tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post7256504964998772394..comments2024-03-28T15:01:12.582+00:00Comments on The little white attic : The Taming of the ShrewHai Di Nguyenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-60114943936827526642021-04-21T00:56:51.725+01:002021-04-21T00:56:51.725+01:00Right. Okay. Right. Okay. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-86529548362149208112021-04-20T16:10:27.999+01:002021-04-20T16:10:27.999+01:00I they read it as sexist because it can make the w...I they read it as sexist because it can make the wife seem so passive. She doesn't /do/ anything, she just reflects what her husband does. Megan the Nutmeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13978560952822239158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-32132068144720844372021-04-08T17:14:18.589+01:002021-04-08T17:14:18.589+01:00That thing about Shakespeare's other female ch...That thing about Shakespeare's other female characters is a pet peeve of mine, people keep forgetting it.<br />I've heard of <i>A Woman Killed With Kindness</i> but haven't read it so don't know the story and full context. Why do they read it as a sexist symbol? Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-90567742808596032782021-04-08T15:36:32.294+01:002021-04-08T15:36:32.294+01:00THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OBSERVATION THAT KATE IS...THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE OBSERVATION THAT KATE IS NOT THE ONLY WOMAN SHAKESPEARE WROTE. *huffs* Such a good point, and a much overlooked one.<br /><br />Ooh ooh I've seen that 1976 production! It's so fantastic! Man, now I wanna watch it again...<br /><br />And I really like Tony Tanner's reading of the wedding scene. In that case Petruchio would be acting as a mirror for Kate...which could be interesting, cuz in Heywood's A Woman Killed With Kindness the wife sees herself as a mirror for her husband, which my Renaissance Tragedies class read as a pretty sexist symbol. So it's kind of like Shakespeare is turning that dynamic on its head: instead of the wife reflecting the husband's mood/behavior, the husband is reflecting the wife's.Megan the Nutmeghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13978560952822239158noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-3513957336850912552021-04-06T12:16:10.340+01:002021-04-06T12:16:10.340+01:00Haha yep. Watch the full production. Haha yep. Watch the full production. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-24001046140833904512021-04-06T07:59:25.436+01:002021-04-06T07:59:25.436+01:00Oooh thank you for the link to that production of ...Oooh thank you for the link to that production of the play: that scene of their first meeting is indeed sizzling! Marina Sofiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15251903359649828285noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-61220942950245154792021-04-01T23:08:26.452+01:002021-04-01T23:08:26.452+01:00I see... I see... Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-71423774192444145192021-04-01T21:29:59.221+01:002021-04-01T21:29:59.221+01:00One of the comedies. I'm guessing As You Like ...One of the comedies. I'm guessing As You Like It or Much Ado.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-21606779204802430772021-04-01T14:56:17.495+01:002021-04-01T14:56:17.495+01:00I see. Which play was that? I see. Which play was that? Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-82487643557744794722021-03-31T21:21:24.914+01:002021-03-31T21:21:24.914+01:00Another year they used an American West setting, a...Another year they used an American West setting, as in cowboys. I didn't see that one.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-56682229342210816492021-03-31T21:03:20.532+01:002021-03-31T21:03:20.532+01:00I see.
The other day I saw a film adaptation of M...I see. <br />The other day I saw a film adaptation of <i>Much Ado About Nothing</i> (2012) that was set in modern day. That one still works. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-31335286033712663152021-03-31T20:15:04.649+01:002021-03-31T20:15:04.649+01:00I mean the ones from hours ago. I can see the com...I mean the ones from hours ago. I can see the comments now.<br /><br />"The idea of the play in 50s America sounds so wrong to me." This is an outdoor Shakespeare company that has used unusual settings for other productions. Some of them don't work very well.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-50347010044045671542021-03-31T19:49:47.996+01:002021-03-31T19:49:47.996+01:00Oh commenting on old posts is fine, I can see them...Oh commenting on old posts is fine, I can see them. Blogspot sometimes eats comments, I think, so you might want to copy your text before hitting publish.<br />I saw some of your comments from hours ago, do you mean them or new ones? <br /><br />The idea of the play in 50s America sounds so wrong to me. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-79694174475425179702021-03-31T19:38:06.689+01:002021-03-31T19:38:06.689+01:00This country is US.
