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Analysis of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet

By NASRULLAH MAMBROL on July 25, 2020 • ( 6 )

Shakespeare, more than any other author, has instructed the West in the catastrophes of sexuality, and has invented the formula that the sexual becomes the erotic when crossed by the shadow of death. There had to be one high song of the erotic by Shakespeare, one lyrical and tragi-comical paean celebrating an unmixed love and lamenting its inevitable destruction. Romeo and Juliet is unmatched, in Shakespeare and in the world’s literature, as a vision of an uncompromising mutual love that perishes of its own idealism and intensity.

—Harold Bloom, Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human

Romeo and Juliet, regarded by many as William Shakespeare’s first great play, is generally thought to have been written around 1595. Shakespeare was then 31 years old, married for 12 years and the father of three children. He had been acting and writing in London for five years. His stage credits included mainly histories—the three parts of Henry VI and Richard III —and comedies— The Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Taming of the Shrew, The Comedy of Errors, and Love’s Labour’s Lost. Shakespeare’s first tragedy, modeled on Seneca, Titus Andronicus , was written around 1592. From that year through 1595 Shakespeare had also composed 154 sonnets and two long narrative poems in the erotic tradition— Venus  and  Adonis   and  The  Rape  of  Lucrece.  Both  his  dramatic  and  nondramatic  writing  show  Shakespeare  mastering  Elizabethan  literary  conventions.  Then,  around 1595, Shakespeare composed three extraordinary plays—R ichard II, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Romeo and Juliet —in three different genres—history, comedy, and tragedy—signalling a new mastery, originality, and excellence.  With  these  three  plays  Shakespeare  emerged  from  the  shadows  of  his  influences and initiated a period of unexcelled accomplishment. The two parts of Henry IV and Julius Caesar would follow, along with the romantic comedies The Merchant of Venice, As You Like It, and Twelfth Night and the great tragedies Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth, and Antony and Cleopatra . The three plays  of  1595,  therefore,  serve  as  an  important  bridge  between  Shakespeare’s  apprenticeship and his mature achievements. Romeo and Juliet, in particular, is a crucial play in the evolution of Shakespeare’s tragic vision, in his integration of poetry and drama, and in his initial exploration of the connection between love and tragedy that he would continue in Troilus and Cressida, Othello, and Antony  and  Cleopatra.  Romeo  and  Juliet   is  not  only  one  of  the  greatest  love  stories in all literature, considering its stage history and the musicals, opera, music, ballet, literary works, and films that it has inspired; it is quite possibly the most popular play of all time. There is simply no more famous pair of lovers than Romeo and Juliet, and their story has become an inescapable central myth in our understanding of romantic love.

Despite  the  play’s  persistence,  cultural  saturation,  and  popular  appeal,  Romeo and Juliet has fared less well with scholars and critics, who have generally judged it inferior to the great tragedies that followed. Instead of the later tragedies of character Romeo and Juliet has been downgraded as a tragedy of chance, and, in the words of critic James Calderwood, the star-crossed lovers are “insufficiently endowed with complexity” to become tragic heroes. Instead “they  become  a  study  of  victimage  and  sacrifice,  not  tragedy.”  What  is  too  often missing in a consideration of the shortcomings of Romeo and Juliet by contrast with the later tragedies is the radical departure the play represented when compared to what preceded it. Having relied on Senecan horror for his first tragedy, Titus  Andronicus,  Shakespeare  located  his  next  in  the  world  of  comedy and romance. Romeo and Juliet is set not in antiquity, as Elizabethan convention dictated for a tragic subject, but in 16th-century Verona, Italy. His tragic protagonists are neither royal nor noble, as Aristotle advised, but two teenagers caught up in the petty disputes of their families. The plight of young lovers pitted against parental or societal opposition was the expected subject, since  Roman  times,  of  comedy,  not  tragedy.  By  showing  not  the  eventual  triumph  but  the  death  of  the  two  young  lovers  Shakespeare  violated  comic  conventions,  while  making  a  case  that  love  and  its  consequences  could  be  treated with an unprecedented tragic seriousness. As critic Harry Levin has observed, Shakespeare’s contemporaries “would have been surprised, and possibly shocked at seeing lovers taken so seriously. Legend, it had been hereto-fore taken for granted, was the proper matter for serious drama; romance was the stuff of the comic stage.”

Shakespeare’s innovations are further evident in comparison to his source material.  The  plot  was  a  well-known  story  in  Italian,  French,  and  English  versions. Shakespeare’s direct source was Arthur Brooke’s poem The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet (1562). This moralistic work was intended as  a  warning  to  youth  against  “dishonest  desire”  and  disobeying  parental  authority. Shakespeare, by contrast, purifies and ennobles the lovers’ passion, intensifies  the  pathos,  and  underscores  the  injustice  of  the  lovers’  destruction.  Compressing  the  action  from  Brooke’s  many  months  into  a  five-day crescendo, Shakespeare also expands the roles of secondary characters such as  Mercutio  and  Juliet’s  nurse  into  vivid  portraits  that  contrast  the  lovers’ elevated lyricism with a bawdy earthiness and worldly cynicism. Shakespeare transforms Brooke’s plodding verse into a tour de force verbal display that is supremely witty, if at times over elaborate, and, at its best, movingly expressive. If the poet and the dramatist are not yet seamlessly joined in Romeo and Juliet, the play still displays a considerable advance in Shakespeare’s orchestration of verse, image, and incident that would become the hallmark of his greatest achievements.

The play’s theme and outcome are announced in the Prologue:

Two households, both alike in dignity, In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. From forth the fatal loins of these two foes A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life; Whose misadventur’d piteous overthrows Doth with their death bury their parents’ strife.

