Ashley+Hinton

=**Let's Love On One Accord. <3**= Comparing "Taming of the Shrew" and "Mr. and Mrs Smith"

In comparing Taming of the Shrew and Mr.and Mrs. Smith I found that there were some very similar themes in the content of both films. Deception and honesty in relationships are two very substantial themes in both "The Taming of the Shrew" and "Mr. and Mrs. Smith."

Mr. and Mrs. Smith is a romantic comedy modeling the life of an “typical” suburban couple to say the least. Jane and John Smith are secret assassins that have been living secret lives. Jane thinks her husband works in construction and John thinks his wife works for Wall Street. So there’s a little deception in all relationships, true. But this couple gets a rude awakening when they suddenly find out they’ve been hired to kill one another. When the couple’s secrets unveil and their dangerous lives collide the possibilities are immense, and what one doesn’t know just might kill them. **//While the movie continuously proves that love is nothing but an enduring power struggle,// the Smiths give in to one another and decide that it is possible to love on one accord if and only if romance is dominant in the relationship.**

In "Taming of the Shrew" Shakespeare sets up an intricate story frame of a romantic comedy. Pertruchio is a very sly suitor who longs to marry Kate "the shrew" for reasons that are formally oblivious. Katherine and Pertruchio, like Jane and John have very overbearing personalities.Though Pertruchio and Kate aren't living secret lives there is evidence of deceit and manipulation between both characters from the time they lay eyes on each other. After they are married, Pertruchio follows through with his plan to deceive his wife into believing that he is a cruel man in attempts to cure her of her shrewish behavior and turn her into a lady. Shakespeare enunciates Kate and Pertruchio's dispute over authority in their relationship and makes it clear that there is absolutely no romance or charm between those two characters.

Both these films prove relationships to be continuous clout struggles, but both the film and the play illustrate those struggles to be prevailed by different tactics.The similarities and differences in these films show how society's approach on dating and marriage has changed since the 1500's. The film and the play are alike in the sense of the characters personalities. Jane and Katherine have very strong willed personalities and John and Pertruchio share a very masked sense of affection that is obscured until the end of both the movie and the play.

Quote 1: The Taming of The Shrew
Here Pertruchio is speaking of the punishments he will inflict upon his wife. Petruchio uses these tactics as a weapon to win the battle of authority in their marriage. Little by little he strips Katherine of her rude and insensitive behavior.

//"To make her come and know her keeper's call, That is, to watch her, as we watch these kites, That bate and beat and will not be obedient.She eat no meat to-day, nor none shall eat ;Last night she slept not, nor to-night she shall not// //."//
 * Act 4; Scene 1**

At the mid point of the both "The Shrew" and "Mr. and Mrs Smith" it is clear that the couples are both trying to accomplish the same thing, control over one another. In The Shrew Katherine seems to be controling their relationship, but in the end when their married Petruchio turns out to be more. In Mr. and Mrs. Smith Jane is the conquering hero. For years and years males have been portrayed as the more authoritative person in a relationship and women have been portrayed as overly sensitive and passive. The Taming of the Shrew and Mr. and Mrs. Smith changed those commonly held beliefs forever. "The Shrew" was written in the early 1500's and Mr. and Mrs. Smith was made in 2005. In the 1500s Shakespeare's Taming of the Shrew depicted a very different side of women, but Shakespeare ended the play with Petruchio accomplishing what he wanted. I think the director of the movie Mr. and Mrs. Smith wanted viwers to see a relationship from a similar perspective.

Quote 2: Mr and Mrs. Smith - Just Do It Already, Jane Wins the Fight
John: "You want it, its yours." Jane: "Don't! C'mon! C'mon!" At this point in the movie, John decided that he has to kill Jane before she gets to him. After dinner the couple makes war in their dinning room. Janie and John are face to face and John gives in. He tells Jane to take the shot but she refuses, soon after they make up.

Quote 3: Taming of the Shrew- "No I'm In Charge"
Act 4; Scene 3

In Act 4 of Taming of the Shrew Petruchio and Katherine's problems are at their peak. They are married. Kate has been forced to live with him. When Petruchio insist on Kate's attire for her sisters marriage arrangements Katherine replies in rage and says to him... //"Why, sir, I trust I may have leave to speak; And speak I will; I am no child, no babe: Your betters have endured me say my mind, And if you cannot, best you stop your ears. My tongue will tell the anger of my heart, Or else my heart concealing it will break And rather than it shall, I will be free Even to the uttermost, as I please, in words.// //"//

Quote 4: Mr and Mrs. Smith; I Love You
The following quote unveils the turning point in the movie. The couple realizes that their relationship doesn't have to be a constant struggle of control and that they could love each other honestly.

//**Jane:** My Parents died when i was five, I'm an orphan.// **//John://** //"Well who was that kind fellow that gave you away at our wedding?"// **//Jane://** //Paid actor.// **//John://** //"I seen your dad on fantasy island."// //**Jane:**// "I know." //**John:**// [ Laughs in disbelief.] //**Jane:**// "What? I still love you." //**John:**// O you do? //**Jane:**// //"Yea, I guess that's what happens in the end you start thinking about the beginning."//

Quote 5: The Taming of the Shrew; Kate Tamed?
At the end of "The Taming of the Shrew" it's really unclear as to whether Kate is a changed woman or if she's really fell in love. In the closing scene she states... "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 labour both by sea and land, To watch the night in storms, the day in cold, Whilst thou liest warm at home, secure and safe; And craves no other tribute at thy hands But love , fair looks and true obedience;Too little payment for so great a debt. Such duty as the subject owes the prince Even such a woman oweth to her husband"

I'd definitely say Petruchio had accomplished what he had set out to do. The closure of both the movie and the play leaned more towards modern expectations, which is surprising being as though the story plot was written in the 1500's. We can conclude from this that married couples have always encountered a hassle when it comes to dominance. They both show us that while love proves to be a continuous brawl for power in many marriages, these old time and modern day deputes can be resolved as long as romance, charm and dedication is present within the relationship.