...In the play Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare explores the topic of femininity. The tragedy takes place during the fourteenth century in Verona, Italy. Society in Verona has clear beliefs and expectations for both males and females. Women are often regarded as inferior and weak whilst the men focus on violence and sexual domination, always expected to be prodigious and valiant. These stereotypical gender roles relate to main characters Romeo and Juliet, star-crossed lovers who are pressured into acting the way their gender is depicted throughout the play. In this text, Shakespeare asserts that acting feminine is seen as weak. Feminine characteristics are depicted in such a way because the Capulet servants talk about their...
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...Presented by the Characters in Romeo and Juliet and the Speakers in the Sonnets You Have Studied In: English and Literature Explore the Different Attitudes to Love Are Presented by the Characters in Romeo and Juliet and the Speakers in the Sonnets You Have Studied Explore the different attitudes to love are presented by the characters in Romeo and Juliet and the speakers in the sonnets you have studied. Love is presented through the use of characters, themes, linguistic, structural and contextual references. That pieces are ‘Romeo and Juliet’ written by William Shakespeare, ‘Sonnet 116’ by William Shakespeare again, ‘Sonnet 43’ by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, ‘Sonnet 130’ by Shakespeare and also ‘Sonnet 18’ again by Shakespeare. They were all written in the time that was considered the Elizabethan Era. A religious theme is set in both Romeo and Juliet and sonnet 43 to convey the attitudes to love. In Romeo and Juliet the theme of religion is used to express their love between each other and suggesting it is similar to religion can impose that it is a life-long commitment and will always be there even if they lose faith. At that time their attitude towards religion was very strong and it was their integral, which links to the love between Romeo and Juliet that now they have found it fully they will be part of each other’s’ lives for eternity. In Act 2, scene 2 Romeo states that Juliet’s eyes were “Two of the fairest stars in all of heaven” this is conveying that Juliet is angelic...
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...Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare Pre-reading 1. Vocabulary: Match word and definition. Words that may come in handy. Match the words in the left column with the explanations in the right column, and write the word over the definition. imagery | Word: Simile a comparison using “like” or “as” | soliloquy | Word: Run-on lines which the sense runs from one line to the next; lines which are not end-stopped. | blank verse | Word: Assonance the repetition of vowel sounds | tragic flaw | Word: Imagery language that produces pictures in the imaginations of people reading or listening | scene | Word: Blank verse unrhymed verse written in iambic pentameter | personification | Word: Dramatic irony difference between the situation as known to the audience and as supposed by some or all the characters of the play | stage | Word: Rhyming couplet two lines of verse of equal length that rhyme one after the other | assonance | Word: Dialogue verbal exchange between two or more characters on the stage | antithesis | Word: Iambic Pentameter a ten syllable line of verse with five stresses: di dum, di dum, di dum, di dum, di dum | metaphor | ...
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...The Avalanche: An Analysis of the Function of Speed in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Romeo and Juliet is an avalanche. As a loose pebble in the snowcapped mountain wobbles in the wind, Romeo yodels to Juliet in the cliffs just to send it tumbling, lightly, down a vertical abyss. It does not end there, of course, for this pebble held back the rocks and boulders constituting the height of the peak, and the reaction now begins as each individual stone rolls with momentum. They pick up speed and snow, growing in velocity and size until the inevitable occurs and Romeo and Juliet are engulfed in the upheaval and finished forever. William Shakespeare’s version of the play Romeo and Juliet, taken from Arthur Brooke’s play similarly titled Romeus and Juliet, is a fast paced tragedy in which a boy and girl from two feuding families meet, fall in love, bond in matrimony, and commit suicide in a matter of four days. Compared to the nine-month romance that takes place in Brooke’s play, Shakespeare’s version is a consciously hastened piece of work during which the most significant parts of a young couple’s lives begin and end in less than one week. Speed, a well-utilized literary tool in Shakespeare’s play, serves to emphasize emotion, as opposed to reason, in the characters’ decisions. Through this device, Shakespeare demonstrates his skills as a playwright by showing control of time in the play. Perhaps the most well known episode in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the balcony scene...