Suspense over the lovers’ fate is eliminated at the outset as Shakespeare emphasizes the forces that will destroy them. The initial scene makes this clear as a public brawl between servants of the feuding Montagues and Capulets escalates to involve kinsmen and the patriarchs on both sides, ended only when the Prince of Verona enforces a cease-fire under penalty of death for future offenders of the peace. Romeo, Montague’s young son, does not participate in the scuffle since he is totally absorbed by a hopeless passion for a young, unresponsive beauty named Rosaline. Initially Romeo appears as a figure of mockery, the embodiment of the hypersensitive, melancholy adolescent lover, who  is  urged  by  his  kinsman  Benvolio  to  resist  sinking  “under  love’s  heavy  burden”  and  seek  another  more  worthy  of  his  affection.  Another  kinsman,  Mercutio, for whom love is more a game of easy conquest, urges Romeo to “be  rough  with  love”  and  master  his  circumstances.  When  by  chance  it  is  learned that Rosaline is to attend a party at the Capulets, Benvolio suggests that they should go as well for Romeo to compare Rosaline’s charms with the other beauties at the party and thereby cure his infatuation. There Romeo sees Juliet, Capulet’s not-yet 14-year-old daughter. Her parents are encouraging her  to  accept  a  match  with  Count  Paris  for  the  social  benefit  of  the  family.  Love  as  affectation  and  love  as  advantage  are  transformed  into  love  as  all-consuming, mutual passion at first sight. Romeo claims that he “ne’er saw true beauty till this night,” and by the force of that beauty, he casts off his former melancholic  self-absorption.  Juliet is  no  less  smitten.  Sending her nurse  to  learn the stranger’s identity, she worries, “If he be married, / My grave is like to be my wedding bed.” Both are shocked to learn that they are on either side of the family feud, and their risk is underscored when the Capulet kinsman, Tybalt, recognizes Romeo and, though prevented by Capulet from violence at the party, swears future vengeance. Tybalt’s threat underscores that this is a play as much about hate as about love, in which Romeo and Juliet’s passion is  increasingly  challenged  by  the  public  and  family  forces  that  deny  love’s  authority.

The  first  of  the  couple’s  two  great  private  moments  in  which  love’s  redemptive and transformative power works its magic follows in possibly the most famous single scene in all of drama, set in the Capulets’ orchard, over-looked by Juliet’s bedroom window. In some of the most impassioned, lyrical, and famous verses Shakespeare ever wrote, the lovers’ dialogue perfectly captures the ecstasy of love and love’s capacity to remake the world. Seeing Juliet above at her window, Romeo says:

But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun! Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, Who is already sick and pale with grief That thou her maid art far more fair than she.

He overhears Juliet’s declaration of her love for him and the rejection of what is implied if a Capulet should love a Montague:

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name! Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I’ll no longer be a Capulet. . . . ’Tis but thy name that is my enemy. Thou art thyself, though not a Montague. What’s Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot, Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part Belonging to a man. O, be some other name! What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet .So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d, Retain that dear perfection which he owes Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name; And for that name, which is no part of thee, Take all myself.

In  a  beautifully  modulated  scene  the  lovers  freely  admit  their  passion  and  exchange vows of love that become a marriage proposal. As Juliet continues to be called back to her room and all that is implied as Capulet’s daughter, time and space become the barriers to love’s transcendent power to unite.

With the assistance of Friar Lawrence, who regards the union of a Montague and a Capulet as an opportunity “To turn your households’ rancour to pure  love,”  Romeo  and  Juliet  are  secretly  married.  Before  nightfall  and  the  anticipated consummation of their union Romeo is set upon by Tybalt, who is by Romeo’s marriage, his new kinsman. Romeo accordingly refuses his challenge, but it is answered by Mercutio. Romeo tries to separate the two, but in the  process  Mercutio  is  mortally  wounded.  This  is  the  tragic  turn  of  the  play  as  Romeo,  enraged,  rejects  the  principle  of  love  forged  with  Juliet  for  the claims of reputation, the demand for vengeance, and an identifi cation of masculinity with violent retribution:

My very friend, hath got this mortal hurt In my behalf; my reputation stain’d With Tybalt’s slander—Tybalt, that an hour Hath been my kinsman. O sweet Juliet, Thy beauty hath made me effeminate And in my temper soft’ned valour’s steel!

After killing Tybalt, Romeo declares, “O, I am fortune’s fool!” He may blame circumstances for his predicament, but he is clearly culpable in capitulating to the values of society he had challenged in his love for Juliet.

The lovers are given one final moment of privacy before the catastrophe. Juliet, awaiting Romeo’s return, gives one of the play’s most moving speeches, balancing sublimity with an intimation of mortality that increasingly accompanies the lovers:

Come, gentle night; come, loving, black-brow’d night; Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die, Take him and cut him out in little stars, And he will make the face of heaven so fine That all the world will be in love with night And pay no worship to the garish sun.

Learning the terrible news of Tybalt’s death and Romeo’s banishment, Juliet wins her own battle between hate and love and sends word to Romeo to keep their appointed night together before they are parted.

As Romeo is away in Mantua Juliet’s parents push ahead with her wedding to Paris. The solution to Juliet’s predicament is offered by Friar Lawrence who gives her a drug that will make it appear she has died. The Friar is to summon Romeo,  who  will  rescue  her  when  she  awakes  in  the  Capulet  family  tomb.  The Friar’s message to Romeo fails to reach him, and Romeo learns of Juliet’s death. Reversing his earlier claim of being “fortune’s fool,” Romeo reacts by declaring, “Then I defy you, stars,” rushing to his wife and breaking society’s rules by acquiring the poison to join her in death. Reaching the tomb Romeo is surprised to find Paris on hand, weeping for his lost bride. Outraged by the intrusion  on  his  grief  Paris  confronts  Romeo.  They  fight,  and  after  killing  Paris, Romeo fi nally recognizes him and mourns him as “Mercutio’s kinsman.” Inside the tomb Romeo sees Tybalt’s corpse and asks forgiveness before taking leave of Juliet with a kiss:

. . . O, here Will I set up my everlasting rest And shake the yoke of inauspicious stars From this world-wearied flesh.

