Lies in Disguise

               In Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare one of the major themes is, deception is a way of getting what you want. This theme is illustrated throughout the entire play of Taming of the Shrew and from most of the characters.  One example from the play is when Hortensio and Lucentio disguise themselves as Bianca’s tutors in order to court her, along with Tranio pretending to be Lucentio. By Hortensio and Lucentio disguising themselves as tutors, it conveys their true feelings for Bianca even though they are not allowed to court her until her sister Katherine is married. Another situation in which the theme is displayed in the play is when Tranio, still disguised as Lucentio, finds a fake father for the real Lucentio in order to say to Baptista that he approves of the marriage between Bianca and Lucentio. One of the last and most prominent forms of deception in the play is in Act IV scene i when Petruchio does not let Kate eat or sleep because he claims that the food and the bed have to be perfect for his new wife. He does this because he repudiates the fact that she cannot be tamed. The theme that deception is a way of getting what you want is also present in the story of Anthem by Ayn Rand because the society deceives its people into believing that there is only one unified “WE” not an individual “I.” Even though both of the themes are very similar, they are also very different due to the different methods of deception. In Taming of the Shrew Shakespeare uses deception by disguise, but in Anthem Ayn Rand uses mostly lies and brainwashing. Both of these methods of deception point to the same theme that deception is a way of getting what you want.