Be Kind, or Be Cruel

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

“The Taming of the Shrew” tells a story of romance between an unusual man name Petruchio and an ill-mannered woman named Katherine. Petruchio uses Katherine as a part of his plan, to marry and receive riches. In “SIlver Linings Playbook”, Bradley Cooper plays Pat, a former teacher who moves back in with his parents after  astint in a mental instituion.. Jennifer Lawrence plays Tiffany, a girl who just lost her husband. She’s also friends with Nikki, Pat’s wife. Pat uses Tiffany as a part of his plan to get back with his wife Nikki.

As I read “Taming of the Shrew” and watched “Silver Linings Playbook”, I noticed that both Petruchio and Pat used the same tactic to manipulate women, to only receive what they wanted. In the relationships, both males only wish to benefit themselves, and not the female. The males have different reasons and they have different ways of getting to their goal. Petruchio use the tactic of being mean, and Pat uses the tactice of being kind. These texts both show that real love doesn’t exist, and that no matter the time period men only use love as a way to get what they want.

Quote #1

"Petruchio: Good Lord, how bright and godly shines the moon!

Katherine: The moon? The sun! It is moonlight now.

Petruchio: I say it is the moon that shines so bright.

Katherine: I know it is the sun that shines so bright

Hortensio: Say as he says, or we shall never go

Katherine: Forward, I pray, since we have come so far,"

Act 4, Scene 5, Lines 3- 7, 14-15 (Pages 185 & 186)

In this part of the play,  Petruchio and Katherine plan on going to see her father. In these lines, Petruchio and Katherine argue about what time of the day it is. Because Katherine is so mean, Petruchio gives her a taste of her own medicine, in a way to tame her. He does this manipulate her into liking him, in a way of love. Once he could do that, he could marry her, and get her riches.

Image #1

In this scene from “Silver Linings Playbook”, Pat and Tiffany go out to eat dinner. Tiffany sees this as a sign of love. Pat uses the dinner date as a way to get close to Tiffany, so he can get close to Nikki.

Unlike Petruchio, Pat is nice to Tiffany, so she can like him. Once Pat gets her to like him. He can get close to Nikki, because like said before, Tiffany is good friends with Nikki.

Quote #2

"Thus have I begun my reign,

And ‘tis my hope to end successfully.

My falcon is now sharp and passing empty,

And till she stoop, she must not be full-gorged

For then she never looks upon her lure.

Another way I have to man my haggard,

To make her come and know her keeper’s call."

Act 4, Scene 1, Lines 188- 194 (Page 151)

In this part of the play, Petruchio speaks of how he’s going to starve Katherine. In thes elines he explains why he’s going to do this. In line 190 he says “My falcon now is sharp and passing empty”. When he says falcon, he’s talking about Katherine, calling Katherine his falcon. When he says “sharp and passing empty”, he’s saying that she’s very hungry. When he says “And till she stoop”, stoop means fly directly to the keeper or to the prey, saying that Katherine will fly to him. When he says “For then she never looks upon her lure”, lure means the bait held by the keeper, Petruchio being the keeper. Petruchio is going to make sure she doesn’t know what they have isn’t real. When he says “Another way I have to man my haggard, man my haggard means to train a falcon, like said before, Petruchio is calling Katherine his falcon. In the last line when he says “To make her come and know her keeper’s call” he means Katherine come back to him when he wants. Petruchio does this cruel act so he can have control over Katherine. If he has control over Katherine, she won’t act so ill-mannered, and he can marry her. Once he marries her, he can get her riches, what he really wanted.

Iamge #2

This scene is from the beginning of the movie, when Pat and Tiffany first meet. Pat gives Tiffany a compliment on how she looks nice. After she replied saying “Thank you”, he said he wasn’t flirting with her. Pat said he was saying she looked nice as “practice”. This “practice”  was for him to better hisself so he could get back to his wife. This was when Pat realized he could use Tiffany to his advantage.