Juliet  awakes  to  see  Romeo  dead  beside  her.  Realizing  what  has  happened,  she responds by taking his dagger and plunges it into her breast: “This is thy sheath; there rest, and let me die.”

Montagues, Capulets, and the Prince arrive, and the Friar explains what has happened and why. His account of Romeo and Juliet’s tender passion and devotion shames the two families into ending their feud. The Prince provides the final eulogy:

A glooming peace this morning with it brings. The sun for sorrow will not show his head. Go hence, to have more talk of these sad things; Some shall be pardon’d, and some punished; For never was a story of more woe Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.

The  sense  of  loss  Verona  and  the  audience  feels  at  the  lovers’  deaths  is  a  direct  result  of  Shakespeare’s  remarkable  ability  to  conjure  love  in  all  its  transcendent power, along with its lethal risks. Set on a collision course with the values bent on denying love’s sway, Romeo and Juliet manage to create a dreamlike, alternative, private world that is so touching because it is so brief and perishable. Shakespeare’s triumph here is to make us care that adolescent romance matters—emotionally,  psychologically,  and  socially—and  that  the  premature and unjust death of lovers rival in profundity and significance the fall of kings.

Romeo and Juliet Oxford Lecture by Emma Smith

Analysis of William Shakespeare’s Plays

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A Summary and Analysis of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

Although it was first performed in the 1590s, the first  documented  performance of Romeo and Juliet is from 1662. The diarist Samuel Pepys was in the audience, and recorded that he ‘saw “Romeo and Juliet,” the first time it was ever acted; but it is a play of itself the worst that ever I heard in my life, and the worst acted that ever I saw these people do.’

Despite Pepys’ dislike, the play is one of Shakespeare’s best-loved and most famous, and the story of Romeo and Juliet is well known. However, the play has become so embedded in the popular psyche that Shakespeare’s considerably more complex play has been reduced to a few key aspects: ‘star-cross’d lovers’, a teenage love story, and the suicide of the two protagonists.

In the summary and analysis that follow, we realise that Romeo and Juliet is much more than a tragic love story.

Romeo and Juliet : brief summary

After the Prologue has set the scene – we have two feuding households, Montagues and Capulets, in the city-state of Verona; and young Romeo is a Montague while Juliet, with whom Romeo is destined to fall in love, is from the Capulet family, sworn enemies of the Montagues – the play proper begins with servants of the two feuding households taunting each other in the street.

When Benvolio, a member of house Montague, arrives and clashes with Tybalt of house Capulet, a scuffle breaks out, and it is only when Capulet himself and his wife, Lady Capulet, appear that the fighting stops. Old Montague and his wife then show up, and the Prince of Verona, Escalus, arrives and chastises the people for fighting. Everyone leaves except Old Montague, his wife, and Benvolio, Montague’s nephew. Benvolio tells them that Romeo has locked himself away, but he doesn’t know why.

Romeo appears and Benvolio asks his cousin what is wrong, and Romeo starts speaking in paradoxes, a sure sign that he’s in love. He claims he loves Rosaline, but will not return any man’s love. A servant appears with a note, and Romeo and Benvolio learn that the Capulets are holding a masked ball.

Benvolio tells Romeo he should attend, even though he is a Montague, as he will find more beautiful women than Rosaline to fall in love with. Meanwhile, Lady Capulet asks her daughter Juliet whether she has given any thought to marriage, and tells Juliet that a man named Paris would make an excellent husband for her.

Romeo attends the Capulets’ masked ball, with his friend Mercutio. Mercutio tells Romeo about a fairy named Queen Mab who enters young men’s minds as they dream, and makes them dream of love and romance. At the masked ball, Romeo spies Juliet and instantly falls in love with her; she also falls for him.

They kiss, but then Tybalt, Juliet’s kinsman, spots Romeo and recognising him as a Montague, plans to confront him. Old Capulet tells him not to do so, and Tybalt reluctantly agrees. When Juliet enquires after who Romeo is, she is distraught to learn that he is a Montague and thus a member of the family that is her family’s sworn enemies.

Romeo breaks into the gardens of Juliet’s parents’ house and speaks to her at her bedroom window. The two of them pledge their love for each other, and arrange to be secretly married the following night. Romeo goes to see a churchman, Friar Laurence, who agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet.

After the wedding, the feud between the two families becomes violent again: Tybalt kills Mercutio in a fight, and Romeo kills Tybalt in retaliation. The Prince banishes Romeo from Verona for his crime.

Juliet is told by her father that she will marry Paris, so Juliet goes to seek Friar Laurence’s help in getting out of it. He tells her to take a sleeping potion which will make her appear to be dead for two nights; she will be laid to rest in the family vault, and Romeo (who will be informed of the plan) can secretly come to her there.

However, although that part of the plan goes fine, the message to Romeo doesn’t arrive; instead, he hears that Juliet has actually died. He secretly visits her at the family vault, but his grieving is interrupted by the arrival of Paris, who is there to lay flowers. The two of them fight, and Romeo kills him.

Convinced that Juliet is really dead, Romeo drinks poison in order to join Juliet in death. Juliet wakes from her slumber induced by the sleeping draught to find Romeo dead at her side. She stabs herself.

The play ends with Friar Laurence telling the story to the two feuding families. The Prince tells them to put their rivalry behind them and live in peace.