Yeah, it was a little weird......This country is US.<br />Yeah, it was a little weird...a 50's architectural house with lots of orange and lime colors in addition to bright-colored period clothing.<br /><br />"text of The Taming of the Shrew is very open and a lot depends on the interpretation of the directors and actors."<br />Yes, I remember this from a Shakespeare class I took. Even stage directions are usually omitted.<br /><br />I commented on some "Madame Bovary" blogs from a couple of years ago and it doesn't seem to be working right. I can't see my comment or the reply. Is it a bad idea to comment on old blogs?Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-65673397448074058392021-03-31T19:11:02.713+01:002021-03-31T19:11:02.713+01:00The 1950s!?!
No wonder your daughter hated it. The 1950s!?! <br />No wonder your daughter hated it. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-36671555969475294722021-03-31T19:08:24.421+01:002021-03-31T19:08:24.421+01:00Another point: Kate makes me think of Wang Xifeng ...Another point: Kate makes me think of Wang Xifeng in <i>Hong lou meng</i>, a sharp, witty but also cruel, calculating, and merciless woman. Wang Xifeng is much more cruel, somebody should tame her! <br />I have come across readers who like Wang Xifeng however, and think of her as a strong-willed, independent, sharp-tongued woman. I have never understood those who like strong female characters regardless of everything, and see them all as the same. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-30545563960218527312021-03-31T19:08:20.363+01:002021-03-31T19:08:20.363+01:00..between attitudes now and then...between attitudes now and then.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-13364904085987149442021-03-31T19:05:59.276+01:002021-03-31T19:05:59.276+01:00I clicked on he link to the ACT production (haven&...I clicked on he link to the ACT production (haven't watched it) and was interested in the comment alluding to the influence of commedia dell'arte in this performance. I'm wondering if the 1950's American setting of the production we saw might have increased the dissonance.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-59730921727297219612021-03-31T19:02:47.764+01:002021-03-31T19:02:47.764+01:00Tell your daughter that the text of The Taming of ...Tell your daughter that the text of <i>The Taming of the Shrew</i> is very open and a lot depends on the interpretation of the directors and actors. The ACT production is good, I think Kate's final speech shouldn't be played straight. I'd like to know what you think about it.<br />I haven't read <i>The Merchant of Venice</i>, but a friend of a mine, a huge Shakespeare fan, thinks it's not anti-Semitic. I wouldn't know, but lots of people also say <i>Othello</i> is racist but I don't think so. <br />Where is "this country"?Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-17550878206676575142021-03-31T18:47:20.193+01:002021-03-31T18:47:20.193+01:00Feminism is not something I'm wound up about, ...Feminism is not something I'm wound up about, but I have a daughter who is! She was incensed after seeing the production of "Taming".<br /><br />In the last sentence I was thinking more about "The Merchant of Venice". I'm not keen on discussing that particular play in a public forum right now because of the current right wing craziness going on, at least in this country.<br /><br />Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-82018520466928402222021-03-31T18:46:02.954+01:002021-03-31T18:46:02.954+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.Nancyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11526633028273591006noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-84693298793250732412021-03-31T12:34:45.476+01:002021-03-31T12:34:45.476+01:00Haha, check out the ACT production (link in my blo...Haha, check out the ACT production (link in my blog post) and see what you think then. <br />I can understand people feeling uncomfortable with the play, because Petruchio's method is cruel (though the question is, what are people supposed to do with someone unruly like Kate?) and the final speech can be interpreted in lots of ways, but I think the misogyny charge is unfair. Shakespeare has created enough independent, strong-willed women that I don't believe it. Some people think he was a misogynist at the beginning of his career and became more "progressive" over time, starting with Kate and creating Beatrice, etc. but then I've read <i>The Comedy of Errors</i>, one of his early plays, around the same time as <i>The Taming of the Shrew</i>, and Adriana is portrayed sympathetically. <br />The other day I also saw a female review calling <i>Much Ado About Nothing</i> misogynistic. <br />As for your question, I don't know, but generally I'm rather tired of the way feminist criticism distorts literature and other arts. Hai Di Nguyenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02230670162621139739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3901980733463068698.post-1798699909300851682021-03-31T03:01:19.304+01:002021-03-31T03:01:19.304+01:00Interesting take on this play. I've read and ...Interesting take on this play. I've read and seen it performed, but I was seeing the surface: one of Shakespeare's comedies with a large dollop of misogyny.<br /><br />However it raises the question of what do you do when culture (in this case, feminism)takes a great leap away from the mores of a brilliant author's times.<br />-NancyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com