Again, Pat uses the tactic of being nice, unlike Petruchio. Right here, this is the beginning of how

“Taming of the Shrew” and “Silver Linings Playbook” are prime examples of how men use love on females to get what they want. They show that it may seem real, but it isn’t true love. Being that they were from two different time periods, that shows that things still haven’t changed about men using love on women to benefit themselves.

Forrest Gump is a romantic-comedy-drama film created in 1994. The story follows the life Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks), who is a dim-witted, but kind-hearted and athletic man from Alabama. Between the time of his birth in 1944 and 1982, Forrest witnesses and in some instances, influences key defining points in the latter half of the 20th century. It would be remissive however to not acknowledge the importance of Jenny Curran (Robin Wright). Jenny Curran is Forrest Gump’s childhood friend and love interest, though her role transcends these titles. Throughout the whole movie Jenny always turns to Forrest in her time of need. This is crucial because in spite of all of her failed relationships she always turned to Forrest for solace and comfort. Even though this movie is a “romantic-comedy” it is centered around an atypical romance. Similar to this, the shakespearean play, “The Taming of the Shrew” offers a plethora of atypical romances. One particular atypical romance is between the two characters Katherine and Petruchio. The reason for this relationship being atypical is that neither Katherine and Petruchio particularly care for eachother. As displayed in both The Taming of the Shrew and Forrest Gump, these unusual relationships reflect that nobody has a set definition of love or romance.

QUOTE #1

“I will be master of what is mine own.

She is my goods, my chattels; she is my house,

My household stuff, my field, my barn,

My horse, my ox, my ass, my anything.

And here she stands, touch her whoever dare.”- Petruchio (3.2.235-239)

In this scene, Petruchio’s words about Katherine exemplifies his true feelings. Petruchio sees Katherine as nothing more than property. This can be supported by the words “She is my goods.” He is comparing Katherine to a material possession and neglecting the fact that she is a human being.

IMAGE #1

Jenny goes from being angry at Forrest for killing the mood with her momentary lover, to talking to Forrest about her hopes and dreams. While she is doing this she is undressing in front of him. Jenny then goes on to ask him if he “had ever been with a girl” and guides his hand to feel her naked breast. This symbolizes that Jenny views Forrest as a “second option” or a “back up plan”

Comparison:

These two scenes are similar because because both Forrest and Katherine are used to suit the needs of both Petruchio and Jenny. However the difference between the two scenes is that Jenny uses Forrest as something to fall back on when any relationship she has fails, in order to ease the pain of her loneliness and Petruchio objectifies Katherine not for emotional purposes, but for the pursuit of domination and power.

QUOTE #2

“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.

I tell you, 'tis incredible to believe

How much she loves me. O, the kindest Kate!”- Petruchio (2.1.321-326)

In this scene, Petruchio is lying about both Katherine’s love towards him and Kate agreeing to marry him. The fact that Petruchio says “Tis bargained ‘twixt us twain, being alone,” shows two things. The word “bargained” shows that Petruchio treats this “marriage” as a deal, rather than a mutual love. Another thing that can be seen is that Petruchio’s lie shows that he doesn’t value Katherine’s opinion or her love. He doesn’t even value her hand in marriage, but rather the title that comes with it.

IMAGE #2

In this scene, Forrest says to Jenny, “Will you marry me?...I’d make a good husband Jenny.” Jenny then responds with “You would Forrest….You don’t want to marry me.” This prompts Forrest to ask “Why don’t you love me Jenny?” Even though Jenny later tells Forrest that she does love him, this doesn’t dismiss the fact that Forrest feels unloved. Even though Forrest gives 100% into his pursuit of Jenny, he feels as though he is not getting what he truly seeks, and that is Jenny’s love. Jenny realizes this as well, as shown in her statement “you don’t want to marry me.” Jenny feels as though Forrest doesn’t know what he would be getting into if they were to get married and the statement “you don’t want to marry me” serves as a warning to Forrest. However, this should not be taken as Jenny not being interested in marrying Forrest, but rather her wanting what is best for him.

