film “Think Like a Man” when Michael begins to finally date an older woman named Candace all seems to be going well until she meets his mother Loretta, who skeptical of candace due to the fact that she is a single mother. Using this regard to deem her “not good enough” for her son, like she has done for every other girl that has been with Michael in order to keep her baby boy & not losing him to another woman. Although the play & the movie have clearly different motives they both share the the theme showing that parental involvement play a major in the love choices that their children make sometimes changing them completely. This can also later reflect in the choices their child would make while in the relationship, such as values and self esteem towards suitors and what they are willing to accept.

Since both parents are involved in their childrens dating their motives seem somewhat similar. As Baptista’s motives are to simply what will most profitable for himself & the family fortune in Bianca’s case. However Loretta’s motives stem from her not having a man to spend her time with in her life thus wanting to keep her son around not deeming any woman good enough for her son ultimately because she doesn’t see what she could offer. While both parents attempts to deter the suitors of their children and provide something they do so in different contexts to both better himself standing & in their opinion their child's. Both of these texts show that parental involvement can make or break a relationship standing with the suitors ultimately affecting the relationship drastically for their outcomes entirely.

“Content you, gentlemen; I will compound this strife.

'Tis deeds must win the prize, and he of both 1195

That can assure my daughter greatest dower

Shall have my Bianca's love”

(II,1,1178)

In this scene, 3 the three suitors of  Baptista's younger daughter appear before him & have begun to argue over who should whoo bianca in the end. Baptista quickly steps in to the disagreement between the men and offers the solution that only person who is allowed to win the fair bianca must offer him the best deal to him. In turn while doing this without taking Bianca’s feelings into consideration whatsoever which quickly contrasts with what was said earlier in the play stating that his daughter Katherine, had to be in love before she had gotten married even though she had no suitors due to her shrew like behavior’s while bianca has three. This adds in a laughable element that makes the audience think why is different who the one who has men wanting to be with her ?

In “Think Like A Man” Loretta has found a different way to deal with her son’s suitor

In this first meeting between Michael’s mother and Candace there is immediately tension between Loretta and Candace as she quickly “grills” her on where her baby’s father is, whether is in jail. Sensing the Situation, Michael quickly asks for a tour of the house to maybe lighten the mood. As seen in the screenshot, Michael and Loretta pull away from Candace leaving her completely in the dark as they go over memories with Michael complying and going along with her. This, in turn deters from the real situation at hand which is the fact that michael is supposed to be getting candace more comfortable around his mother, instead what this has done is create Competition between the two for michaels attention and number one place in his life. This battle, ultimately being one by the mother which she even states “Sunday Nights have always been for his mother, and they always will be”. This, in comparison to Shrew is a very different scenario to how the parent deals with the suitor but ultimately gets to the same result. Both Parents have begun to alter the relationships that their children are in and have affected them drastically. For Baptisa, he has chosen to only let be bianca only be married off to the best deal for himself and the rest of the family not letting her get the chance to know the other two men and whether she likes them or not. For Loretta, she has begun a competition for michaels attention in his life for the number one woman in his life, drastically altering how much michael and candace’s relationship may be able to progress since it’s now a competition.

“What, will you not suffer me? Nay, now I see

She is your treasure, she must have a husband;

I must dance bare-foot on her wedding-day,

And for your love to her lead apes in hell.

Talk not to me; I will go sit and weep, 875

Till I can find occasion of revenge.”

(Act II, Scene 1, 875)

In this early scene in taming of the shrew after Baptista has found the older sister Katherine messing with the younger sister Bianca for simply having suitors while she has nothing. Katherine complains that Baptista has some bias towards Bianca and that she is favorite daughter due to the fact she has suitors and is seen as a better person, and in essence can’t compare to her. In addition, this makes Kathrine feel as though she can not compete with her younger sister. Since her sister has suitors falling at her feet and her father has only apparently been showing Love towards her she cannot compete with her sister since she is made out to be this overarching shrew that no one could love or even get along with long enough to try to date. This sets up the irony later in the play that she ends up with a man who eventually “Tames” her and ends up being her perfect match. This reinforces the fact that parental involvement in part of the relationship with their child can affect how the child goes into relationships. In this particular case, this makes Kathrine feel unwanted by even her own father, this goes into her self esteem later in the play when dealing with Petruchio since he is the first man to actually show some type of care, even though it’s cheesy, it’s something for Kathrine which she has no choice but to accept.