Romeo and Juliet : analysis

How should we analyse Romeo and Juliet , one of Shakespeare’s most famous and frequently studied, performed, and adapted plays? Is Romeo and Juliet the great love story that it’s often interpreted as, and what does it say about the play – if it is a celebration of young love – that it ends with the deaths of both romantic leads?

It’s worth bearing in mind that Romeo and Juliet do not kill themselves specifically because they are forbidden to be together, but rather because a chain of events (of which their families’ ongoing feud with each other is but one) and a message that never arrives lead to a misunderstanding which results in their suicides.

Romeo and Juliet is often read as both a tragedy and a great celebration of romantic love, but it clearly throws out some difficult questions about the nature of love, questions which are rendered even more pressing when we consider the headlong nature of the play’s action and the fact that Romeo and Juliet meet, marry, and die all within the space of a few days.

Below, we offer some notes towards an analysis of this classic Shakespeare play and explore some of the play’s most salient themes.

It’s worth starting with a consideration of just what Shakespeare did with his source material. Interestingly, two families known as the Montagues and Capulets appear to have actually existed in medieval Italy: the first reference to ‘Montagues and Capulets’ is, curiously, in the poetry of Dante (1265-1321), not Shakespeare.

In Dante’s early fourteenth-century epic poem, the  Divine Comedy , he makes reference to two warring Italian families: ‘Come and see, you who are negligent, / Montagues and Capulets, Monaldi and Filippeschi / One lot already grieving, the other in fear’ ( Purgatorio , canto VI). Precisely why the families are in a feud with one another is never revealed in Shakespeare’s play, so we are encouraged to take this at face value.

The play’s most famous line references the feud between the two families, which means Romeo and Juliet cannot be together. And the line, when we stop and consider it, is more than a little baffling. The line is spoken by Juliet: ‘Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?’ Of course, ‘wherefore’ doesn’t mean ‘where’ – it means ‘why’.

But that doesn’t exactly clear up the whys and the wherefores. The question still doesn’t appear to make any sense: Romeo’s problem isn’t his first name, but his family name, Montague. Surely, since she fancies him, Juliet is quite pleased with ‘Romeo’ as he is – it’s his family that are the problem. Solutions  have been proposed to this conundrum , but none is completely satisfying.

There are a number of notable things Shakespeare did with his source material. The Italian story ‘Mariotto and Gianozza’, printed in 1476, contained many of the plot elements of Shakespeare’s  Romeo and Juliet . Shakespeare’s source for the play’s story was Arthur Brooke’s  The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet  (1562), an English verse translation of this Italian tale.

The moral of Brooke’s tale is that young love ends in disaster for their elders, and is best reined in; Shakespeare changed that. In Romeo and Juliet , the headlong passion and excitement of young love is celebrated, even though confusion leads to the deaths of the young lovers. But through their deaths, and the example their love set for their parents, the two families vow to be reconciled to each other.

Shakespeare also makes Juliet a thirteen-year-old girl in his play, which is odd for a number of reasons. We know that  Romeo and Juliet  is about young love – the ‘pair of star-cross’d lovers’, who belong to rival families in Verona – but what is odd about Shakespeare’s play is how young he makes Juliet.

In Brooke’s verse rendition of the story, Juliet is sixteen. But when Shakespeare dramatised the story, he made Juliet several years younger, with Romeo’s age unspecified. As Lady Capulet reveals, Juliet is ‘not [yet] fourteen’, and this point is made to us several times, as if Shakespeare wishes to draw attention to it and make sure we don’t forget it.

This makes sense in so far as Juliet represents young love, but what makes it unsettling – particularly for modern audiences – is the fact that this makes Juliet a girl of thirteen when she enjoys her night of wedded bliss with Romeo. As John Sutherland puts it in his (and Cedric Watts’) engaging  Oxford World’s Classics: Henry V, War Criminal?: and Other Shakespeare Puzzles , ‘In a contemporary court of law [Romeo] would receive a longer sentence for what he does to Juliet than for what he does to Tybalt.’

There appears to be no satisfactory answer to this question, but one possible explanation lies in one of the play’s recurring themes: bawdiness and sexual familiarity. Perhaps surprisingly given the youthfulness of its tragic heroine, Romeo and Juliet is shot through with bawdy jokes, double entendres, and allusions to sex, made by a number of the characters.

These references to physical love serve to make Juliet’s innocence, and subsequent passionate romance with Romeo, even more noticeable: the journey both Romeo and Juliet undertake is one from innocence (Romeo pointlessly and naively pursuing Rosaline; Juliet unversed in the ways of love) to experience.

In the last analysis, Romeo and Juliet is a classic depiction of forbidden love, but it is also far more sexually aware, more ‘adult’, than many people realise.

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4 thoughts on “A Summary and Analysis of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet”

Modern reading of the play’s opening dialogue among the brawlers fails to parse the ribaldry. Sex scares the bejeepers out of us. Why? Confer “R&J.”

It’s all that damn padre’s fault!

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William Shakespeare

Romeo And Juliet

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Related Topics

• Taming of The Shrew
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• Midsummer Night's Dream
• Titus Andronicus
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Play Review: Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet met at a Caplet’s ball and instantly fell in love. Despite being from rival families, their love prevailed over their differences. They decided to marry in hopes of bringing an end to the ongoing feuds between their families. However, upon Juliet’s return home, she discovered her parents had already arranged a secret marriage for her with Paris.

Romeo killed Gullet’s cousin, Table, as a retaliation for Table killing Mercuric, Romeo’s friend. This caused Romeo to flee the town. To avoid marrying Paris, Juliet acquired poison from the friar. The poison induced a 42-hour death-like state in Juliet. Her intention was to be placed in the family vault and send Romeo a message so he could retrieve her from there. They planned to escape together without their parents’ knowledge. Unfortunately, Romeo never received the message and mistakenly believed that Juliet was truly dead when he went to the vault. Consequently, he ended up taking his own life.

