Callie+Monroe





Love, one of the most ambiguous words in the English dictionary. People take this word and interpret it in so many ways and no ones definition of love is exactly the same. In "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" best friends Vicky and Christina are similar in most ways except for their interpretations of love. Vicky is more conservative and goes about love in a very mathematical sense, find the boy, get the ring, become a good wife, and have kids. Crristina, on the other hand, is more of a free spirit and not exactly sure what she wants from love but is willing to experiment and try until she is able to find out. Loves can become even more transformed when one is trying to define it for others. Baptista, the father of Katherine and Bianca in "Taming of the Shrew," wants two different things for his daughters when it comes to their relationships and courtship. He wants his older daughter Katherine to be married for love while he is more concerned with money for his younger daughter Bianca. ** These texts reflect that there are multiple definitions of love and thus no one relationship or expectation of love is the same. **





In this scene Vicky and Cristina are approached by Juan Antonio a young artist living in Barcelona. He asks them if they would like accompany him on a trip to Oviedo, a town north west of Barcelona. Meeting him for the first time, Vicky is very wary of his offer and the intentions behind it while Cristina is very unconcerned and hops right at the opportunity to go with him.This difference of opinion ultimately shows each woman's view point on love and relationships and how they differ.

Baptista finds himself in a similar situation, that being two different definitions of love, but his definitions of love are not for himself rather for his two daughters.





In quote #1 Baptista is explaining to Petruchio, one of Katherine's suitors, that in order for him to aprove the courtship and eventual marriage of Petruchio to his daughter that she needs to love him. When it comes to Katherine's marriage he is very focused on the aspect of mutual feeling and her finding someone that she is actually in love with. On the contrary, in quote #2, when Baptista is talking to the suitors of Bianca he states that whoever has and can offer Bianca the most money can have her to marry. He goes on to then ask each suitor individually what they have to offer Bianca as far as money goes. His approach to finding a suitable husband for Bianca is very materialistic with no focus on the actual affection that she and her future husband would have for one another. In this time in history the father was the one who defined love and marriage for their daughter. Baptistas definition for Katherine and his definition for Bianca are incredibly different and show the different meanings that love can hold.

Later on in the movie Vicky and Cristina show even more of a disparity between their view points on love. Vicky proves to share a similar definition of the love Baptista sees for Bianca and Cristina proves to share a similar definition of love that Baptista sees for Katherine.





Vicky and Cristina decide to go to Oviedo with Juan Antonio. After a day of sightseeing and touring around the city they all go back to the hotel for a drink. While sipping on wine, Juan Antonio asks the girls if they would like to join him in his room for the night. Similar to in the first snapshot titled "out to dinner," Vicky is much more rigid and frank in her response than Cristina. She has no intentions of spending the night with Juan and makes that very clear when he asks them to do so. Cristina on the other hand is much more open to the idea and ultimately decides to do so. This contrast in desires is a direct result of each woman's different views on love. Vicky is much more rooted and grounded in reality, similar to Baptistas definition of love for Bianca. He wants her in a stable and economically beneficial relationship which is exactly what Vicky looks for in a relationship. Cristina, on the other hand, was much more ambitious when it came to love. She looked for a real connection and mutual admiration with her partner. Her ideals were much more similar to Baptistas definition of love for Katherine. Katherine had the power to look for someone that she actually desired. It was not about the materialistic or realistic aspects of a relationship that they defined as love, it was a real mutual connection.

Love and relationships are as unique as the people who are in them thus a universal definition can not be created. Vicky ends up settling for someone that she doesn't have a real passion for because it was easy and because she wanted something much more different out of love. She sees relationships as opportunities for economic growth and not as an opportunity for a real connection and passion. Cristina leaves Barcelona single but did so because she wanted to. Love wasn't something that she measured in money or materialistic assets and was able to search for someone that she really had feelings for. This was a luxury that Bianca, in "Taming of the Shrew" did not have. Her father, Baptista, defined her love and future husband as the person who was the "greatest dower." He then turns around to allow his other daughter, Katherine, to marry for feeling. // These texts reflect that with so many interpretations, the true definition and meaning of love can not be defined //.