Comparison:

These two scenes show that Katherine doesn’t want to marry Petruchio for the fact that he doesn’t value her as a person or what’s best for her. Jenny on the other hand, doesn’t want Forrest to marry her for the fact that she thinks Forrest deserves better. Both the film and the book show that traditional means of romance don’t necessarily need to be involved in these relationships in order for them to work.

Conclusion:

As shown in both The Taming of the Shrew and Forrest Gump, no one has a set definition of romance. Through both of the atypical relationships between Forrest and Jenny and Katherine and Petruchio, it is shown that for some reason these relationships work out in the end, where both Forrest and Jenny and Katherine and Petruchio end up getting married (respectively in the the book and movie). Despite what society believes as an ideal romance or relationship, there aren’t any. Just as people are unique and different, so are romances and relationships.

Ideas About Love Transcend Time

By Tianna McNair

“Taming of the Shrew” and “Brown Sugar”

“The Taming of the Shrew”,written by Shakespeare, is about a bunch of suitors, dressed in disguise, trying to compete for a young girl's hand in marriage. Her father, the king, would not allow her to be married off until her older sister Katherine was married first. The majority of the play centers around the a man named Petruchio and how he managed to turn a feisty women into a dainty lady. This fifthteenth century play addresses ideas about love and expectation that are present  in the 2002 film, Brown Sugar. Taye Diggs and Sanaa Lathan both star in Brown Sugar, which is about two childhood friends that reconnect. Sidney, played by Sanaa Lathan, feels a way when she finds out the Dre suddenly gets engaged. One thing that is pretty consistent throughout the movie is the idea that women seek mainly to please the man because it is expected of them. Marriage is not really about love but more so about control and based off of expectations set by gender roles for men and women.

To help better explain, look at  Act iii of Taming of the Shrew.  Petruchio and Katherine get married and arrive at Petruchio's house. Here Petruchio decides to "tame" Katherine by depriving her of many things.

"But for my bonny Kate, she must with me. Nay, look not big, nor stamp, nor stare, nor fret; I will be master of what is mine own. She is my goods, my chattels; she is my house, My household stuff, my field, my barn, My horse, my ox, my ass. my anything, And here she stands, touch her whoever dare”

In this scene, Petruchio makes it very clear that he is the one in control of the relationship. He controls when she eats or sleeps,and even what she wears. He then goes on to compare Katherine to a bunch of different objects. This directly shows that she is a possession to him.

Over the past 423 years, there has not been many changes to the way that men and women perceive love, relationships, and marriage. Men still think that women are there for their pleasure and in ways still object them. Petruchio, from Taming of the Shrew, says that Katherine has to be delicate and submissive while Dre, from Brown Sugar, says that his wife needs to be sexually submissive which is another way of objectifying her.

In this upcoming scene, Sidney and Dre are hanging out and Sidney asks Dre how did he know that his fiance is “the one”. He goes on to explain to her his reasoning.

“You know, we all looking for wifey material. A woman that's fine, smart, classy, but not a snob. You know, hella... hella sexy, but not a ho. That's brown sugar. That's my Reesey. I mean, don't get confused by her business suit. She is a freak in the bedroom…”

Dre describes what he seems to think that all men look for in a woman. He is saying he scored because he found a woman like that. In both the play and the movie, the male lead seem to use the male expectation of their time to objectify the women in their lives. In present day men are encouraged to be hypersexualized, Dre demonstrates that activity when talking about Reese because he never mentioned a thing about her personality or even loving her. In the play Petruchio objectifies Katherine but takes a different approach in doing so. He speaks of Katherine in a very possessive way. He talks about how she is like the things he owns which shows that she is less than a human, an object, because there is no positive connotation associated with a person claiming to own another person.

Petruchio was very set on trying to get Katherine to agree with marrying him. On page 95 he went on a small rant.

