Are there any characters called Kate in literature who haven't been shrews?

Answer 1

Why? Kate WAS a shrew inshakespeare, but no more, right? so theres your first answer.

Answer 2

Kate in the Archers is pretty wierd but not a shrew!

Answer 3

When I was young I read with pleasure a book called Countess Kate by Charlotte Yonge. Here is a link to the first chapter, from which it will be evident that the eponymous heroine was anything but shrewish. http://www.online-literature.com/charlotte-yonge/countess-kate/1/

Answer 4

There are a few ... however, I think that one of the strongest and most positive characters called Kate can be found in the books: "Airborn" and "Skybreaker" by Kenneth Oppel.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Airborn-Kenneth-Oppel/dp/0340878568/sr=8-1/qid=1170679970/ref=pd_ka_1/203-9915083-6090310?ie=UTF8&s=books
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skybreaker-Kenneth-Oppel/dp/0340878584/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_b/203-9915083-6090310

Answer 5

ooh I was going to say the What Katy did series she was great and I read all the books when I was young, It was the first time I heard about Sheherazades storytelling, there was a tragedy in it though which taught her to become a better person

Answer 6

there is a series of children's classics called - what katy did and what katy did next - she was adorable!

What Katy Did
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What Katy Did
Author Susan Coolidge
Country United States
Language English
Genre(s) Novel
Publisher Roberts Brothers
Released 1872
Media Type Print (Hardcover and Paperback)
Pages 277 (Little, Brown edition, 1925)
Followed by What Katy Did at School
What Katy Did is a children's book written by Susan Coolidge, the pen name of Sarah Chauncey Woolsey. It follows the adventures of Katy Carr and her family, growing up in America in the 1860s. Katy is a tall untidy tomboy, forever getting into scrapes but wishing to be good and beautiful. However, a terrible accident changes Katy's life forever, and through her illness and recovery she grows up and learns to be as good and kind as she has always wanted.

Two sequels follow Katy as she grows up - What Katy did at school and What Katy Did Next. Two further sequels relating the adventures of Katy's younger sister were also published - Clover and In the High Valley - but these are largely out of print.

Contents [hide]
1 Characters
2 Plot
3 Discussion
4 Notes
5 External links



[edit] Characters
Katy Carr: the eldest of the Carr children and the protagonist of the novel. At the beginning of the book she is a twelve-year-old tomboy who much prefers running around outdoors to quiet 'ladylike' pursuits, and so tears her clothes and is always untidy; however, she longs to be good.

Clover Carr: the second eldest sister, Clover adores Katy and follows her in everything she does. Clover is pretty and clever, with a sunny disposition - she is described as loving everyone and loved by everyone in return.

Elsie Carr: the third sister, Elsie at the beginning of the book is the difficult child, too old to play with the 'babies' and too young to be included with Katy and her games. She tries her hardest to join in, but is usually ignored; so, instead, she whines.

Dorry Carr and Johnnie Carr: Dorry is a rather stolid boy, and a great eater. He is the fourth child and the eldest son. Johnnie (short for Joanna) is the fifth child and a tomboy. These two are great friends.

Phil Carr: the baby of the family, he is only four years old at the beginning of the book.

Cecy is the next door neighbour of the Carrs, and Katy and Clover's friend, included in all they do.

Papa is the children's father, a doctor. Their mother died when Katy was six years old.

Aunt Izzie is Papa's sister, a cross woman who raises the children after their mother dies. She is very particular and scolds a lot, although she has a heart of gold underneath.

Cousin Helen is a relative who cannot walk after an accident years ago. She is kind and good and just what Katy wants to be, and throughout her illness Cousin Helen sends her letters of comfort and support.


[edit] Plot
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Twelve-year-old Katy Carr lives with her widowed father and her five brothers and sisters in a small town called Burnet. When her mother died six years before, Katy promised to be a little mother to her siblings; however, although she leads them into all sorts of exciting adventures, she is sometimes impatient and cross with them. A lively, headstrong girl, she gets into mischief almost daily but is always filled with remorse afterward. She dreams of someday doing something "grand" with her life - painting famous pictures, saving the lives of drowning people, or leading a crusade on a white horse. At the same time, she wants to be "beautiful, of course, and good if I can."

When her Cousin Helen, an invalid, comes to visit, Katy is so enchanted with her kindness and beauty that she resolves to model herself on Helen ever afterward. The very next day, however, she wakes in an ill humour, quarrels with her aunt, and pushes her little sister so hard that she falls down half a dozen steps. Afterwards, to calm herself, Katy decides to try out the new swing in the woodshed, even though Aunt Izzie has forbidden it. However, the swing has not yet been fastened properly and so Katy falls, bruising her spine.

The once active and strong Katy is now bedridden, suffering terrible pain and bitterness. Her room is dark, dreary, and cluttered with medicine bottles; when her brothers and sisters try to comfort her, she usually drives them away. However, a visit from Cousin Helen shows her that she must either learn to make the best of her situation or else lose the love of her family.

With Cousin Helen's help she makes her room tidy and nice to visit, and gradually all the children gravitate round it, always coming in to see Katy whenever they can. She becomes the heart of the house, beloved by her family for her unfailing kindness and good cheer. After two years Aunt Izzie dies, and Katy takes over the running of the household herself. At the end of four years, in a chapter called "At Last", she learns to walk again.


[edit] Discussion
What Katy Did offers a glimpse into the treatment of paraplegics in the 19th century. After her accident, young Katy is given ample love and care; however, she is perpetually confined to an upstairs room and, although she has a wheelchair, she never goes further than her bedroom window. Her only option (aside from wallowing in misery) is to make herself so pleasant that everyone comes to her; the possibility that she leave her room is barely considered, and no-one thinks of moving her to the ground floor. Curiously, however, Katy's cousin Helen, who has no hope of ever walking again, manages to visit Katy three times in four years.

Katy's trials reflect a popular theme in the girls' fiction of the era: a headstrong girl suffers a debilitating accident or illness which proves to be a blessing in disguise, because it helps her learn to curb her selfish desires and become more "womanly"[1]. In What Katy Did, however, Katy's misfortunes might also reflect the author's mixed feelings about the implications of puberty for a Victorian-era girl. Katy, a dynamic, adventurous girl with big dreams for the future, falls from a swing at the age of twelve and loses all freedom of movement; instead of becoming a famous sculptor or a crusader, she must spend the next four years confined to her bedroom. Later, she relinquishes even the luxury of feeling sorry for herself. Cousin Helen tells Katy that she is now a student in the "School of Pain", where she will gradually learn kindness, forbearance, and sundry adult virtues.

These abrupt, painful changes, and Katy's adjustment to them, may be emblematic of the transition from girlhood to womanhood (with the accompanying loss of freedom) in Coolidge's time. Eventually, Katy becomes the "angel in the house", assuming what was then perceived as a woman's proper place. However, the undisciplined Katy of the novel's first half is delightful, while the chastened graduate of the "School of Pain" is far less interesting (In the first sequel, What Katy Did at School, while Katy remains the nominal heroine, Coolidge spends considerable time describing the adventures of Katy's neighbour, the mischievous Rose Red).

Despite a certain datedness, however, Katy is a memorable character, and the book remains a lively, readable account of childhood and family life in 19th century America