The Effects of Parental involvement and favoritism are even seen today in today’s life such as in think like a man

(Had To Use 2 Images To Fully Capture The Emotion)

After picking up Michael’s phone, thinking it’s his work Candace discovers that Michael has never fully put as the number one woman in his life in front of his mother & stop being a “mama’s boy” and beckoning at her every call. Candace then confronts michael stating that she refuses to compete with his mother any longer and that if he can’t put her and her son Duke as a priority in his life instead of his mother then he needed to leave. Candace’s reaction to the fact that she has never truly been the number one woman in the life (as seen in the first photograph) only reinforces the the point that parental involvement can negatively impact a relationship there child may engage later. In this specific instance, because michael is so wrapped up in helping his mother & being with her as much as possible her ends up neglecting and lying to candace in order to keep both parties happy. This calls into question not only michael’s values to see if he fully committed to his relationship or his mother, due to her constant involvement in all his other relationships, it’s second nature for michael to immediately put his mother first instead of beginning to grow up.

Although things work out in both “Taming Of The Shrew” & “Think Like A Man” for Katherine & Michael/Candace this comes back to drive home the point that audiences want to see a happy ending. Petruchio ends up not having that many concerns with Baptisa in “Shrew” because, his parental involvement complies with Petruchio so that he can marry Katherine. Michael on the other hand, comes out with a new sense of pride after finally realizes that he is a grown man and that he must put his focuses in other places, instead of his mother no matter how much she try’s to take up his life time. Overall, these movies show that society feels like dating can be a lot of things, from over dramatic and complicated to a very simplistic with minimal things interfering. Society has many definitions for many things, dating has so many separate meaning for many people for parents, it means the losing of their child and their innocence as well realizing that their child is growing up to be what they want or not, they come to terms and accept it, some better than others. Dating in this society is simply a stage of maturing, growing up and finding yourself as well as someone who can suit who you are and your needs, this is seen in Both “Shrew” & “Think Like A Man”.

Bibliography:

1. Shakespeare, William, and Thomas Goddard Bergin. The Taming of the Shrew;. New Haven: Yale UP, 1954. Print.

2. “Think Like A Man”.Dir.Tim Story.Prod.Will Packer.2010.

It is said that, love is when two individuals come to appreciate who their partner for who and what he or she is, that they cannot see what their life would be without them. However, in Shakespeare's The Taming of A Shrew and in the romantic-comedy Think Like A Man, love is formed through change. Couples do not love each other for who they are, they love each other for who they become.

In The Taming of the Shrew, there were two women from a family of fortune named Katherine and Bianca. Katherine was the older sister and seen by the kingdom as demonic and evil. Bianca, the younger sister, was viewed as an angel and had suitors all across the land. In order for Bianca to wed, first Katherine would have to be wed. Lucentio and Grumio were both suitors of Bianca who wanted Katherine to marry so that one of them would could have Bianca’s hand. They called upon a man named Petruchio who agreed to take Katherine’s hand in marriage. He set forth an illusion to her father that she had agreed to his proposal, at which he had his blessing. Once they were wed, Petruchio began to act extremely controlling, somewhat similar to how Katherine was portrayed. As time went by, Katherine began to be more and more passive. At a diner party she stated “ Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper…” The demonic Katherine has been humbled by seeing almost a reflection of herself in Petruchio. Petruchio has taken ownership of her, and her love for him forced her to change for him. Zeke’s situation was similar while he was talking to his friend about the status in his relationship. He was saying that he was done with the constant talking, dates, and feelings. He said “I just want to hit! And if she think imma wait thirty more days to get the cookie, she gonna be waiting by herself.” His friend questioned him and realized that Zeke really did like her. He then teased him a little bit and hung up. When Zeke went to go break up with Mya, she mentioned something that made him reconsider his action. His escalating feelings for Mya have forced him to stay with her that much more, his craving for sex is starting to diminish and the more they do, the more feelings Mya has toward Zeke as well.    

In Think Like A Man, Mya had broken up with Zeke because she thought that all he wanted was a sexual relationship with her. After doing some reminiscing he realized that he truly did want a real relationship with Mya. He confronted her at a music bar where he explained his true feelings toward her by saying “Mya I love you... I’m in love with you… I’ve never said that to anyone in my life.” Once she realized that Zeke was no longer the sex craving player he once was, she knew she was able to accept him as her boyfriend once again. Taming of the Shrew had a similar ending. When he told his wife to come forth, she came out and let it be known to everyone that Petruchio has tamed her. She said “Thy husband is thy lord, thy life, thy keeper…” Her love has forced her to give up her dark, demonic ways and humble herself to Petruchio, similar to how Zeke humbled himself to Mya.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

(Act 2, Scene 1, Line 234 )

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

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

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

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

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

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

BiB:

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

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

Shrew’s Playbook

Comparing “Taming of the Shrew” to “The Silver Linings Playbook”

William Shakespeare wrote many amazing plays, one of which is The Taming Of The Shrew. To of the many main characters are Katherine and Petruchio. Many, many years after the play a movie was made by David O. Russell called The Silver Linings Playbook. Main characters in the movie are Pat and Tiffany.