"Marry, so mean, sweet Katherine, in thy bed. And therefore, setting all this chat aside, Thus in plain terms: your father hath consented That you shall be my wife, your dowry ‘greed on, And, will you, nill you, I will marry you. Now, Kate, I am a household for turn, For by this light, whereby I see thy beauty, Thy beauty that doth make me like thee well, Thou must be married to no man but me. For I am he am born to tame you, Kate, And bring you from a wild Kate to a Kate Conformable as other household Kates.”

In this piece of dialogue, Petrucio blantly says that he wants to marry Katherine and spends his time thinking of a way to make Katherine submissive. In many movies today and even in real life people will be attracted to someone but try to tweak their personality to make it more appealing to them instead of finding someone who they were ok with from the beginning. Another way that this scene from the play seems to be showing that marriage is not about love because Katherine and Petruchio are pretty much very similar as far as their wild, violent, and straightforward behavior. This makes it hard to understand why he would want so badly to change would her when it would seem more fitting for him to be in love with the idea of having a woman who is just like him.

In this next scene Dre and Sidney are talking and bonding after they find  out that Reese has been cheating on him.

“Something happened between me leaving the house… and, uh… getting to the wedding. But, you know, I shook it off, 'cause, damn, I had a beautiful woman that loved me to death. So, you know, I took all those feelings and... locked them away, 'cause not everybody can marry their one true love. It was a pretty difficult situation.”

When Dre says that not everybody can marry their one and true love then it automatically goes to show that marriage is not about love. Perhaps he married her because she is successful or maybe even because of her looks but either way love was not in it. There is also the possibility that her married her simply because it is expected for a man of his age to do so. The theme of marrying because you have to not because you want to is present in The Taming of the Shrew. Katherine did not want to get married but she had to because of her father and the societal norms of that time.

In man ways people today are different from the people of the past. But male and female expectations in relationships transcends time. Although “Brown Sugar” and “The Taming of the Shrew” are two completely different stories in two completely different time periods the dynamics of the relationships in both stories are similar. They both prove that society on a large scale affects the way that people approach different things, in this case relationships. So something as timeless as the male’s role when dating or marrying a woman makes it so a man from the fiffthteenth centry and a man from present share the similar ideas about love.

    "Taming of the Shrew", a movie about love that has been around for a long time. "How to Lose a Guy In 10 Days", a recent movie about breaking up with a guy in a limited time. Both of these pieces have their characters go through trial and error when it comes to love and show us different yet similar sides of love.

    In both "Taming of The Shrew" and "How to Lose a Guy In 10 Days", deception is key point for the relationships of main characters. In "The Shrew", Lucentio, a guy who has fallen in love with a girl named Bianca, who dresses up as an education instructor in order to gain her love. While a man named Petruchio, who is trying to gain Katherine’s love breaks a promise he made to her father of having Katherine fall in love before having her marry him.

    In "10 Days", Andie, a woman currently working for a magazine was given a task that needed to be completed in 10 days, which was to lose a guy that has grown attached to her. She chose Benjamin as the guy she would "lose". These two texts are different because in “The Shrew” , Petruchio’s trying to gain Katherine’s in order to gain the riches he will, but in “10 days” the main character is trying to drive a guy away in a limited amount of time. However, they are more similar than different because by the end of both these pieces someone eventually falls in love because love eventually blooms, even through the deception, because in the end they have truth to make up for it.

“Lucentio: I told you before… I am Lucentio… son unto Vincentio of Pisa, and that “Lucentio” comes a-wooing… is my man Tranio… bearing my port… that we might beguile the old pantaloon.

Bianca: I know you not… I trust you not… take heed he hear us not… presume not… despair not”

(Act 3, Scene 1, Lines 33-47, Lucentio and Bianca’s Dialogue)

In “The Shrew” a lot of deception occurs and in this scene, Lucentio reveals who he actually is. Bianca is not fond of the idea that he did hide who he was, but was willing to let him know that he still had a chance to be with her. Unlike Bianca, both Andie and Benjamin were not fond of deceiving one another. It is clear in this scene that Bianca is ok with the way Lucentio and the others deceived her. She was willing to give him a chance because she was in such a rush to fall in love and get married.

