Love and Hate in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

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Love and Hate in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet Throughout the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’, Shakespeare presents and contrasts love and hate in a number of different ways. This begins in the Prologue with the two themes being strongly enthesised. We are told of the basic storyline between the lovers without being told any details, this was to attract the attention of Shakespeare’s audiences and also to keep the interest of al the social classes by telling them that some of the scenes will appeal to their interests. The Prologue is written in the form of a sonnet and also uses iambic pentameter, these structures imply the theme of love as traditionally sonnets are about love – this Prologue was influenced by the Italian poet Petrarch (who was popular within the Elizabethan courts). However the love is also juxtaposed against hate and with oxymoron’s such as ‘death marked love’, and ‘star-crossed lovers’, the two themes are fused together. The juxtaposing themes of the Prologue are continued in Act 1 scene 1.

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