1.William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” was first printed in 1597. 2.Which means that in 400 years there have been approximately 200,000,000,000 copies sold around the world.3. In every copy sold there has been an underlying question.4. Why did William Shakespeare write a tragic love story? 5. In the article “Love, Sex and Death in Romeo and Juliet” by Clayton G. MacKenzie she states “Sexuality and death have been linked in art and literature since ancient times” (29.) 6. It is a known fact that this is the world’s favorite play written by Shakespeare not only for the love and the passion, but the sacrifice of each other.7. For more than 400 years’ critics and playgoers have been analyzing this play trying to understand the love and tragedy …show more content…
Love, Sex, and Death play a major role in William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” that is what makes this play so extraordinary for its unique qualities.3. Clayton G. MacKenzie states in her article “Love, Sex and Death in Romeo and Juliet,” “Shakespeare’s play, though, does not attempt to present a simple image of callow romance and sexuality cut down in full bloom by Death’s grim scythe. Its journey is more complex and, perhaps, more perplexing than that. The play’s thesis may begin with a conspiracy between sex and death, encapsulated in Rosaline’s unwillingness to participate in the death-dealing games of sexual love, but it goes on to speculate about the possibilities of sex through death, and evolves even into a discourse on sex as death.” (23). 4.This statement to me means that Romeo tried the same game on Rosaline and Juliet.5. His first attempt failed, but the love he had with Juliet was the perfect ending to his story.6. Clayton G. MacKenzie also states “These shifts occur initially because of Friar Lawrence’s plan to supply Juliet with a drug that will give her the temporary appearance of absolute death, allowing her then to revive and escape with Romeo. By assuming the guise of death, Juliet expects to achieve the fruits of romantic life. Death is to transport the lovers into a secure realm of marital bliss. The plan fails because the …show more content…
In Conclusion, William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” was not just about the tragedy that Romeo and Juliet were going to run away from their family, but it was their fate that was the tragedy.2. The death might have been planned all along not exactly how the play ended, but maybe Romeo being his own destruction, was Juliet’s final destruction.3. Finally, the love, sex, and death of this story may have been just miscommunication.4. Romeo was playing the same love and death game with Juliet just as he did with Rosaline and this time his planned worked out to be the best ending he could have hoped for.5. The tragedy, which was Romeo finding Juliet dead (Fake), him saying his good-byes and Juliet being his destruction, then Juliet waking up from her fake death and realizing she could not live without him, which was her downfall as well. 6.The way that I look at their situation is that there was no way out.7. Even if they both gotten away, and then married, in the end it would have the exact same ending, which would be them both being each other’s downfall.8. This sentence from “Romeo and Juliet” explains why their fate will always be the same.9. “Whole misadventure piteous overthrows Do with their death bury their parents’ strife. The fearful passage of their death-marked love, And the continuance of their parents’ rage, Which, but their children’s end, nought could remove” (Shakespeare 3). 10. This statement was made from Romeo, at the beginning pf the play and it
Love can be very righteous and beneficial if done moderately and adequately. When ones love life takes over his or her life in reality it can prove to be highly dangerous and injurious both mentally and physically. In the play Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare advises the importance of moderate love. Unfortunately though this tragic play ends in two devastating and dreadful deaths of both young lovers. However they are not totally to blame, the ones to blame for the death of these two lovers are Friar Lawrence, the nurse, and the Capulets themselves.
Shakespeare’s play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, depicts an ancient feud ended by a pair of star-crossed lovers’ deaths. A lord and lady from warring families seek a forbidden love with guidance from a friar and nurse. Due to a tragic course of mischances and fateful errors, their attempt of eloping led the lovers to a tragic end. Because of rash decisions, the four characters are torn apart by miscalculating events and misunderstandings. Ultimately, the four characters encounter a heartbreaking ending, as a result of their hastiness.
The Deaths of Romeo and Juliet Was it just one person’s fault, or a mixture? In this essay, I will include many different reasons as to why Romeo and Juliet die. I will explain in detail each point and put forward my own opinions. I will use quotes to back up each point and explain why the historical context is relevant.
