romeo and juliet

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Is Shakespeare successful in creating sympathy for Juliet in Act Three, Scene Five?

Introduction

In Act Three, Scene Five Romeo prepares to leave Juliet just before dawn, but she holds him back saying that it is still night. He offers to stay and die, but she urges him to leave. As the Nurse enters warning them that Juliet’s mother is coming Romeo kisses Juliet and leaves through the window. Juliet asks him if they will ever see each other again, Romeo assures her they will but Juliet seems to predict what will happen. Lady Capulet enters and assuming Juliet is weeping for Tybalt’s death and that no revenge has been taken upon Romeo tells her that she is weeping too much and expresses her hatred for Romeo. Juliet seems to agree but there is a vague meaning in her words expressing her love for Romeo. To cheer Juliet up, Lady Capulet delivers her the news that she is to be married to Paris. Juliet refuses to accept this and Lady Capulet tells this to her husband. Capulet gets so enraged that he threatens Juliet that if she doesn’t marry Paris she is no longer a member of the family. Juliet asks her mother to support her but she does not. She turns to the Nurse for advice but she tells Juliet that she should marry Paris because Romeo is not coming back and that Paris is the better man anyway. She pretends to agree but decides to go to Friar Lawrence to ask him for advice. The audience will fell sympathy towards Juliet seeing that she has just been married to Romeo but must apart from him due to the circumstances.

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Shakespearean audiences expectations of  the role of a daughter would be to obey all male relatives. The play, Romeo and Juliet was written in a Patriarchal society. This is where men (particularly fathers) dominated Elizabethan society. A father had complete control over the women in his family-wife, daughter, sister and mother. Men had control of money, politics, home, children, work, women etc. During the 1500’s women were inferior to men. They were controlled by their husbands, fathers, or by any other men in the family. They were not allowed to hold their own opinions, views or lifestyle. Life for ...

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