Compared to Bianca and Lucentio, Andie and Ben are not in a place where they want to fall in love, but due to a bet and an article, they eventually do causing a huge break down in their relationship.

    At this point if “10 days”, Andie finds out about the bet Benjamin made and Benjamin finds out about the article that Andie was going to write. Both parties get angry at one another for the setup, but walk away with raw emotions. Compared to “The Shrew”, Andie walked away during this fight, unlike Katherine who

sticks by Petruchio’s side even though he always treated her like trash. Katherine stuck around even though she was given a chance to run away. Andie on the other hand did not accept being toyed around the way she was, but neither did Benjamin.

“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”

(Act 5, Scene 2, Lines 17-20 Katherine’s Dialogue)

    When the final scene in the book came around, Katherine was the first wife to follow her husband’s orders and come to him first while dragging the other wives with her. She then goes into a speech on how a woman should treat her husband and how those women who refused to go to their husbands should be ashamed of themselves. In “The Shrew” Katherine confessed her “love” to Petruchio, but he did not do the same. The reason for that is that he does not love her because all he wanted in the first place was the land and money he would get by marrying her. The difference in these two scenes is that in “10 days” both Benjamin and Andie love each other, but difference in “The Shrew” Katherine only “loves” Petruchio and he does not “love” her back.

Unlike in “The Shrew”, in “10 days” both of the main characters show a strong love for one another by the end of the movie.

By the end of the movie, Andie has published her article on “How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days”.  When a friend of Benjamin’s reads the article, he hands it to Ben to read. As he scans the article he sees that Andie talks about being in love with Ben and he decides to go after her. They soon confront each other about their love and get together.  Even through what they have done to one another, they looked back on what had happened within the 10 days they had been together, making them forget about the bad and embrace their love. Although in both pieces, the characters confess their love, the one person who did not do so was Petruchio, he was the only one who had yet to say I love you in some sort of way to Katherine and mean it.

Dirty Dancing with the Shrew

Dirty Dancing in Relation to The Taming of the Shrew

In the play “The Taming of the Shrew” Baptista, the father of two unwed daughters Bianca and Katherine, has to decide who his children will marry. Similar to the 1987 movie “Dirty Dancing,” Dr. Jake Houseman, the father of the main character Baby and her sister Lisa, places his input on who he thinks are right for his daughters to date. However in “Shrew” Baptista has the final say on the spouses of his daughters while in “Dirty Dancing” Dr. Houseman does not. What causes the difference between these two stories is the time period. When “Shrew” was written in 1593, it was traditional for parents to have a very heavy influence, if not total control on who their children would marry. But times had changed when “Dirty Dancing” was introduced in 1987, as people had more freedom to marry who they loved rather than who their parents approved of.

Despite this change in a new era of romance, both men went through similar situations. They each thought they knew who was best for their daughters, but in the end were fooled by false outer appearances and personalities. This revealed that the men they thought were best, were actually conniving, indifferent, and uncaring for the love of their daughters.

"Content you, gentlemen. I will compound this strife.

‘Tis deeds must win the prize, and he of both

That can assure my daughter greatest dower

Shall have my Bianca's love. "

Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 361-365

This line of the play is spoken by Baptista, father of Katherine and Bianca. In this scene he is addressing Bianca’s potential suitors and saying that whoever can offer the greatest dowry, will be chosen to marry Bianca. Of course, he is doing this in good faith thinking that whoever has the most material possessions will be able to provide what is best for his daughter. What he was not thinking of was who would be able to provide for the emotional well-being of Bianca. He saw the wealthy men and did not put a second thought into how they would treat Bianca as a person. It is interesting to look back and see what parents valued in the spouses of their children compared to today, and notice it is not as different as one would think.