Overall Shakespeare hugely emphasises the inevitability of Romeo and Juliet’s deaths, by using a wide range of techniques. For a typical 19th century audience it will reinforce their beliefs in fate; however a modern audience might not be drawn in by the idea of fate alone. A modern audience would watch the play mainly to see how the play unfolds and how such a loving relationship can go from one extreme to another.
Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”¬¬ is considered to be one of the most tragic stories ever told and the most asked question is ‘What, exactly, caused their deaths?’ That question has been answered from a respected, educated literature critic to the adolescent mind of an annoyed teenager. The sources that shall be used are from professional critics, but the opinion shall lean toward more of an annoyed teen. While not exactly annoyed, more exasperated, one could say. Romeo and Juliet commit suicide because of their young age. Romeo’s impulsiveness and desperation to love mixed with Juliet’s innocence and easily influenced personality prove to be a deadly pair. Romeo and Juliet’s lack of experience for love because of their age ultimately led to their death.
The story of Romeo and Juliet is an inevitable tragedy. Many events take place, which are quite detrimental to the love Romeo and Juliet have for one another. By mentioning marriage and death together, Shakespeare foreshadows Romeo and Juliet's tragic ending. From the very beginning of the play throughout and to the end, there has always been the intent of a tragedy, and Shakespeare uses much dramatic irony to express this.
These two lovers go to many lengths to be together until the very end, and by the end of the play, their two rival families finally make up and start to treat each other with respect. ‘In this way, the characters in the story ultimately become egos of today 's society in creating love stories” (Garber, 2008). Even Shakespeare intended for this revamped version of the original play to be a comedy. His own preferences were supported by his love for writing sonnets in the 1590s, where he wanted to reflect the true love between a man and woman. Yet this particular kind of love is twisted up by Shakespeare 's mind (Boyce,2005). “Romeo and Juliet is just one of those good romances gone wrong clichés but can still be described as a comedy for it 'd ‘humorously’ fruity nature and good taste in having a say for two teenagers that are deeply in
Romeo and Juliet’s irrational decisions turn them into pathetic figures that make poor choices, which lead to their deaths. Their poor actions not only affect their families but all who get in their way. Before getting married they were warned about the consequences that their rushed love could trigger, however they paid no attention to the opinions of others and through the course of the play did everything in their power to hold onto their relationships. Their parents on going feud caused them to keep their relationship a secret, which lead to their illogical decisions such as resulting to suicide as the answer to all their problems. Romeo and Juliet truly never reflected through any of their decisions, they were unreasonable and selfish making them pathetic characters.
The rose is a truly beautiful flower, with a scent just as fine. Its petals come in a variety of magnificent colors: yellow, pink, white, and red. It’s become the universal symbol for love, the flower’s petals littered everywhere during Valentine’s. The rose is almost perfect, but it bears one flaw; it’s thorns. As the rose is the symbol of love, Romeo and Juliet has become the archetype for love stories today. Besides representing love, they are both alike in having thorns. The tragic story of forbidden love is its own thorn. The events leading up to the deaths of the two teens were just as terrible. Such as the deaths of a few key characters, Mercutio and Tybalt, whose deaths mark the start of the dreadful half of the play. The separation between the two lovers, Rome and Juliet, that occurs after Mercutio and Tybalt are slain, is also one of the many other depressing occurrences. One of the last scenes, the suicides of Romeo and Juliet, is the last and the most heart-wrenching scene for the audience. These three scenes, of the deaths, separation, and suicides of the characters, are only few of the numerous examples that show that, William Shakespeare’s, Romeo and Juliet, is indeed, a tragedy.
When people are growing up they often feel a loss of a loved one is very serious and think of their death instead of dealing with the pain. This play shows us that Romeo and Juliet should have not been too impulsive with their choices and should have thought more about their decisions. The impulses in Romeo and Juliet were shown by Shakespeare with certain foreshadowing, situational irony and dramatic irony. This shows the audience that young love can take you to places in your mind you never want to cross and you have to be careful in making your decisions.
