In Act One of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, we are introduced to the merchant Baptista's two daughters: the pretty Bianca and the wild and ill-tempered Katherina.Bianca has two suitors, both of whom want to marry her, but she cannot be married because Katherina (Kate) is older and has to be married first. While Bianca's boys try and trick Baptista so they can spend more time with her, a new boy arrives on the scene - Petruchio. Hearing about Kate's legendary temper and needing a wife with money, Petruchio decides to set up a personal challenge to woo and tame Kate as his wife.
In the 10 Things I Hate About You appropriation, the action takes place in a modern day American high school. Kate (Kat) is a strong individual who is trying to stand up for herself in 'a man's world'. Kate is proudly not like the other girls and refuses to conform. Unlike Shakespeare's Kate, she refuses to accept male domination.
In the original play Shakespeare drew attention to the central ideas using symbolism. Petruchio, for example, describes himself as "the wind". He says "the wind" has blown him into town and that he will blow out "Kate's fire". This reinforces the idea that Kate's personality will require a force of nature to tame her - not an ordinary man.
In 10 Things I Hate About You, symbols are also used. In the scene where Kat is introduced, the camera pans away from the sporty convertable that the other girls are in, to a shot of Kat, sitting alone in her old bomb of a car. Again, this highlights her wish to stand out as an individual and not try to conform with other girls her age.
In the 10 Things I Hate About You appropriation, the action takes place in a modern day American high school. Kate (Kat) is a strong individual who is trying to stand up for herself in 'a man's world'. Kate is proudly not like the other girls and refuses to conform. Unlike Shakespeare's Kate, she refuses to accept male domination.
In the original play Shakespeare drew attention to the central ideas using symbolism. Petruchio, for example, describes himself as "the wind". He says "the wind" has blown him into town and that he will blow out "Kate's fire". This reinforces the idea that Kate's personality will require a force of nature to tame her - not an ordinary man.
In 10 Things I Hate About You, symbols are also used. In the scene where Kat is introduced, the camera pans away from the sporty convertable that the other girls are in, to a shot of Kat, sitting alone in her old bomb of a car. Again, this highlights her wish to stand out as an individual and not try to conform with other girls her age.
In this image from the film, the salient feature of this head shot is Kat's face and look of exasperation when she explains that she is determined to "never do anything just because everyone else was doing it". The decontextualised, blurry background draws the viewer's eye to her face and the soft curtains frame her determined expression and character. This image reinforces the idea that Kat is a person who does not try to conform. In this shot the text and image work together to send a message about the strength and individuality of the main character.
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