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Upon waking up, Juliet tragically chose to end her own life after finding out about Romeo’s death. This heartbreaking event ultimately brought an end to the longstanding feud between their families. In my opinion, this play is truly remarkable and stands out as one of the best I have seen in a while. The entire cast delivered an exceptional performance, each bringing their unique interpretation to their respective roles, resulting in a captivating and thrilling production. With a perfect combination of drama and comedy, this play was an absolute delight. Nathan Mesa’s portrayal of Peter particularly stood out to me as he added a hilarious twist to the storyline.

Even though he is not as important a character as Romeo, he performed his role exceptionally well and every time he spoke, the audience erupted with laughter. The set design, particularly the balcony and the columns, was meticulously crafted and added an extraordinary touch to the play. Ronald Watson, who was responsible for the scenic design, did an excellent job. The lighting design was equally impressive, effectively conveying the emotions felt by the performers at each moment.

Debra Coates deserves congratulations for her excellent lighting design. The costumes were also fitting as they accurately represented the attire of the era. In summary, this play was truly spectacular due to the performers’ professionalism, appropriate costumes, scenic and lighting design, and the captivating story of Romeo and Juliet. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this play and highly recommend it as I believe that most individuals would find it very enjoyable.

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FRR air Laurence then tells Romeo about a potion that will make it seem as if one is dead for 42 hours. The plan is that on the night of the dinner Romeo will sneak through Gullet's bedroom a d into the kitchen and poison the rim of Lord Capsules wine glass. Paris is to

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NO one wishes for anything bad or awful to them, just the opposite. That is the way William Shakespeare chose to write it, in a way that truly draws in the audience and makes them feel as if they are a part of the story. It could be argued that their deaths were caused by

Romeo And Juliet: From Play To Big Screen

In 1596, William Shakespeare published the tragic tale of two star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet.The origins of this story are uncertain but Shakespeares chief source for his adoption of the story was from The Tragicall Historye of Romeus and Juliet, a poem by Arthur Brooke (1562). He also knew the story from Palace of Pleasure,

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“Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare: Play’s Concept Essay

Romeo and Juliet is one of the greatest love stories of all time. Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by Shakespeare and it is thought to have been written in 1595 or 1596. The play is set in the city of Verona. It is a tragic love story and the love between Romeo and Juliet eventually killed them in the end. Romeo and Juliet were responsible for their own destiny and from the start to the end they their love remains strong.

The young lovers Romeo and Juliet are both from families who hated each other for centuries. Their love causes many tragic events to occur as they are from a family of Capulet and Montague. Romeo and Juliet is a tragic story of a forbidden love due to their families’ strong objection to their love. The two young lovers’ untimely death ultimately united their feuding families.

“William Shakespeare was born allegedly on April 23, 1564 in Stratford- Upon-Avon. The church records of Holy Trinity show that he was baptized on April 26 th , 1564. In reality” (Shakespeare’s Birth para. 1) the actual date of Shakespeare’s birthday is unknown. William Shakespeare father was John Shakespeare who was a Glover and leather merchant. His mother was Mary Aden who was a landed local heiress. According to the church register of Holy trinity, William Shakespeare was the third of eight children.

Little is known about Shakespeare’s education and it is alleged that he probably attended the endowed grammar school of Stratford where he learned “little Latin and less Greek” as referred by Ben Johnson. In 1582, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who was eight years his senior. In 1587, Shakespeare left his family to pursue his dreams in London where joined Burbage’s company of players. Shakespeare poems marked the beginning of his success.

His poem “Venus and Adonis” became immensely popular in London. After this he wrote a succession of wonderful plays, – Merchant of Venice, As you like it, twelfth night, Julius Ceaser , Hamlet, Mac Beth, Othello, King Lear, Antony and Cleopatra etc. “At the time of Shakespeare’s death twenty- one plays existed in manuscripts in various theaters” (William).

There are many controversies as to when exactly Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet . Apart from this, many historians are claiming that the works of Shakespeare are really the work of Edward de Vere. “Many Oxfordians believe that the true author of Shakespeare’s plays was an aristocrat named Edward De Vere” (History of Doubts Surrounding the Authorship of Shakespeare’s Works). Edward de Vere was the 17th Earl of Oxford and was born in 1550. He graduated from Cambridge University at a tender age of 14.

The theories that the work of Shakespeare’s was that of Edward de Vere was based on the upbringing , knowledge , education and many of the similarities of works between the two writer. Many historians believed that the Edward De Vere wrote plays and sonnets under the pseudonym of Shakespeare. Despite all these allegations and theories, there is no concrete proof to that Edward de Vere was the real author of Shakespeare’s plays as many of Shakespeare’s plays were written after the death of Edward De Vere.

In Romeo and Juliet, the development of characters eventually led to the tragedy of the main characters. The characters developed throughout the story. In the beginning of the story, we are introduced to a young girl Juliet. Juliet is the daughter of Capulet and Lady Capulet. The development of Juliet in the play is the most dynamic as she undergoes a huge transformation in terms of love, loyalty and maturity. At the beginning of the play Juliet is a carefree and innocent girl who is not ready to settle down in life.

When her nurse jokes about the sexual life of marriage to Juliet, Juliet goes on to tell the nurse that ‘It is an honor that I have not dreamt of’ “(Romeo and Juliet: Act 3, Scene 5). From this we can see that Juliet is not ready to marry yet and has not taken the responsibility of settling down in life. Juliet in the beginning shows no intention of marrying and has not taken the responsibility of fulfilling her parents wish.

