Romeo and Juliet - review
Romeo and Juliet Coursework
Romeo and Juliet is a play about two families who have an "ancient grudge". The children from both families fall in love and are seen as "a pair of star-crossed lovers"; their relationship results in tragedy.
Violence plays an important part of the play because without violence there would be no storyline and the play wouldn't fit into the tragedy genre. A tragedy is when the main character has a fatal flaw usually resulting in their death. Romeo and Juliet fit into this genre because the two main characters, Romeo and Juliet die at the end of the play. Also most tragedies have a "chorus" to introduce the play, Romeo and Juliet also has a "chorus".
Most people in Elizabethan times believed in fate and it was common to go to confession. Fathers wouldn't expect other family members to disobey them, so in Act 3, scene 5 when Juliet says she won't marry Paris an Elizabethan audience would be shocked. "Proud can I never be of what I hate". Capulet also shows family value when he says he will disown Juliet if she doesn't marry Paris. Capulet is so upset when Juliet refuses to marry Paris because he is a man of honour and doesn't want to go back on his word.
A Shakespearean audience would believe in all the premonitions made so they would worry about what was going to happen to the main characters. They believed in what the stars said whereas a modern day audience wouldn't take it so seriously.
The Elizabethans loved their language and liked to play with words, in Act 1, scene 1 Gregory and Sampson are talking, "No for then we should be colliers", "I mean, and we be in choler, we'll draw", "Ay, while you live, draw you're your neck out of a collar". This is a play with the word colliers, Gregory and Sampson would have thought that it was very clever to play with their language like that and throughout the rest of the play lots more word play is seen.
Lots of oxymorons are used in the play, Romeo in Act 1, scene 1, says "loving hate", "serious vanity", "bright smoke" "cold fire" and "sick health". This demonstrates that they love to play with words.
Act 1, scene 1 is the first violent scene in Romeo and Juliet. There is a fight between servants from the Capulet and Montague families. But Benvolio breaks it up "Part, fools!" The Prince makes a speech and says if there is any more fighting then they will be put to death, showing the audience that if there was any more fighting ...
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Lots of oxymorons are used in the play, Romeo in Act 1, scene 1, says "loving hate", "serious vanity", "bright smoke" "cold fire" and "sick health". This demonstrates that they love to play with words.
Act 1, scene 1 is the first violent scene in Romeo and Juliet. There is a fight between servants from the Capulet and Montague families. But Benvolio breaks it up "Part, fools!" The Prince makes a speech and says if there is any more fighting then they will be put to death, showing the audience that if there was any more fighting there would be serious consequences, and how much they treasured peace.
In Act 1, scene 1 Tybalt said, "As I hate hell, all Montague's, and thee". This shows he's not a peaceful character and wanted the fight to continue. In Act 1, scene 5 Tybalt said, " I will withdraw, but this intrusion shall now seeming sweet, convert to bitt'rest gall". This shows that Tybalt will get revenge but will leave it for now.
A Shakespearean audience's reaction would be different to a modern day audiences, the difference being a modern day audience wouldn't really react to the fight and wouldn't take what the Prince said so seriously. Whereas the fight would shock a Shakespearean audience, the Prince's speech would be taken seriously and they would expect his words to be followed through. A modern day audience might not take the Prince's speech so seriously because modern laws aren't as strict as they were in the Elizabethan times and modern laws are not always followed through as strictly as laws in Elizabethan times.
The language in Act 1, scene 1 is typical of the Elizabethan period because there's a lot of word play. The Elizabethan's loved their language and liked to play around with it. "Ay, the heads of the maids, or their maidenheads; take it in what sense thou wilt". These quotes are one of the examples of word play said by Gregory and Sampson, in the play word play occurs quite a lot and people in the Elizabethan times thought it was clever to play with their language.
In Act 2, scene 2 Juliet has a premonition, she says, "Too like lightning" this shows she has thought about their relationship and thinks they're rushing into things. She describes their relationship as like lightning because she thinks it will be gone as quickly as it was there. She was right. A Shakespearean audience would take the premonition very seriously and expect their relationship to end in tragedy.
Lots of other premonitions were made in the play, Romeo had a premonition in Act 1, scene 4, he said, "Some consequence hanging in the stars shall bitterly begin his fearful date". Romeo is worried about something that will happen on this night that will result in his death. This is significant because Romeo's death is a main part of the storyline.
Juliet in Act 3, scene 5, has another premonition. "As one dead in the bottom of a tomb" she says this to Romeo, this is the third premonition made about Romeo's death.
In Act 3, scene 1 Romeo kills Tybalt. Just before this scene Romeo and Juliet got married, dramatic irony is created here because the audience knows more than the characters. "Tybalt, the reason that I have to love thee doth much excuse the appertaining rage to such a greeting. Villain am I none; therefore, farewell; I see thou know'st me not". In this quote Romeo is explaining to Tybalt why he doesn't want to fight him without out mentioning he is married to Juliet. But Tybalt doesn't understand what Romeo is saying because he doesn't know that Romeo and Juliet are married. This also shows the respect for family members in Elizabethan times, whereas now families don't have to like each other, i.e. cousins can quite easily not get along.
This scene affects the rest of the play because everyone knows Romeo killed Tybalt and so he is banished. This scene is the reason for Romeo and Juliet's death; it could have been prevented if everyone knew about their marriage. A modern day audience wouldn't have a big reaction to the fighting because we are exposed to more violence on the television whereas it was rare to have a fight in Elizabethan times.
The third violent scene, Act 3, scene 5, this is the scene when Juliet and Capulet have an argument about Juliet marrying Paris. Just before this scene Romeo is with Juliet in her bedroom. He left through the window when Lady Capulet came up. Dramatic irony is created in this scene because the audience know Juliet is already married to Romeo and Capulet doesn't. "A whining mammet" Capulet says this to Juliet as an insult. This quote shows how angry Capulet is after Juliet has just disobeyed him. "... never after look me in the face..." Capulet is threatening to disown Juliet if she doesn't marry Paris. These quotes show Capulet has most authority and the in their household.
When these lines are delivered a director could show Capulet towering over Juliet to show that Juliet's status is lower than Capulet's.
This scene is partly the reason why Juliet took the sleeping potion. If Capulet wasn't so forceful towards Juliet, she might have felt more able to tell him about her and Romeo's marriage. This scene furthers the tragedy because Capulet is pushing Juliet towards taking the 42-hour sleeping potion without him even knowing it. Dramatic irony is created here because the audience have the knowledge of everything that's happening in the play so therefore see that Capulet was almost pushing Juliet to take the alcohol. A Shakespearean audience would be worried about what was going to happen because they know Juliet can't marry Paris because that would be bigamy.
Overall I think that Romeo and Juliet is a violent play because despite the main storyline being based around love there are many violent scenes. Romeo and Juliet was written to make a Shakespearean audience worry about the actions taking place, of which a lot of them were violent. There would be no storyline without violence and it's the violent scenes, which help the play to result in tragedy.
Carly Wilson 10W