Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Firstly Shakespeare's stagecraft helps to convey the dramatic
importance of act three scene one. This scene is in the middle of the
play and is a pivotal point as it creates a contrast between the first
and the second part of the play. In this scene Marcutio and the
Montagues quarrel with the Capulets. Romeo arrives to the scene
married to Juliet but before he can tell his good news a fatal brawl
breaks out between Tybalt and Marcutio. It becomes dangerous when
swards are drawn which results in the death of Romeos cousin Marcutio.
Romeos mood dramatically changes. He is enraged, and kills Tybalt. The
Prince banishes Romeo. Romeo and Juliet are tragically separated.
Shakespeare has carefully placed the scene to cause tension and
contrast. Before act three scene one, we see the beautiful and gentile
marriage of Romeo and Juliet. The audience is lulled into a false
sense of security. They feel empathy towards the character and feel
that the relationship is blessed with hope and romance. This is
contradicted in the scene immediately after as it conveys death,
violence and the unravelling of the relation ship between Romeo and
Juliet. The contrast is strong and shocks the audience. We see the
situation spiralling out of all control.
Shakespeare uses the stage set- up to show dramatic importance. He
makes use of the largest square in Verona. The audience have already
seen a brawl in this square. It's the hottest day of the year;
lighting would be harsh and bright. Benvolio warns Mercutio 'the day
is hot, the Capulets are abroad/and if we meet, we shall not 'escape a
brawl/ for now these hot days the mad blood is stirring.'
The last time we saw such a large group of people was at the banquet,
here everyone is relaxed a fight between Mercutio and Romeo is
avoided. Lord Capulet say that Romeo is a good lad, all is well. In
contrast this scene, although still set with a large amount of people,
is tense, violent and there is a sense of disaster and foreboding.
In the fair city of Verona, two rival families, the Montagues and Capulets were involved in a nasty family feud that goes back years before any of the members were born. Even the townspeople were involved in the dispute, because the families were always fighting in the streets and causing disturbances. They disrupted the streets of Verona and even Prince Escalus tried to break up the fighting. They were given a warning, by him that another public fight would result in death. While this was occurring, Romeo, (a Montague) the main character, was getting over his last love, Rosaline, and was very upset. Juliet of the Capulet household had just been introduced to a wealthy young man, Paris, whom her parents wished her to marry. Yet she did not love him. Romeo goes to a party in an effort to forget about Rosaline. At this party he met Juliet, and immediately fell in love with her. He later finds out that she is a Capulet, the rival family of the Montagues. He decides that he loves her anyway and they confess their love for each other during the very famous "balcony scene" in which they agreed to secretly marry the next day. Friar Lawrence agreed to marry them in an effort to end the feuding between the families. Unfortunately, the fighting gets worse and Mercutio (Montague) a good friend of Romeo ends up in a fight with Tybalt (Capulet), Juliet's cousin. Tybalt killed Mercutio, which caused Romeo to kill Tybalt in an angry rage. For this, Romeo is banished from Verona. At the same time, the Capulet's were planning Juliet's marriage to Paris. Juliet didn't want to marry this man so she arranges with Friar Lawrence to fake her own death with a sleeping potion that would make everyone think that she was dead. Friar Lawrence promised to send word to Romeo to meet her when the potion wears off and to rescue her to Mantua, where Romeo was currently staying. There they would live happily ever after. Unfortunately, Romeo didn't receive the message on time and upon hearing of her "death" went to Juliet's tomb where he drinks poison and dies. When Juliet's potion wears off, she wakes to find her lover's dead corpse. She then proceeds to stab herself with Romeo's dagger. The two families find the bodies and with their shared sorrow, finally make peace with each other.
