What literary devices are used to portray whether Romeo and Juliet is more about Love or Hate

This essay hasn't yet been marked by one of our teachers

You can view all our essays on Romeo and Juliet that have been Marked by Teachers

The first 200 words of this essay...

What literary devices are used to portray whether Romeo and Juliet is more about Love or Hate? With reference to the audiences response

Romeo and Juliet was written by Shakespeare at a relatively early juncture in his literary career, most probably in 1594 or 1595. The play was an experimental stage piece at the time of its composition, featuring several radical departures from long-standing conventions. These innovative aspects of the play, moreover, reinforce and embellish its principal themes. The latter include the antithesis between love and hate, fate and destiny and the handling of time (as both theme and as structural element). The primary theme is, arguably, the contrast between love and hate. Shakespeare utilizes many literary devices as a way of representing love and hate; whether that is dialogue, the correlative use of a light/dark polarity or action. Each technique not only represents the two emotions, it represents which emotion is the dominating theme.

The play begins, with a fourteen line sonnet, The Prologue. The obvious function of the Prologue - an introduction to the play - can obscure its deeper, more important function. The Prologue does not merely set the scene of Romeo and Juliet; it