Continuing this thought, Baptista’s thought process is very similar to the mindset of Dr. Houseman in Dirty Dancing. While staying at a resort during the summer, he sets his daughter Baby up on a date with a wealthy young man. This is to keep her away from a lower class dancer named Johnny Castle, who he thinks is rebellious and a bad influence. He only sees Johnny’s rugged, “bad boy” exterior, and not how he acts around Baby.

In the first screenshot, Dr. Houseman is telling Johnny to stay away from Baby. At this point in the movie he is aware that they have been spending time together and definitely does not approve of it. In order to keep the two apart he sets Baby up with a wealthy young man named Neil Kellerman. In the second screenshot, Neil and Baby are on a date and Neil is talking about his accomplishments. As shown, he considers himself “the catch of the county,” and continuously tries to woo baby with his wealth, education, and social status; she is never impressed. She would much rather be with someone who connects with her on an emotional level and values her goals in life than someone who can offer her material possessions. It is sad but true that her father can see that as he persists in keeping Baby away from Johnny. He is blinded by Johnny’s inability to climb the social ladder and cannot see the support he gives Baby in every aspect of life.

"Thus in plain terms: your father hath consented

That you shall be my wife, your dowry ‘greed on,

And will you, nill you, I will marry you"

Act 2, Scene 1, Line 261-272

In this scene, Petruchio, Katherine’s only suitor, has tricked Baptista into approving of him and letting him marry Katherine for love. He is telling Katherine that no matter how she feels or what she does they will be married against her will. This is a direct example of how Baptista’s judgement of Petruchio was wrong and skewed. He thought that Petruchio was best fit for Katherine but in reality Baptista set his daughter up with a misogynistic, demanding, and overall awful person. Petruchio portrayed his relationship with Katherine as one of love even though she openly rejected him multiple times. He was able to influence the mindset of her friends and family into thinking that even though she hated Petruchio publicly, when they were in private she practically worshipped him. It is later shown after they are married the physical and emotional abuse Petruchio forces upon Katherine.  If Baptista knew about the maltreatment of Katherine, he would have never let Petruchio marry his daughter. But because of Petruchio’s charm and false pretenses, Baptista was tricked into thinking he was the perfect fit for Katherine.

This type of relationship is comparable to that of Baby’s sister Lisa. Dr. Houseman approved of the boy he set her up with named Robbie Gould, as he came from a wealthy family and had a promising future ahead of him. However, Dr. Houseman did not see the abuse Robbie placed on Lisa behind the scenes of their relationship.

In this screenshot Robbie states, “Some people count, some people don’t.” This particular quote speaks volumes of his true character which he hid from Dr. Houseman. When talking with Dr. Houseman, Robbie appeared to be the paradigm of gentlemen, but this was a different story when Houseman was away. In this particular scene Robbie is addressing Baby while no one else is around and reveals his true motives to her. Much like Petruchio to Baptista, Robbie has no trouble manipulating Dr. Houseman to see him as an upstanding citizen, working during the Summer and going to medical school in the Fall. However in reality he had been sleeping around and exploiting women for his own pleasure. Dr. Houseman was never suspicious of his behavior until he accidentally revealed himself at the end of the movie. If it were not for this happening Dr. Houseman would in no way learned that Robbie was not what he claimed to be. After discovering this, he opens his heart and sees that the choices he made may not have been the best for Lisa and Baby, showing that he truly cares for his daughter and not just for material possessions.

Both fathers thought they did what was right for their daughters, but in the end were wrong in their assumptions. While the play and the movie tell the same tale of parental influence on relationships, Dr. Houseman was able to change his ways and recognize his mistakes. As Baptista went through the same experiences, he did not see that his influence was wrong for both of his daughters. This, in part, is caused by the time difference of both stories. Culturally, the idea of parents having a say on who their children will marry has been a staple in society, although it has become less authoritative over time.  As Baptista has complete dominance over his daughters’ marriages, Dr. Houseman can only give his input on who his daughters should go out with. This shows that the idea and seriousness of love is constantly changing with time, as well as how people interpret it. But it also shows that parents will always have some type of influence on their children's spouses.