Comparative Analysis: 10 Things I Hate About You” Vs Twelfth Night
The author of the two piece of literature, “10 things I hate about you” and the Twelfth Night” is one such prolific writer that has brought the pertinent issues that surround teenage love triangle into perspective. It is a fundamental fact that the whole context of the films leaves one with a wild gaze of how best one can meet the love of their life. The disguise, the ill motives and the passionate love in the movies creates a platform of a life teaching that most teenagers need to follow. The movie maker is also very cautious to make sure that every character fits best in their role. In the contemporary society, most teenagers are always caught in various love triangles. The decisions they make might either destroy their lives or time make their lives more satisfactory (Shakespeare, and John, 2). The parents have a critical say in the development of the children’s’ moral standards. The restrictions and the behavioral conduct that they give to their children is a determinant factor in the wholesome development of a youth’s life. The two films provide extensive thematic issues that revolve around feminism, love, disguise, and parental guidance. This paper is deemed to give a clear comparison and contrast of these two films. Key areas that we would dwell on are the settings of the two films, the plot and the story, and thematic issues surrounding them (Holderness, and William, 3). The primary objective of this study is to bring on board the clear cut differences and the similarity that the writer of these movies was trying to depict to its audience and the type of response they would want from the same. In this prospect, it dwells mostly on the acts and the behavioral conducts of the characters in the play.
Twelfth Night is a romantic comedy play that revolves around a love triangle that existed between various parties in the Roman Illyria. In the play, we see two twins Sebastian and Viola that are separated by the ship wreckage that happened at the coast. The Lady; Viola disguised to be a man (Cesario) gets employed as a servant to the Duke of the land; Orsino, who instructs ‘him’ to take care of the long-suffering, Olivia. Olivia is bereaving her close relatives who died recently while Orsino is madly in love Olivia but Olivia is quite oblivious to this notion. Viola develops feeling for Duke Orsino, her master while Olivia develops affection for Viola now “Cesario.” Love triangle exists between these three main characters, and the author is keen to use this opportunity to reveal the various twists and turns of love and relationships (Holderness, and William, 5). The whole play happily ends when Orsino marries Viola and Sebastian Marries Olivia. “10 Things I Hate About You‘ is a romantic comedy that puts the family of Walter Stratford at the center of everything. Walter Stratford a single parent with daughters names Katarina and Bianca. The parent controls his daughter by restricting them to graduate first before they start dating. The father on realizing that her daughter Kat does not like men, adjusts the rule by allowing Bianca, who is an outgoing girl, to date only if Kat is dating too. Cameron on realizing this new rule sets up the bad boy Patrick with Kat in exchange of money. in spite of the mischief and the disguise, the real events unfold that Patrick falls in love with Kat and Bianca remains in love with Cameron.
“10 things I hate about you” is a play that revolves around the theme, feminism. We see a single dad Walter Stratford is very strict on her daughters who are at that time pursuing their college education. He accentuates that the girls, Kat, and Bianca are not to engage in dating until they graduate. The essential fact that their father was very on the shows that the ancient rules of determination of the sexuality of a child are still evident in the current societal context (Holderness, and William, 13).
The notion of young tough headed girls who does not want to date at their college being despised by the community is traced back to the ancient Roman tradition n where the females who never wanted marriage were subjected to mistreatment. “The Twelfth Night” on the other hand has an overriding theme of love as a cause of suffering. We see a love triangle among Duke Orsino, Olivia and the changed Viola (Cesario) plus her brother Sebastian. The unprecedented twists and turns brought out between these three pertinent characters portend the instances where loving someone could be quite detrimental. For example, the Duke Orsino at one point connotes that love is like an appetite that he would want to satisfy but indeed he cannot. Additionally, Olivia goes ahead to describe love as one terrible plague that she is painfully suffering. Furthermore, Viola at the time when she disguised her identity, recounts in a very somber mood that her state is very desperate for her master’s love. In this case, he had a strong feeling of affection towards Orsino and yet she could not come out in the open and declare it because of her disguised gender (Holderness, and William, 2).
’10 Things Hate About You” depicts a modern American setting of the 1990s. The play has been carried out a high school that has the modern educational facilities. On the other hand the play “Twelfth Night” has an ancient Roman cultural setting where there are voyagers and the Dukes of the old Roman empires. Additionally, the names used in the two plays contrast to depict the various settings for which the plays have been shot. For instance, ’10 thing I hate about you contains American names like Cameron, Michael, Bianca, and Katarina among others. These names show that the audience of this film is the American youths who are still grappling with the matters of love and the twists and turns that come with it. conversely, it becomes evident that the author relates the play ‘Twelfth Night’ to the ancient Roman Empire setting where he uses the Italian names such as Antonio, Duke Orsino among others. These names give a picture of the old of the 16th century and a show of Roman love. However, an American setting is slightly given an attention where Antonia recommends to Sebastian that the best place to have rest is Elephant Lodge in Illyria. The Elephant Lodge was deemed to a pub that was adjacent the Globe Theatre.
