10 Things I Hate About You is a modern adaptation of a Shakespearean comedy The Taming of the Shrew. The play is believed to have been written between 1592 and 1594, and is actually written as a frame narrative – that is, the play is performed as a means of distraction for a drunkard named Christopher Sly, who has been deceived into thinking he is a nobleman.
The central plot of the play proper revolves around the courtship and marriage of Petruchio, a young man from Verona, and Katherina, the oldest daughter of a lord of Padua and a notorious "shrew" or obstinate woman. Petruchio is encouraged to court Katherina by her sister Bianca's many suitors, as Bianca and Katherina's father has declared that Bianca may not marry until Katherina does. Once married, Petruchio puts Katherina through a number of psychological tests – like denying her food and clothing – to "tame" her and make her a more obedient wife. Meanwhile, Bianca's suitors vie for her attention through a series of disguises and pretenses. At the end of the play, Petruchio wins a wager among the newly-married men when Katherina proves the most obedient of the wives, coming to him when she is called.
The play has seen a number of adaptations across genres, including theater, ballet, opera, and film. Some of the more famous adaptations include Cole Porter's Kiss Me, Kate, the American Western film McLintock! starring John Wayne, the 1967 film version of the play starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, and two romantic comedies: 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), and Deliver Us From Eva (2003).