Just as the Friar says in the beginning of the Shakespeare play, Romeo and Juliet, “Wisely and slowly, they stumble that run fast.” (II.iii.94). this was a sign of foreshadowing for for the death of the lovers, Romeo and Juliet. Even though fate was a factor that had contributed to a tragic end, there was also personal choice involved, and ultimately, the story may have had a different ending if it weren’t for the flaws of the lovers and their inability to have a grip on reality in dire circumstances. Over the course of the play, the lovers from the conflicting households have not matured and remain rather static in development. Furthermore, in this tragedy, the only son of the montages remains rather childlike, Juliet still seems immature and their relationship over all seems more like a play act on lover rather then something mature and sustainable. Overall, from start to finish, Romeo and Juliet were living in the moment, being absurd and silly rather then focusing on the future and trying to work problems out effectively.
To conclude, Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy due to the tragic elements of Romeo’s thoughtlessness, Juliet’s attachment towards Romeo, and the plot’s dramatic turnabout. The play has both main characters tragically take their own lives, but there is much controversy whether it should be considered a tragedy or just a tragic story. Aristotle’s Poetics clearly outline all of the necessary parts to a tragedy, and Romeo and Juliet fill in those requisites. Despite all controversies, the one agreement everybody can come to is Romeo and Juliet is one of the world’s most beloved work of literature.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was a Renaissance poet and playwright who wrote and published the original versions of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language, and often called England’s national poet. Several of his works became extremely well known, thoroughly studied, and enjoyed all over the world. One of Shakespeare’s most prominent plays is titled The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. In this tragedy, the concept that is discussed and portrayed through the characters is love, as they are recognized as being “in love”. The general umbrella of love encompasses various kinds of love such as romantic love, the love of a parent for a child, love of one’s country, and several others. What is common to all love is this: Your own well-being is tied up with that of someone (or something) you love… When love is not present, changes in other people’s well being do not, in general, change your own… Being ‘in love’ infatuation is an intense state that displays similar features: … and finding everyone charming and nice, and thinking they all must sense one’s happiness. At first glance it seems as though Shakespeare advocates the hasty, hormone-driven passion portrayed by the protagonists, Romeo and Juliet; however, when viewed from a more modern, North-American perspective, it seems as though Shakespeare was not in fact endorsing it, but mocking the public’s superficial perception of love. Shakespeare’s criticism of the teens’ young and hasty love is portrayed in various instances of the play, including Romeo’s shallow, flip-flop love for Rosaline then Juliet, and his fights with Juliet’s family. Also, the conseque...
In scene five, act three, Romeo was finding his way into the tomb where Juliet’s supposed dead body was resting. When Romeo found Juliet’s dead body, he brought out his poison and exclaimed that “Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die,” (Shakespeare 5. 3. 120), and followed to drink the poison, killing himself. In this passage, Shakespeare explains how Romeo dies, using diction to make the scene romantic. “Thus with a kiss I die,” (Shakespeare 5. 3. 120), can be seen as as a romantic way to die, but it was Romeo’s choice to drink the poison, which ended his life. Furthermore, this decision also resulted in Juliet’s death, shortly after. This passage explains Romeo’s foolishness because instead of killing himself on the spot, he could have waited. Although he would not expect for Juliet to wake up, simply waiting for others to arrive at the tomb to mourn with would have wasted enough time for Juliet to wake up. After some time passed, Juliet woke up from the effects of the potion she drank. When Juliet woke up from her fake coma, she found Romeo dead next to him. She took his dagger and exclaimed “O, happy dagger, This is thy sheath. There rust, and let me die,” (Shakespeare 5. 3. 174-175), and of course, she died shortly after stabbing herself. Shakespeare included
William Shakespeare treats death in Romeo and Juliet different for each set of characters. Some character deaths was because a familial issue, other were for legal issues. Romeo and Juliet's death was a familial issue, Mercutio’s death was a personal issue and Tybalt's death was a legal issue.