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...Romeo’s Downfall Essay Romeo the lover of Juliet the male lead of Romeo and Juliet, is he impulsive? Romeo and Juliet is a play written by William Shakespeare. In This play we see the tragic tale of two star crossed lovers from two feuding families. An analysis of Romeo’s character in the play Romeo and Juliet, reveals that his fatal flaw was his impulsiveness due to him marrying Juliet quickly, killing Tybalt, and committing suicide. Firstly, he marries Juliet quickly without thinking it through. By around 15 or 16, the parts of the brain that arose a teen emotionally and makes him attention to... and the rewards of action are probably all set (Steinberg). Meaning that he most likely over looks the downside of his decisions thus making him impulsive. Romeo: “The exchange of thy love's faithful vow for mine”(Shakespeare). This also shows his impulsiveness, he decides to marry Juliet only a few hours after they met, they don’t even go on a date first....
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...Many characters were involved in the ultimate downfall of Romeo and Juliet, the character that was responsible for the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet was Friar Laurence. One reason that Friar Lawrence is responsible for the death of Romeo and Juliet is because he agreed to marry the two in opposition of his judgment and wisdom. He states, “For this alliance may so happy prove/ To turn your households’ rancor to pure love” (II.vi.10-11) Friar Lawrence married Romeo and Juliet so that their families would stop fighting, which did not work, as a result contributing to their deaths. When he married both of them it was a selfish act because he did not think how it would affect Romeo, Juliet, and their families. Friar Lawrence's judgment to marry Romeo and Juliet contributed to their deaths. Another reason that Friar Lawrence is responsible for the death of Romeo and Juliet because he did not do enough to warn them of the risks. He says, “These violent delights have violent ends/And in their triumph die, live fire and power” (II.vi.10-11). Friar did not emphasize his point enough, he could have said this many times to Romeo and Juliet. He contradicted his words with his actions because he said this and then he agreed to marry both of them to each other. Friar Lawrence did not do enough to warn Romeo...
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...presence of Carnivalesque is an important factor for understanding the production “Romeo + Juliet” by Baz Luhrmann. The Carnivalism concept was devised by Mikhail Bakhtin, who said it embodied life taking form of a typical carnival. It is essentially the way things can be obscured in life, or rather what is normal in life being turned inside out (Welsh, 152), which can easily be applied to Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. Without the elements of Carnival, it is likely this love story would have never been possible. Due to the overwhelming amount of Carnivalism in this film, many perceive it as though the true nature of Shakespeare’s tragedy has been lost in its exuberant elements and that “the film’s spectacle constantly overpowers and overwhelms the poetry” (Welsh, 152). Despite this common belief, Luhrmann was brilliant to use Bakhtin’s ideas to enhance the hidden undertones that were present in Shakespeare’s play. Carnivalism makes “the world of this film perverse and confused... The lines are often right, but the context is most peculiar” (Welsh, 153) so that we are no longer able to...
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...ROMEO & JULIET Prologue (ACT 1) As a prologue to the play, the Chorus enters. In a fourteen-line sonnet, the Chorus describes two noble households (called “houses”) in the city of Verona. The houses hold an “ancient grudge” (Prologue.2) against each other that remains a source of violent and bloody conflict. The Chorus states that from these two houses, two “star-crossed” (Prologue.6) lovers will appear. These lovers will mend the quarrel between their families by dying. The story of these two lovers, and of the terrible strife between their families, will be the topic of this play. ANALYSIS This opening speech by the Chorus serves as an introduction to Romeo and Juliet. We are provided with information about where the play takes place, and given some background information about its principal characters. The obvious function of the Prologue as introduction to the Verona of Romeo and Juliet can obscure its deeper, more important function. The Prologue does not merely set the scene of Romeo and Juliet, it tells the audience exactly what is going to happen in the play. The Prologue refers to an ill-fated couple with its use of the word “star-crossed,” which means, literally, against the stars. Stars were thought to control people’s destinies. But the Prologue itself creates this sense of fate by providing the audience with the knowledge that Romeo and Juliet will die even before the play has begun. The audience therefore watches the play with the expectation that it must...