In both plays, the disguise is quite evident however not in the same perspective. On the account of Twelfth Night, Viola completely changes her identity to become Cesario, who would now be a male servant to Olivia under the instructions of Duke Orsino. Viola is deemed to create this disguise because ladies are devalued in the Roman Empire. By changing to be a man, it would be very easy to get a job and favor from his master. The disguise is one of the platforms that Viola uses to win the loyalty and friendship of Duke Orsino. The perception of the role of masculine gender has been depicted in this stage.
The main reason why Viola had to change into being a man is to feel part of the new family that she now had. Although in the midst of these love triangle, we see how Viola suffers from unprecedentedly loving Duke while at the same time she had cheated him that she was a man. “10 Things I Hate About You” presents disguise on the invariable account Cameron together with his counterpart Michael gives Pat, the bad boy money to seduce Kat for Cameron to have an opportunity to go out with Bianca, the sister to Kat. In this prospect, the bad boy tries and succeeds in winning the love of Kat. The mischief seen in this scene connotes a high level of disguise when Katarina is lured into going against her principles of loving any person in her life while still in college (Holderness, and William, 3). The insurgency brought out by Pat in his quest to win the love of Kat makes him fall in love with him. A predicament fall Pat when Kat realizes that it was just a scam by Michael and Cameron who paid pat money for this act. The main similarity of this disguise is the instance where each character institutes a lie which is instigated by external forces. For Viola, the disguise was prompted by the fear of money while for Patrick; the disguise into loving Katarina was propelled by the money that he was to be given by Cameron and his friend Michael.
In both plays, there is a representation of a robust, principled female figure. A no-nonsense lady character is taken by Katarina in the play “10 Things I Hate About You” while in “Twelfth Night” it comes out evidently that Olivia took this part. In the first instance, we see Kat quite repulsive about guys who advances to her about love. Her personality could not allow her to indulge in relationships at that age. She is a solitude girl with no time for guys. On the other hand, Olivia is not in the mood to get into any relationship because of the tragic moment she has passed through. The lady is not yet ready to mingle since she is still bereaving her family members who die not long ago. Looking at these two set of solitary nature of the two characters in the two plays, it comes out clearly that the factor that made Kat assume such a state of mind and way of living was her personality, what she believed in and her mindset towards men. In the contemporary society, this notion is quite evident where the personality characteristics make various people be quite tight and very strict with their lives. In this prospect, everything that they do must be according to some set standards that they alone follow (Shakespeare, and John, 4). The reason for their behavior is therefore quite intrinsic in nature because it gives much attention to the intrusive mindset and how it affects our relations with others.
The case of solitary nature of Olivia is quite different. One imperative thing that we must acknowledge is that the major reason for the solitude mindset of Olivia was externally instigated. Though she acted in a very similar way that Kat did, the real cause of solitary nature was quite external. From the narrations of the play, we find that Olivia’s parents had just died recently, and she was still bereaving them. At this point, she felt she had lost a lot in life. The best thing she could as at then was to be alone and rethink about her life. At the time when Cesario was appointed to help her, she was still in pains and needed someone to talk to. In the long end, Olivia found solace in the arms of Viola, who had as at then changed her name to the male servant ‘Cesario’ the turn of events that followed made Olivia develop feelings for Cesario without knowing. This point is very similar to the occasions that happened in the first play (10 things I hate about you). While Olivia in the long end falls in love with Cesario even after declaring that she would not fall in love again, in the second play, we see Kat ultimately falling in love even after having the principles of not dating till she finishes her college. The two plays therefore, give a connotation that in matters of the heart, it is indeed quite difficult to predict the way in which one can get in love. The principles governing how a person should treat his or her love affairs can crop up, but the ultimate and logical assurance is the feeling of love and affection that one has developed over a period. In the societal context, the two plays give an account of the life and line of thought of tough solitary personalities and how their lives would end.
In both plays, the author is keen to inculcate the notion of conflict. Shakespeare’s inculcation of conflict to build comedy for the audience is very effectual, as he makes the authority themselves be founded on misunderstandings and exploitation, providing absurdity for the reader since they are not in fact caused by any actual mistaken doing by any of the personas. This notion shows that the actors have been stage-managed (Shakespeare, and John, 9). For instance, for Sir Andrew, when Sir Toby impels him to fight Viola/Cesario, he feels, because he has permitted Sir Andrew to obscure his judgment and force him to trust that he has good cause to struggle for Viola. In this situation, there is more funniness because we discover that Sir Andrew wears very well and has a reverential position, he appears at first like he ought to be a stronger personality, but Sir Toby’s easy exploitation of him shows the audience that Sir Andrew is indeed more like an uncertain, naïve child. For this reason, we get the feeling that Sir Andrew is a weaker character, but we discern that Viola is a superior character, because even though she is frightened to struggle Sir Andrew when he confronts her, she tries her preeminence, and stands up to battle despite being blameless and being a female. This could be entertaining for the reader too, since we see how Sir Andrew is frightened to fight Viola for the reason of Sir Toby’s lies that she is a courageous swordsman, at the same time Viola, tries her best to struggle despite the consequences and has far more self-respect than Andrew does.