Juliet rapidly evolves into a mature young lady and transforms into a determined, sober-minded woman in the four day span in the play. Her sense of loyalty to her parents is shown in her dutiful determination to try to love Paris, her fiancée, “I’ll look to like, if looking liking move” (Romeo and Juliet: Act 3, Scene 5). She is an obedient who is respectfully to her mother and sensible towards her parents need, “Madam, I am here, / what is your will?” (Romeo and Juliet: Act 3, Scene 5).

Juliet rapidly transform from a carefree young girl to a lady after she falls in love with Romeo. She no longer feels the need to comply her parents wish or the need to sacrifice her happiness for her parents. She revolts against her parents by and stands by her decision to die rather than marry a person whom she does not love: “If all else fail, myself have power to die”(Romeo and Juliet: Act 3, Scene 5 244). Her love for Romeo makes her defy her parents wish.

In her relationship with Romeo, Juliet gives her all and is loving, faithful and strong. She is the one who suggests that they get married even without their parents’ approval. Often times, Romeo is rash in decision, but Juliet always seems to be clear headed. Her maturity is seen in the balcony scene of Act 11, scene 2, when she comments about the rashness of their love “It is too rash, too unadvis’d, too sudden.”

Juliet lives under the control of a patriarch. She has very little freedom and is completely dependent on her father. However, she is prepared to leave everything dear to her life and marry her lover Romeo. She matures throughout the play and abandons her family to be with Romeo.

Juliet bravery is noteworthy as she is a mere child of 14 years old. She makes logical decision and does not rush to anything. Even when Romeo kills Tybalt in his rash decision, Juliet takes time to think about her decision to marry Romeo. She does not blindly follow Romeo when she makes a decision that her guiding priorities should be her true love, Romeo.

After a lot of thinking and reflecting, she finally awakes from her prior social life – the nurse, her parents as well as her social standing in Verona to reunite with her lover. When Juliet wakes from her sleep in the tomb to find her husband dead, she stabs herself with a dagger out of the intensity of her love for Romeo. Juliet development from an innocent, naïve girl to a strong, independent woman is one of Shakespeare triumph in characterization.

The love of Romeo and Juliet is a remarkable love as they have to undergo many obstacles to be united. Many good things come out of their love as their death finally united the family of Capulet and Montague. It is a tragedy that their families have to find out through the death of the young lovers that love always triumphs. The death of Romeo and Juliet finally end the bitter feud between the Capulet and Montague. The Chorus also reminds us that “their death [will] bury their parents’ strife,” (Shakespeare & Pearce 204).

Works Cited

History of Doubts Surrounding the Authorship of Shakespeare’s Works. Oxford Society. 1995. Web.

Pearce, Joseph. Romeo and Juliet: William Shakespeare . Lgnatius Press. San Francisco. 2011. Web.

Romeo and Juliet: Act 3, Scene 5 . Shakespeare Navigator. n.d. Web.

Shakespeare’s Birth. Amanda Mabillard. 1999. Web.

William, J. Long. English literature: Its History and Significance. BiblioBazaar, 2007. Print.

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Bibliography

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The prologue of Romeo and Juliet calls the title characters “star-crossed lovers”—and the stars do seem to conspire against these young lovers.

Romeo is a Montague, and Juliet a Capulet. Their families are enmeshed in a feud, but the moment they meet—when Romeo and his friends attend a party at Juliet’s house in disguise—the two fall in love and quickly decide that they want to be married.

A friar secretly marries them, hoping to end the feud. Romeo and his companions almost immediately encounter Juliet’s cousin Tybalt, who challenges Romeo. When Romeo refuses to fight, Romeo’s friend Mercutio accepts the challenge and is killed. Romeo then kills Tybalt and is banished. He spends that night with Juliet and then leaves for Mantua.

Juliet’s father forces her into a marriage with Count Paris. To avoid this marriage, Juliet takes a potion, given her by the friar, that makes her appear dead. The friar will send Romeo word to be at her family tomb when she awakes. The plan goes awry, and Romeo learns instead that she is dead. In the tomb, Romeo kills himself. Juliet wakes, sees his body, and commits suicide. Their deaths appear finally to end the feud.

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Romeo and Juliet

William shakespeare, ask litcharts ai: the answer to your questions.

Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet . Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.

Romeo and Juliet: Introduction

Romeo and juliet: plot summary, romeo and juliet: detailed summary & analysis, romeo and juliet: themes, romeo and juliet: quotes, romeo and juliet: characters, romeo and juliet: symbols, romeo and juliet: literary devices, romeo and juliet: quizzes, romeo and juliet: theme wheel, brief biography of william shakespeare.

Historical Context of Romeo and Juliet

Other books related to romeo and juliet.

• Full Title: Romeo and Juliet
• When Written: Likely 1591-1595
• Where Written: London, England
• When Published: “Bad quarto” (incomplete manuscript) printed in 1597; Second, more complete quarto printed in 1599; First folio, with clarifications and corrections, printed in 1623
• Literary Period: Renaissance
• Genre: Tragic play
• Setting: Verona, Italy
• Climax: Mistakenly believing that Juliet is dead, Romeo kills himself on her funeral bier by drinking poison. Juliet wakes up, finds Romeo dead, and fatally stabs herself with his dagger.
• Antagonist: Capulet, Lady Capulet, Montague, Lady Montague, Tybalt

Extra Credit for Romeo and Juliet

Tourist Trap. Casa di Giulietta, a 12-century villa in Verona, is located just off the Via Capello (the possible origin of the anglicized surname “Capulet”) and has become a major tourist attraction over the years because of its distinctive balcony. The house, purchased by the city of Verona in 1905 from private holdings, has been transformed into a kind of museum dedicated to the history of Romeo and Juliet , where tourists can view set pieces from some of the major film adaptations of the play and even leave letters to their loved ones. Never mind that “the balcony scene,” one of the most famous scenes in English literature, may never have existed—the word “balcony” never appears in the play, and balconies were not an architectural feature of Shakespeare’s England—tourists flock from all over to glimpse Juliet’s famous veranda.

