Bianca Minola is a character in

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' (c.1590–1594).

Origin

The play is similar to

Don Juan Manuel Don Juan Manuel (5 May 128213 June 1348) was a Spanish medieval writer, nephew of Alfonso X of Castile, son of Manuel of Castile and Beatrice of Savoy. He inherited from his father the great Lordship of Villena, receiving the titles of Lord, D ...

's 14th-century Castilian tale of the "young man who married a very strong and fiery woman".Juan Manuel '' Libro de los ejemplos del conde Lucanor y de Patronio'', '' Exemplo XXXVº - De lo que contesçió a un mançebo que casó con una muger muy fuerte et muy brava''. The character's Lucentio and Bianca are part of a subplot which derives from Ludovico Ariosto's ''I Suppositi''.

Role in the play

Bianca Minola is the younger daughter of Baptista Minola and sister to

Katherina (Kate) Minola Katherina (Kate) Minola is a fictional character in William Shakespeare's play ''The Taming of the Shrew''. Referred to in the play as the titular "Shrew (stock character), shrew" and the "ingenue", the play focuses on Katherina's "taming" by Pet ...

. Unlike Kate, Bianca is very obedient and sweet-tempered, causing her to have a good number of suitors. Her father however declares that none may marry Bianca until Kate is wed. Desperate to win Bianca's hand in marriage, one of her suitors Hortensio gets his friend

Petruchio Petruchio (an anglicisation of the Italian name Petruccio; ) is the male protagonist in Shakespeare's '' The Taming of the Shrew'' (c. 1590–1594). Petruchio is a fortune seeker who enters into a marriage with a strong-willed young woman ...

, who is willing enough, to marry Kate so that Bianca would be allowed to marry. Hortensio then attempts to woo her in the disguise of a tutor named Litio. Bianca however falls in love with another suitor, Lucentio (also in the guise of a tutor 'Cambio'). The pair are married and at the wedding feast, Petruchio suggests a contest between himself, Lucentio, and Hortensio: They each send for their wives, and whoever's wife responds the most obediently wins. Despite Lucentio's faith in her obedience, Bianca does not come when summoned, saying that she is too busy. When she is forcefully brought to Lucentio by Kate, Bianca insists that her husband was a fool to set store by her obedience. Throughout the play, there is evidence of

sibling rivalry Sibling rivalry is a type of competition or animosity among siblings, whether blood-related or not. Siblings generally spend more time together during childhood than they do with parents. The sibling bond is often complicated and is influenced ...

between Bianca and Kate as Kate accuses Bianca of being their father's "treasure" and the one that he wishes to have married first. In one scene, Kate ties Bianca's hands and whips her, in an attempt to discover which of her suitors Bianca likes the best. Bianca however insists that she has yet to meet a suitor that she truly loves.

Performances

In the musical adaptation ''

Kiss Me, Kate ''Kiss Me, Kate'' is a musical written by Bella and Samuel Spewack with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The story involves the production of a musical version of William Shakespeare's ''The Taming of the Shrew'' and the conflict on and off-stag ...

'', ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a play-within-the-play, and Bianca is played by an actress called Lois Lane. In the 1953 film version Bianca/Lois is played by Ann Miller. In the modern film version ''

10 Things I Hate About You ''10 Things I Hate About You'' is a 1999 American teen romantic comedy film directed by Gil Junger and starring Julia Stiles, Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Larisa Oleynik. The screenplay, written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirs ...

'', Bianca is played by

Larisa Oleynik Larisa Romanovna Oleynik (; born June 7, 1981) is an American actress who became a teen idol in the 1990s. Born in Santa Clara and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, Oleynik began her career as a child actor, first appearing ...

. In the ABC Family television series ''

'', Bianca is played by

Meaghan Jette Martin Meaghan Jette Martin () (born February 17, 1992) is an American actress and singer known for her work in film, television, and theatre. She is best known for her starring role in the ABC Family television series, ''10 Things I Hate About You'' ...

References

External links

Dictionary of quotations -
{{Authority control Literary characters introduced in 1590 Female Shakespearean characters The Taming of the Shrew