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...Introduction Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy about two opposing families, the Capulets and the Montagues who are constantly feuding. Romeo and Juliet are two young lovers but they come from different families, Romeo is a Montague whilst Juliet is a Capulet. Although the most obvious theme in the play is love, there are several scenes which contain violence and conflict. The play opens with violence due to the conflict between the two feuding families and it is this conflict that ultimately results in the deaths of Romeo and Juliet. Examples Get help with your essay Read more about our Essay Writing Service > Looking for examples of OUR work? Click here to see our Essay Writing Examples > Want to know more about our services? Take a look at our Writing & Marking Service Index > Act III, scene 1 is a pivotal scene in Romeo and Juliet transforming the play from one of Romance into Tragedy. The scene opens on the streets of Verona and begins with talk of violence, ultimately leading to the deaths of two of the main characters in the play - Tybalt and Mercutio. Benvolio is eager to avoid a fight with the Capulets and he suggests to Mercutio that they should return home: ‘I pray thee, good Mercutio, let’s retire/ The day is hot, the Capels are abroad’ this quote is foreshadowing the fight to come between Tybalt and Mercutio, whose death at Tybalt's hands sets the stage for Romeo's eventual undoing and the deaths of the two lovers.In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare...
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...Romeo and Juliet Analysis The topic I chose for my analysis is death and death's premonitions. In Shakespeare's play, Romeo and Juliet, there were many deaths that took place. The first death that took place was Mercutio's death. Tybalt was furious because Romeo showed up to the Capulet's house party. Tybalt tried to kill Romeo, but Romeo did not want to fight back because he was married to Juliet. Mercutio couldn't stand the fact that Tybalt was beating Romeo to death, so he stepped in trying to keep peace between the two boys. Mercutio's blood drips onto Romeo's hand as he falls under Tybalt's sword. After Mercutio's death, Romeo wanted to take avenge for his best friend. He killed Tybalt and was then exiled from Verona. All of these events lead to Romeo and Juliet's death also. When Romeo saw Juliet laying on her deathbed, he killed himself because he wanted to join her. When Juliet woke up from her temporary death, she saw her love laying besides her, dead. In result of that, she also kills herself. You could see how one death affected so many people's lives after that. The handful of deaths were foretold by the characters at one point. When Mercutio invited Romeo to the Capulet's party, he knew it wasn't an articulate choice. Romeo had a nightmare that there would be two untimely deaths that would happen and his instinct was to not go to the party. When Mercutio died in Romeo's arm, he shouted out, ''A plague on both your houses...", which kind of was a foreshadow...
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...Post-modernism in Baz Luhrmann’s film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet: a comparison of two creative works from two different periods. In 1996, Baz Luhrmann directed “Romeo + Juliet”, a modern twist on the famous tragedy play Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare in 1597, in which the main characters Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet where portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. While some praise the strange interpretation of the old tale, there are also those who condemn the rendition as destructive and disrespectful to the great work of Shakespeare. There will always be two sides to every story and this study will take that into consideration as well as comparing the two different yet similar works to see how post modernism has played a role in Luhrmann’s version of Romeo and Juliet. Postmodernism has been given many definitions. Some say it’s simply the outlook that the generation of late twenty first century has on life which entails the mistrust and dismissal of theories that existed before such as religion, ethics and law. According to these youths, the difference between right and wrong or what the meaning of life is based solely on that individual’s perspective. In film, the idea of postmodernism is somewhat similar as it’s an artist medium in which to undermine social norms and present one’s individual belief. The difference lies in that postmodernism in film concerns bringing in many aspects of popular culture to produce something...