Love Language. While much of Shakespeare’s later work is written in a combination of verse and prose (used mostly to offer distinction between social classes, with nobility speaking in verse and commoners speaking in prose), Romeo and Juliet is notable for its heady blend of poetic forms. The play’s prologue is written in the form of a sonnet, while most of the dialogue adheres strictly to the rhythm of iambic pentameter. Romeo and Juliet alter their cadences when speaking to each another, using more casual, naturalistic speech. When they talk about other potential lovers, such as Rosaline and Paris, their speech is much more formal (to reflect the emotional falsity of those dalliances.) Friar Laurence speaks largely in sermons and aphorisms, while the nurse speaks in blank verse.

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Romeo and Juliet

By william shakespeare.

Shakespeare creates an absolute masterpiece here with his groundbreaking ideas underpinned by his legendary writing skills. 

Bottom Line

Rating [book_review_rating].

Continue down for the complete review to Romeo and Juliet

Article written by Lee-James Bovey

P.G.C.E degree.

Romeo and Juliet almost speaks for itself. However, in keeping with the other articles on Book Analysis , we will try and review it honestly. (As honest as can be from a self-proclaimed Shakespeare fanboy!)

Characterization

It is not as straightforward to show characters in a play. Often the actors themselves help bring a text to life. However, having done some amateur theatre what I can say categorically is that with a dull script the talent of the actors is irrelevant. That is not an issue here. There is a range of characters and they all feel distinct from one another.

We see a range of motivations and people adapting the way they behave to suit their situation. Take for instance the character Lord Capulet who is defensive about the idea of Juliet marrying given her age but in the wake of Tybalt’s death and facing her showing a rebellious side he transforms completely appearing to threaten violence against her.

It is well known that Shakespeare borrowed plot ideas liberally from ancient Greek plays . However, with Romeo and Juliet , he broke new ground. Of course, it wasn’t the first tragedy but it was the first to use love as the hero’s fatal flaw. Up until this point, of course, we had seen love in plays but usually in comedy. It was considered not serious enough to warrant being a factor in a tragedy. The impact of this has shaped culture immeasurably.

But is the plot any good? It is not his most complex. There are no multiple side plots at play. However, it is such a good story. It truly is timeless and has been borrowed and liberally ripped off for centuries since. Personally, it is one of my favorites.

Language use

There is no doubt that Shakespeare was a master of his craft. So much of what he has written has shaped and bled into modern society. What he always did beautifully is use speech patterns to denote class or changes in status. Or in the case of Rome and Juliet to signify love. You know how they say when people are in love they “complete one another” Shakespeare subconsciously shows us that. When Romeo and Juliet first talk to one another their words form a perfect Shakespearean sonnet. Isn’t that beautiful? Plus looking beyond that you have the subtle difference in the way Romeo describes Juliet compared to Rosaline.

His metaphors are all about war and misery with Rosaline signifying his inner turmoil while his imagery when describing Juliet draws on religion and light. These skills combined with the masterful use of foreshadowing and the beautifully crafted witty exchanges between Romeo and Mercutio prove just how good the bard was.

It might not be the literary critic’s favorite. That honor seems to lie with Hamlet but can you really argue with the lasting appeal of Romeo and Juliet ? Here is a play that is still discussed and performed more than 400 years after it was written in an era where the language has developed so much that people struggle to understand everything which is said and yet it maintains its mystique. Some could point to the literary canon and suggest that it is full of dead white men and of course that is correct. I would suggest that not all of those dead white men deserve their place either.

However, I do not believe that you can extend that critique to the works of Shakespeare who was clearly ahead of his time in terms of the issues he was tackling. He also consistently displayed a masterful use of language and was as good at turning a phrase as anyone who has ever picked up a quill or sat in front of a typewriter. So, yes while I do display a certain degree of bias towards Shakespeare I still believe that Romeo and Juliet is an absolute masterpiece.

Should you read it?

This is a slightly more complex question to answer than you might expect. Yes, Shakespeare was a phenomenal writer but he was not an author. You can read his works and get enjoyment from them but truly to see them brought to life I’d recommend going to the theatre and seeing them performed and if you can’t bring yourself to do that watch one of the movies adaptations. So yes by all means read it. But if you ever get the opportunity to see it performed, do that! Especially if it is by somebody who does it well like the RSC in the UK.

Romeo and Juliet: Still as relevant today as it was in its day

Book Title: Romeo and Juliet

Book Description: Shakespeare's famous tale of two star-crossed lovers.

Book Author: William Shakespeare

Book Edition: Norton Critical Edition

Book Format: Paperback

Publisher - Organization: Folger Shakespeare Library

Date published: March 1, 2004

ISBN: 978-0-393-91402-5

Number Of Pages: 320

• Writing style
• Lasting effect on reader

Romeo and Juliet Review

• Impeccable use of language
• Iconic story
• The music scene near the climax is dated
• Some of the humour is lost on a modern audience
• Language can be tricky to understand

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About Lee-James Bovey

Lee-James, a.k.a. LJ, has been a Book Analysis team member since it was first created. During the day, he's an English Teacher. During the night, he provides in-depth analysis and summary of books.

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Marianna Bassham on Love and Vulnerability in a Contemporary ‘Romeo and Juliet’

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While working on “Romeo and Juliet,” Marianna Bassham reflected on the question, “Where do you look to for support?”

“What do you do if it’s not there?” she wondered.