On the account of ’10 things I hate about you,’ the author presents a conflict in various ways. In the first instance, we see the Kat having an internal conflict where she has solitary life and does not come to terms that she needs to have a boyfriend and a good social life. Additionally, the author is keen to bring on board the conflict between Katarina and Patrick, which is almost similar to that between Viola and Orsino. One imperative issue that comes on board is the point of conflict where Kat realizes that Pat was not real and that he had been paid to seduce her. In this prospect, we see the two persons quarrel and hate each other for the kind of trap they fell. As far as Kat is a concern, she has a high level of feelings and affection for Patrick (Shakespeare, and John, 9). At the same time, it is evident that Patrick feels the same for Kat, but they cannot move on because of the initial mischief that Pat had done for Kat of being bribed using cash to seduce Kat.
The conflict in a wider perspective accentuates the fact that most ladies fall prey to various men who have intentions other than building a good relationship. In the societal context, this notion is evident in the rich families where a person falls in love not because of the passion and affection but because of financial stability that the family of the lady has. Conversely, the author was keen to base the motive on the need for protection of the feminine gender. In the quest for Viola to evade the impunity that comes with being a female, she decides to disguise everyone even if she had an internal conflict on this notion. The real advent for this issue is seen when she could not hold it anymore. Her conjugal rights were being denied at the same time she had fallen in love with her master who by then knew her as a man. The twists and turns of these events are a real show of the difference in the motive for conflicts in the two plays.
‘Twelfth Night’ is principally satirical while ‘10 Things I Hate About You‘ is largely romantic in nature. When unfolding his affection, Duke Orsino uses exaggerated, poetic tone which is too theatrical to be taken sincerely. Orsino is very impolite in his portrayal of a woman and their capability to love “There are no woman’s sides/Can bide the beating of so strong a passion/as love doth give my heart” (II.iv.91). This undoubtedly shows that Orsino’s affection is not as passionate as he would have us consider. Cesario acts in response to “My fathers had a daughter loved a man/ as it might be, perhaps, were I a woman” (II.iv.105), evidently, this is sarcastic as Cesario is indeed Viola acting like a man. The means in which Viola can induce him that she is a man is extremely unrealistic and is perceptibly ridiculing peculiar circumstances in romantic comedies. Orsino then asks the query. “But died thy sister of her love, my boy” (II.iv.117) it is ridiculous that Orsino would presuppose that a woman demised of her affection. Orsino’s disregard of women’s capability to feel makes his embellished romantic tone seem very hypocritical, and so it is probable that Shakespeare incorporated it as a satire of the kind of verbal communication used in romantic comedies.
10 Things I Hate About You” is based on real mature love that evident in the way these characters value the gift of love. When Bianca’s father says that ‘you will not date until your sister also dates’ it simply tries to accentuate the author acknowledgment that there is a need to be loved in a more sincere way. It is in this movie that we see various characters like Cameron taking his girlfriend out for dinner and parties just to show them how it is good and important to fall in love. For this movie, love is a beautiful thing according to Kat. Kat also accentuates that one of the things that she hates about Pat is because ‘she doesn’t hate him’. This quote was to show that once you have loved someone, the passion that comes with it will never allow you to hate the person again.
An additional factor which proposes that ‘Twelfth Night’ is a satirical play is the sheer irrationality of the plot of the story. The piece, which is thought to be a comedy, is commenced in an unusually serious way, “But like a cloistered, she will veiled walk/And water once a day her chamber round/With eye-offending brine” We are to think that in her desolation Olivia accentuated her point of connoting that she shall not prove her face for many years and shall cry one time daily. Another instance is, “To pay this debt of love but to a brother, how will she love, when the rich golden shaft/Hath killed the flock of all affections else/That live in her”. It is outrageous that if Orsino cherished Olivia as he articulates he does that he would perceive her hopelessness at her sibling’s death as an excellent thing. This notion has an absolute disregard for the affection of his beloved shows that Twelfth Night is sardonic and is not to be taken critically as a romance.
In a nutshell, the two plays present a broad range of differences and similarity with regard to the message they relay, the plot of their stories as well as the settings for which the plays were set. The comparison of the settings reveals that ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ is modern setting while that of Twelfth Night is an ancient one. The value of love is shown in both the two plays except for the fact that the play Twelfth Night is quite satirical in nature. Various themes have been compared and contrasted in this paper. For example feminism has been well displayed in the Kat’s play while in Viola’s play the advent of pain of love has been extensively discussed. In general, the two plays are a depiction of romance, disguise and feminism.
Work cited
Holderness, Graham, and William Shakespeare. The Taming of the Shrew. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1989. Print.
Shakespeare, William, and David W. Swain. Twelfth Night. Peterborough, Ont: Broadview Press, 2011. Print.
Shakespeare, William, and John Burfeind. Twelfth Night: Shakespeare for the Modern Reader. Bloomington: AuthorHouse, 2008. Print.
Shakespeare, William, and John Crowther. The Taming of the Shrew. New York, NY: Spark Notes, 2004. Print.
Touchstone On Demand’s channel. 10 Things I hate About You. Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, May 21, 2014
Twelfth Night. Entertainment in Video, 2001.