The movie “10 Things I Hate About You” is a modern day adaptation of the William Shakespeare play “The Taming of the Shrew”. Although the movie is set in present day, the story line still closely follows that of the original play. In both pieces, Bianca is the desirable young woman who has many suitors and fathers who will not allow her to marry until her older sister, Katherine, does. In an effort to woo Bianca and win her hand in marriage, Petruchio sets out to tame Katherine and make her more agreeable.
There are several key similarities between “The Taming of the Shrew” and “10 Things I Hate About You”. Both works feature a strong female lead who is initially uninterested in marriage and is resistant to the advances of suitors. In addition, both pieces feature a father who is concerned with finding husbands for his daughters and making sure that they are provided for financially.
However, there are also several key differences between the two works. “The Taming of the Shrew” is set in medieval times, while “10 Things I Hate About You” is set in modern day. In addition, “The Taming of the Shrew” ends with Katherine agreeing to marry Petruchio and the two living happily ever after, while “10 Things I Hate About You” ends with Bianca marrying Cameron and Katherine remaining single.
Despite the fact that “The Taming of the Shrew” and “10 Things I Hate About You” are different works set in different time periods, they both offer a look at the power dynamics between men and women and the institution of marriage. In both cases, the women are ultimately tamed and forced into submission by the men in their lives. While “The Taming of the Shrew” may be seen as a misogynistic work, “10 Things I Hate About You” offers a more modern take on the same story, with a more empowered female lead.
In the movie “10 Things I Hate About You”, there are a number of similarities to the William Shakespeare play “The Taming of the Shrew”. Most notably, these have to do with power relationships, courtship and dating, and sisters. The main characters in both pieces share similar personalities: Bianca is played as an innocent teenager while Kate is characterized as spiteful and bad tempered. Even their father remains strict in both versions. As such, it’s no surprise that the themes present in each story are also quite alike.
In “The Taming of the Shrew”, there are a lot of conversations that talk about how women should be submissive to their husbands and how they are not as good as men. In the movie, there is a conversation between Patrick and Kat where he tells her that she needs to learn how to be less independent and more girly. This is similar to what Petruchio said to Katherine in Shakespeare’s play. He told her that she should start acting more like a woman and less like a man. Another theme in both pieces is courtship and dating.
In “The Taming of the Shrew”, Petruchio goes out of his way to woo Katherine even though she is very uninterested. He does things like starve her and keep her up all night. In the movie, Patrick also does things to try to make Kat notice him. He sends her flowers and writes her poems. The last theme that is similar is sisterhood. In both pieces, the sisters do not get along very well. Bianca is always trying to one-up Kate and Kate is always putting Bianca down. This is a lot like Katherine and Bianca in “The Taming of the Shrew”. They are always fighting and arguing with each other.
Even though “10 Things I Hate About You” is a modern day movie, it has a lot of similarities to “The Taming of the Shrew”. The characters, themes, and plot are all very similar. It is interesting to see how a movie that was made over 400 years after the play was written can still have so many similarities.
A theme shared between these works is that multiple people want to date the same person. In “The Taming of the Shrew,” this manifests as two boys fighting over Bianca, which is mirrored in Shakespeare’s writing. Both plots share the general idea of a younger sister being forbidden from dating/marrying before her older sibling does so, but there are also similarities and differences in theme and characters.
In Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, there is an ongoing fight for Bianca’s love between Lucentio and Hortensio. In the movie, there is a similar fight between Cameron and Joey. Both girls have multiple suitors vying for their affections. However, in the movie, Bianca is more interested in finding someone who can make her happy, while in Shakespeare’s writing, she seems to be more concerned with marrying someone wealthy.
There are also differences in the characters of Kate and Bianca. In the movie, Bianca is shown as being popular and kind-hearted, while Kate is considered to be rude and unpopular. In Shakespeare’s writing, Kate is the more popular sister, while Bianca is considered to be boring. However, both girls end up with the man they love in the end.
The theme of taming is also present in both pieces. In the movie, this is shown when Patrick tries to change Kat’s ways so that she will be more likeable. In Shakespeare’s writing, Petruchio attempts to tame Kate so that she will be a more obedient wife. However, in the movie, it is clear that Kat does not want to change, while in Shakespeare’s writing, Kate seems to enjoy being tamed by Petruchio.
Both the movie and Shakespeare’s writing have similar plots and themes. However, there are also some key differences between the two pieces. The movie is more light-hearted, while Shakespeare’s writing is more serious. The characters in the movie are also more relatable, while the characters in Shakespeare’s writing are more complex.
In the movie “10 Things I Hate About You”, it is more apparent that Kate resents Bianca for being their father’s favorite. It is obvious to her that Bianca is appreciated more than her. One of the most noticeable power relationships in the movie is between Batista and his daughters Kate and Bianca, shown when he makes it clear that Bianca isn’t allowed to marry until after Kate does, even though they are only allowed to date.
This is a way for him to have more control over his daughters. The fact that Bianca’s boyfriend, Cameron, must find a date for Kate in order for him to be able to date Bianca, shows how much power Batista has over his daughter’s lives. It is interesting that in the movie, Patrick is the one who tames Kat. In the play, it was Petruchio who did the taming.
This could be because in Shakespeare’s time it would have been seen as unacceptable for a woman to tame a man. By having Patrick tame Kat, it makes it more acceptable to a modern audience. Another difference between the movie and the play is that in the movie, there is no mention of Bianca’s dowry, whereas in the play it is a key plot point.
This could be because in Shakespeare’s time, women were seen as property and their worth was based on their dowry, whereas in modern times women are seen as equals to men. Overall, there are many similarities and differences between the movie “10 Things I Hate About You” and the play “The Taming of the Shrew”. Even though they are set in different time periods, they both offer a unique perspective on power relationships.