Dear Shakespeare: “Who hurt you?

”
An analysis of the works of two respected artists
In the play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and the film, 10 Things I Hate About You, love is
represented as both irrational and often fickle. Shakespeare’s comedic play, A Midsummer
Night’s Dream (1600), tells the story of four starstruck lovers in the city of Athens. The film
10 Things I hate about you (1999), directed by Gil Junger, follows the romantic and comedic
drama of a relatively modern high school. The playwright and director use the characters
Demetrius and Helena from the play, and Joey and Cameron from the film, to portray the
exaggerated view that love is both arbitrary and capricious, and quite frequently irrational.
Helena, a young noble woman from Athens, shows love’s unreasonableness as she is spurned
by her former lover Demetrius, crying out that he should “Use [her] as [his] spaniel: spurn
[her], strike [her]….only give [her] leave, unworthy as [she ] is, to follow [him]”(A
Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 2, Scene 1, Line 205). The reader is invited to believe that
she would accept any abuse by him if only she could stay by his side, and that she does not
care if she is being mistreated, if it is by the man she loves. Similarly, Cameron, a new
student at Padua Stadium High, finds himself irrevocably smitten with Bianca, a “popular”
girl at school. Although he has only just met her, he finds himself burning with illogical
passion for Bianca, so much so, that he is driven to spout the words of Shakespeare “I burn, I
pine, I perish….” (Ten Things I Hate About You, 0:05:05) implying that he is in almost
physical pain from the force of the love he suddenly feels toward Bianca. The playwright and
Director skilfully use these two characters to open a window of understanding into human
nature and its reactions to the feelings of love in its many forms. The fickle and unpredictable
nature of love is further reinforced through the characters of Joey and Demetrius as they are
shown to give in to the temptation to be volatile and wantonly careless, and to discard as they
please, the fragile hearts of those around them for what they deem to be a better “catch”.
The character Joey, a small-time commercial model and “popular” boy at school, displays the
capricious nature of love when he decides to break ties with his lover Kat over a small
dispute. Their argument was due to the words spoken by Kat after they had sexual intercourse
for the first time. Kat describes the scene to her sister, telling her that “Afterwards, I told him
I didn’t want to anymore, because I wasn’t ready and he got pissed and dumped me”
(1:13:25) giving the reader clear insight into the view that love can be inconsistent and that
heartbreak is more often brought about by the selfishness of the Human nature, as Joey had
decided that Kat was no longer his love now that he could not get his own way. In addition,
Demetrius also shows a similar shortsightedness as he decides he is now in love with Hermia,
another young lady of Athens, when he had previously professed his love to Helena.
Lysander, his rival, and another gentleman of Athens, describes how Helena “Devoutly
dotes…. Upon this spotted and inconstant man” (Act 1, Scene 1, Line 109-110) clearly
stating that Helena has an almost religious devotion for a man who is dishonourable. Helena
later adds that “For, ere Demetrius looked on Hermia’s eyne, he hail’d down oaths that he
was only mine, and when this hail some heat from Hermia felt, so he dissolved and showers
of oaths did melt” (Act 1, Scene 2, Line 242-245) indicating that the love he felt for Helena
was frivolous, as Demitrius’s love was easily swayed by just one look from Hermia, and that
all the oaths he had previously showered on Helena , were now of no consequence as he had
found a new love interest. The playwright and director expertly utilise these characters to
give insight into the idea that love can be fickle, and that the words “fickle” and “selfish”
have a symbiotic relationship, as these characters have demonstrated the selfishness that
feeds volatile love.
In conclusion, in both the play and the film, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and 10 Things I
Hate About You, love is represented as irrational, capricious, and often arbitrary. The
characters Demetrius, Helena, Joey, and Cameron are used by the playwright and director to
display the varied faces of human nature and its reaction to love in its many forms. In
addition, the playwright and director also give an insight into the perils of selfishness and its
ability to harm others emotionally. Helena gives an example of irrational love by debasing
herself to the abuse of Demetrius in the name of “love”. The playwright and director clearly
state their exaggerated perspectives on human nature and their individual outlook on love for
the purpose of entertaining the audience, as real love does not resemble these viewpoints.
Love does not typically resemble the playwright and director’s intentional misinterpretation
of lust being “love”.