In Shrew, Katherine is Petruchio’s lover who goes out of his way to win her but Katherine acts as if she wants nothing to do with him. In Silver Linings Playbook, the Tiffany also sets out to win her love, however she is more open to Pat, who actually wants to get back with his ex-wife

Katherine and Tiffany have the same target in both stories but strategies used are quite different. Tiffany wants someone that actually wants someone else, this causes Tiffany to use different strategies to lure in her loved one. The two conditions show how the tactics used to lure someone have changed over the years. This reflects that the tactics used by women have gotten more efficient to the point where they are standing up for their love.

In The Silver Lining Playbook, Tiffany is a widow and a recovering drug addict. She falls in love with Ted, who was just released from a mental health facility back into his parents house. The two meet over dinner at Tiffany’s sisters house, where Pat gets to know more about Tiffany. She later feels tired and asks Pat to walk her home. When they arrive in front of her house Tiffany right away says that Pat can have sex with her. Pat is stunted by her reply because all he wants is to have a friendly relationship with his wife. This shows that female are now more willing and more open to the mind of men.

Tiffany agrees to give the letter to his wife only if he enter a dance competition with her because her husband couldn’t. Pat aggres and this gives tiffany the opportunity to spend more time and be much closer to Pat. Tiffany uses the strategy of doing something and getting something in return to get Pat closer to her. This is similar and different to the way Katherine tries to win Petruchio. They both are trying to win someone just in opposite ways. Katherine’s strategy is to act as if she doesn’t want Petruchio and Tiffany’s strategy is to be more open and do things for Pat.

Over the years females behavior and tactics used to win their loved ones have changed. Before they were too shy and careful to say the way they truly felt about someone but now females stand up to the person they love and are less cautious.

Work cited

The Silver Lining Playbook. Dir. David O. Russell. Perf. Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper. Mirage Enterprises and The Weinstein Company, 2012.

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

Parents & Marriage= Nightmare

Catherine downgraded and embarrassed Montana a tremendous amount by saying she should marry Langston. She had never met Langston before yet, she was ready to marry her daughter off to him. When Catherine did that she made it clear that she wanted a husband for Montana and she didn't care who it was,

Bianca, Katherine and their father are in their home talking about the marriage situation. Bianca has made it clear that she really wants to get married and Katherine is in her way. The three begin to argue about. Baptista is taking Bianca’s side and is telling Katherine that she has a devilish spirit.

“What, will you not suffer me? Nay, now I see. She is your treasure, she must have a husband;"

(Act l, Scene ii, 75)

Katherine is feeling so low and pushed to the side its caused her to fight with her father. She tells him what shes feeling inside and she’s not a “devil.” Baptista thinks hes doing whats best for his daughters but he’s really doing whats best for just for Bianca. He’s not taking the time to figure of what shes acting the way she does or why she has just said that she feels like Bianca is her treasure. Not once does Baptista ask Katherine if she wants to get married or if she wants Bianca to get married first. Baptista is pushing Katherine away by forcing her to marry and she will continue to angry with him or resent what he’s forcing her to do.

Much like in “Shrew” Montana’s younger sister was big on marriage and  just  became engaged.

Montana was in her apartment when her mother and sister barged in with “big news.” Sheree was only a sophomore in college and she was engaged to the star football player. Her mother told her because he had so much money and such a bright future she had nothing to worry about so she accepted the invitations.

When Montana saw the ring and heard the announcement she knew her mother was going to pressure her into getting married. Montana’s mother knew her youngest daughter was ready for marriage she told her to do it for the wrong reason. If she continues to push Montana the same way as she pushed Sheree none of their marriages will last and both daughter will be full of anger with their mother.

In both “Shrew” and “Baggage Claim” a lot of themes were introduced over the course of the book/movie. The themes ranged from parental interference, societies attitude towards courtship/dating, honesty and deception in relationships and more. The main focus was parental push. Parental push in dating and marriage will mostly likely always end in disaster. Mainly because parents will pick a person that will make them happy and not their sons or daughters.  

Citations

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew;. New York: Washington Square, 1992. Print.

Talbert, David E. "Watch Baggage Claim Online | Watch Full Baggage Claim (2013)."Baggage Claim. Watch32, n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2013.