Based on the classic Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, Roman, Julie, and Friends displays a new theme on becoming friends with children of all genders, even if it is not expected or allowed by their friends. There were many changes made to create a story that resembled Romeo and Juliet but also changed the meaning to a more positive and age appropriate moral. For example some of the original characters are resembled in the remediation, while others were completely new for the purpose of the new plot. The classic play was changed to a children’s book to provide a positive message to children by using pictures and designs that would suit a child’s liking. The design of the book was happy and cheerful, with basic pictures that resemble the words but are similar to the other pictures in the book. The book also uses ethos, logos, and pathos to sell the moral of the story. Ethos is mainly used by the creditability of Shakespeare. While pathos is the ability for the reader to connect with the characters personalities and stories. Logos is used by providing the child realize that friends can be any gender or personalities, but if given the chance a friend can be found in anyone. The target audience is for children around the reading level of 3, with the purpose being the idea that children can become friends with children of any gender.
In all of the best works of literature, each of a writer's characters has a purpose whether the role is small or big. Even if it goes unnoticed, the small characters usually play a key role to the story's plot development. These minor characters also add depth to the story's world and also help in the development of the major characters' personality. In William Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, the minor characters of Friar Lawrence, the Nurse, and Tybalt are in many ways the most pivotal characters to the play's development.
wither in their pride/ Ere we may think her ripe to be a bride.” From
Fate or choice? Choice or fate? How does one separate these ideals? Can one? Shakespeare could not. Nor can we. Fate and choice are so intertwined that our choices determine our fate, and our fate determines our choices. William Shakespeare trusts the audience to scrutinize whether it is fate or choice that rules our human life. Shakespeare aptly conveys this oxymoron (with which people have been dealing for ages) through the evidence and structure of his play, Romeo and Juliet.
“He who falls in love meets a worse fate than he who falls from a
some that I shall show, and I will make thee think thy swan a crow.”
should do now. He says, "Is it e'en so? Then I defy you, stars!" Romeo
Throughout the entirety of Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare is hinting at the “star crossed” deadly fate of the lovers spoken of by the chorus in the prologue. Romeo and Juliet are also constantly mentioning their uneasy feelings and how they can sense that something bad will happen, which confirm the aforementioned conclusion. This foreshadowing not only tells us this tragedy planned, but there must be pawns of fate that have to drive Romeo and Juliet together, while at the same time leading them to their death. In Romeo and Juliet, their deadly destiny was written by the universe and characters along the way, such as Capulet, Montague, Nurse, Friar Lawrence, Friar John, and Mercutio.
of a fight "let us take the law of our side let them begin" Sampson
A different type of love is seen prior to Scene Five. It is the more
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare The first scene of the two film versions of Romeo and Juliet directed by Baz Luhrmann and Franco Zeffirelli is a very unusual and interesting interpretation of the 16th century play, written by the famous playwright William Shakespeare. Both Luhrmann and Zeffirelli capture the love and tragedy story in different ways. Baz Luhrmann very cleverly manages to weave the past into the present by setting the movie in Shakespearean language and yet giving the film a very modern twist. It is set in, the very heart of a modern American city that is quite threatening and urban. Here crime thrives in the city centre, violence rules the streets and becomes a part of daily life and where people are bred not to reveal their true feelings living a life of fear, chaos and full of illusions.
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare Many people consider a tragedy to be a play or story, which includes an element of death and disaster, the play Romeo and Juliet fits into this category. With their fate already mapped out, Shakespeare ends the secret love affair of Romeo and Juliet with their deaths. The tragedy has a didactic purpose; Shakespeare wants the audience to learn how to avoid making the same mistakes as the characters. Shakespeare cleverly begins the play with a prologue, which sets the scene for the rest of the play. The prologue tells us about an “ancient grudge” between two families and how only the deaths of “star-crossed lovers”, one from each enemy, could end the feud.
There were quite a few people who attended the meeting, about 20, evidenced by multiple comments indicating so, by several regulars to the group. The group was split pretty evenly between males and females. There did not appear to be an over or
Throughout the years, William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been celebrated as one of the great tragedies of all time. William Shakespeare is an English playwright born in Stratford upon Avon during the 1500’s. Two innocent young hearts are caught in the middle of an everlasting conflict. How is the most romantic love story of all time also the most tragic? Is it the burning passion that the two lovers share? Or is it the pure hatred that their families have for each other? A force more powerful than love is expressed in this timeless tale. That force is chaos.