So enough about both our society from me, why don’t we find out from the people who went to see the play. Now I know what you’re all thinking, like I’m going to find a 15 yr old girl in a theatre and you were almost right, but not quite. As I entered the doors of London’s west end theatre I waited for people to come out. I thought I was doomed until there a father and daughter coming out last. It turned out the girl sat all the way through the performance needing the toilet but didn’t want to miss the play.
So what did they think, I hear you say, well I said it but I’m going to tell you anyway. I asked if I could ask them both a few questions about the play and they agreed. So we headed over to the nearest café for a cup of tea and a chat.
Interviewer
How do you feel about Capulet’s attitude towards his family?
Father
He cares for his family but is disrespectful towards his wife. If I treated my wife like that she would chuck me out! However I suppose that’s what it was like in those times. He was willing to sacrifice a lot for his family’s honour and wealth. Children in them days knew how to behave and have respect towards their parents. Unlike times today when children who are badly behaved are sent to their rooms. You have to keep watching them to make sure they don’t climb out of their windows!
Interviewer
Do you think Capulet handled his daughter correctly when she said she wouldn’t marry the County Paris?
Father
I think that Capulet loves his daughter and wants the best for her but some of the comments he made such as ‘green sickness carrion’ and ‘tallow face’ (Act 3 Scene 5) were unnecessary in my opinion. When he tells Juliet to get herself to the church on Thursday she knows that if she doesn’t go she will no longer be part of the Capulet family. He says ‘never again look me in the face’ I think he is going a bit far with this. When he begins calling her offensive names Lady Capulet steps in but he takes no notice of this ‘fie fie what are you mad?’ (Act 3 Scene 5) after he says ‘out on her, hilding!’ Here he is calling her a worthless child, which is maybe why she chose Romeo over her family.
Interviewer
Would you have rather have lived in Elizabethan times or now?
I think whilst in Elizabethan England there was a lot more respect for parents and it was stricter I would still rather live in these times, as the relationship between parents and children has increased dramatically and now there is an understanding of each other.
After chatting with Mr. Chambers, I thought I’d see what his daughter’s opinions of the play were and the parental conflict within it.
Interviewer
Do you think that the conflict between the Montagues and Capulets played a part in Juliet’s death?
Daughter
I do think that the conflict between the two families did play a part in Juliet's death because she was raised in a war zone. Romeo being a Montague definitely caused a problem because he was the enemy. Maybe if there was no conflict between the families then Juliet’s father would have her allowed her to stay with Romeo and she would be alive. The forced marriage caused Juliet so much unhappiness that she wanted to die ‘ I will not marry yet, and when I do, I swear it shall be Romeo, whom you know I hate, rather than Paris’ This implies that she would rather marry Romeo than Paris even though Romeo killed her cousin. This shows us how badly she did not want to marry Paris.
Interviewer
As a young girl like Juliet, can you explain some of you feelings towards her compared to today’s society?
Daughter
I think all the way through the play I felt sorrow for Juliet because she had a short life with so much unhappiness. The one time she seemed happy was when she met Romeo and even she was fearful of what would happen if her parents found out ‘O Romeo Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father, and refuse thy name. Or if thou wilt not, be sworn my love, and I’ll no longer be a Capulet.’ (Act 2 Scene 2) Here she is thinking of the consequences if she stays with Romeo. If she did her father would disown her and she would no longer be part of the Capulet family. Juliet’s parents were very strict making me feel quite scared for her and sad, as the only person she could talk to was her nurse. I was happy when she married Romeo although the guilt upon her afterwards must have been immense. In today’s society, children can talk to their parents more and the parents are often proud when you find love but that was different then.
Interviewer
Do you think that these problems would happen in today’s society?
Daughter
I don’t think we have problems of our parents not letting us marry who we want because parents are generally happy if you have found someone you love. Children are given a lot freedom of choice e.g. who to marry, what to wear. We can choose when to get married and have children unlike Juliet who didn’t have a choice. However when children are given more freedom of choice t hey may sometimes choose the wrong thing which could get them into trouble, however we often learn from our mistakes and in Elizabethan England there aren’t many children who would disobey their parents so are unlikely to get in serious trouble like our times with the police. I suppose that because parents in Elizabethan England were stricter there was less disobedience that there is today. I think this is because there was almost a mental prize of being a proud and wealthy family so if there was one family member that was a rotten egg so to speak it was frowned upon by not just your own family but others as well. Unlike in Elizabethan times where men had lots of power, today there are equal partnership and both parents are likely to work. Both parents make the decisions instead of just one and both opinions count.
So we have come to end of our interviewer and I think we can safely say that living in Elizabethan times must have been a nightmare. We have more choices then we ever have done (even if we make the wrong ones) but we still may argue with our parents about stupid things like having red hair and a nose stud or staying out late on a Friday night but who cares. The point is we can make our own decisions so hopefully we wont end up married and pregnant by 15. From the answers in our interview, it is difficult to say if Juliet’s parents were responsible for her death so after reading this article I’m leaving that up to you. I’ll be back next week to talk about more issues from our favourite playwright Mr. William Shakespeare.