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...Luhrmann’s Modern Day Shakespeare The 1996 film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet provides viewers with the same theatrical influence as the original play. Baz Luhrmann was able to accomplish this through modern filmmaking techniques and visual imagery. Luhrmann’s adaptation maintains much of the same elements of the original play. However, Luhrmann was able to make it more appealing to modern audiences by integrating modern elements into the film, thus turning Shakespeare’s original love story into a more modern yet controversial, interpretation of the original love story. In today’s society Shakespeare’s poetic language would leave viewers perplex. Luhrmann is able to keep Shakespeare’s original language by incorporating creative cinematography, editing, and style. Luhrmann recognizes early on that it is imperative to modernize the prologue in order for viewers to fully comprehend the film’s plot; any misperception would leave viewers confused and not emotionally involved. He is able to accomplish this through the use of dialogue, written text, and visual images. In order to reach modern audiences, Luhrmann has to be inventive in his filmmaking techniques; therefore he integrates modern-day media language. By adding news media and displaying selected pieces of text onscreen he is able to intensify the romantic teen tragedy, thus turning Shakespeare’s original play into a distinguishable film for modern audiences. Luhrmann’s use of visual imagery...
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...Romeo and Juliet Essay (Character Analysis) Have you ever wondered why Romeo and Juliet ended it like they did? Romeo and Juliet each killed themselves over sadness of not being able to live with each other. Maybe it was irrational or immature, but that’s not what I blame for their deaths. I blame the feud between both families to be the cause of Romeo and Juliet’s deaths. If Juliet’s family hadn’t continued the feud this wouldn’t have happened. If Lord Capulet had given Romeo a chance to be with Juliet rather than dismissing the idea right away or instead of automatically giving her to Paris Juliet wouldn’t have died. Also, if Juliet’s cousin hadn’t attacked Romeo and Mercutio, Romeo wouldn’t have been pushed to kill him and by doing so get banished. For instance, Romeo refused to fight Juliet’s cousin, but he did not care, he kept attacking Romeo and even stabbed Mercutio for stepping in at Romeo’s defense. Finally, if Lady Capulet had given Juliet more choices outside of the Capulets family and friends then she wouldn’t have been driven to faking her own death....
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...Romeo and Juliet Written Analysis Romeo and Juliet’s tragic fate was a direct result of their poor decisions because they were naive and went to extreme measures when they acted on impulse. Romeo and Juliet made the conscious and irrational decision to marry each other when they met, knowing their families hated each other. Some scholars may argue that falling in love is fate and it makes people blind to bad decisions. Ultimately, all of their actions were their own decisions and could have been prevented. When Romeo and Juliet first meet at the party thrown by the Capulet’s, they fell in love with each other upon their first dance. However, they were unaware of whom the other person truly was. When Romeo finds out that Juliet is a Capulet,...
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...A TEACHER’S GUIDE TO THE SIGNET CLASSIC EDITION OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE’S ROMEO AND JULIET By ARTHEA J.S. REED, PH.D. S E R I E S W. GEIGER ELLIS, ED.D., E D I T O R S : UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA, EMERITUS and ARTHEA J. S. REED, PH.D., UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA, RETIRED A Teacher’s Guide to the Signet Classic Edition of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet 2 INTRODUCTION William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is an excellent introduction to Shakespearean drama; teenagers can relate to its plot, characters, and themes. The play’s action is easily understood, the character’s motives are clear, and many of the themes are as current today as they were in Shakespeare’s time. Therefore, it can be read on a variety of levels, allowing all students to enjoy it. Less able readers can experience the swash-buckling action and investigate the themes of parent-child conflict, sexuality, friendship, and suicide. Because of the play’s accessibility to teenagers, able readers can view the play from a more literary perspective, examining the themes of hostility ad its effect on the innocent, the use of deception and its consequences, and the effects of faulty decision making. They can study how the characters function within the drama and how Shakespeare uses language to develop plot, characters, and themes. The most able students can develop skills involved in literary criticism by delving into the play’s comic and tragic elements and its classically...
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