A Boston-based theater artist, Bassham directs Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of “Romeo and Juliet,” which runs until June 2. Shakespeare’s play is tragic and violent, but Bassham’s version is also empathetic, loving, and authentically tender, which reflects her personal approach to theater-making.

As an award-winning actor who has performed in dozens of productions, including “POTUS” at SpeakEasy Stage Company , and as an Assistant Professor of Theater at Boston Conservatory at Berklee, Bassham’s theatrical experience is varied and robust. She made her directorial debut in 2018 and most recently directed SpeakEasy’s “ The Band’s Visit ” and “ Heroes of the Fourth Turning .” In a conversation with The Harvard Crimson, she discussed her current production, “Romeo and Juliet.”

“I think it feels very ‘now,’” she said.

Shakespeare’s well-known tragedy is over four centuries old, but Bassham aims to make her version feel fresh and relevant to the present day. Quoting an actor in the production, she said it “feels like working on a new play.” By cutting more than two-thirds of the lines from Shakespeare’s text, adding entirely new moments, and making bold artistic choices — like having an onstage actor perform live music throughout the play — Bassham found that her process developing the production often felt “more creative than interpretive.”

“I’ll just make the ‘Romeo and Juliet’ that I think I would want to see, or try to make that,” she said. “It’s been rewarding, and I think a lot of the people who are working on the project are experiencing that, too.”

While interpreting the tragedy, Bassham was most intrigued by the characters’ relationships, particularly within family or between foes. Her production explores those relationships and finds love in surprising places. She believes that exploring relationships “in a contemporary way” makes the story feel more relatable than antiquated.

Bassham emphasizes relationships in “Romeo and Juliet” with the approach she consistently brings to her work: She searches for the love between characters.

As an educator, she helps her students discover that “there is love in every relationship.” As an actor, she considers love a generative force in character development.

“You start early in your career thinking everything is a fight, and ‘I don’t like you’ and ‘get out of my face,’” she said. “But actually, what happens if you say first, ‘I love you, but I really need you to change?’”

“Then it becomes a lot harder for your characters, but it’s more engaging to watch, and it’s much more engaging and easier to play with that,” she continued.

As the director of “Romeo and Juliet,” Bassham exercises the same philosophy.

“What if there’s a flip side to every antagonistic relationship in the play, which is, what if that was actually a loving relationship?” she asked. “If we can see that a little bit, then I think it makes the violence cost more.”

By conveying her ethos to the cast, Bassham led the actors toward discovering emotional complexity in their characters and between characters.

“There were relationships in this play that you might not initially interpret as love-rich,” she said. “But again, the actors found that.”

“The ethos of this project led this ensemble down interesting emotional paths,” she added.

Bassham emphasizes humane tenderness in every aspect of “Romeo and Juliet.” The set is primarily pink, including a pink floor treatment that she describes as “bleeding out,” and the costumes are in neutral tones. Bassham remarked that pink is “sexy,” “fresh and youthful,” and “raw and vulnerable and dangerous.” She cast young actors in most roles — even wise Friar Lawrence and authoritative Prince Escalus — to make dynamics between characters even more nuanced, revealing, and intriguing. She also explained that the violence relies on unique, ambitious movement choreography, staged entirely without weapons.

“There’s something very oddly intimate about the moments of violence and death in this play, even between antagonistic pairs,” she said.

Ultimately, Bassham’s work reaches into the complicated, intimate aspects of the authentic human condition. She draws from many influences, including actor Cate Blanchett and artist Cindy Sherman, who are not afraid to embrace the rawness of human experiences.

“They are brave about being ugly in service to fully embodying a character,” Bassham said.

She also admires directors Kimberly Senior, David Cromer, Bevin O’Gara, and Jenny Koons. These directors ask questions that Bassham asks herself as an actor, brings to actors she directs, and poses to her students.

“[Senior is] just like, ‘What would a person do?’” Bassham said. “To remember your personhood is really helpful.”

Through love, vulnerability, and the messiness of personhood, Bassham hopes that her production of “Romeo and Juliet” feels “immediate,” “visceral,” and “surprising.” She aims for Shakespeare veterans to find new moments in the play and experience familiar moments in different ways, and for young audiences to relate to the relationships and realize that “Shakespeare is not dusty.”

Ultimately, Bassham wants “Romeo and Juliet” to move audiences. She aspires for theatergoers, both seasoned and new, to feel the characters’ struggles, connect with their experiences, and empathize with them as people. She aspires for “Romeo and Juliet” to feel real.

“Theater makes me pay attention. It makes me lose time,” she said. “It makes my heart pound.”

Bassham’s work makes audiences’ hearts pound, too.

Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s production of “Romeo and Juliet” runs at The Roberts Studio Theatre at the Calderwood Pavilion in Boston through June 2.

—Staff writer Vivienne N. Germain can be reached at [email protected] .

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Tom Holland breaks cover and looks downcast as first Romeo and Juliet West End performance cancelled

Romeo & Juliet was scheduled to begin on Saturday, May 11 at the Duke Of York's Theatre in London but was cancelled just the day before Tom Holland and Francesca Amewudah-Rivers taking to the stage

• 12:53, 11 May 2024

Tom Holland has been spotted looking downcast as he's seen for the first time since cancelling his first performance of Romeo & Juliet.

The show was scheduled to begin on Saturday, May 11 at the Duke Of York's Theatre in London but was cancelled just the day before. The 27-year-old actor was seen in London after ticket holders were told just a day before the performance that the show "cannot go ahead as planned".

The reason it was cancelled was reportedly "due to the technical aspects of the production needing further preparation". Before his outing, Tom was last seen at the theatre for last minute rehearsals on Friday morning and was spotted covering his face when he left.

Those who were set to go to the show will be able to exchange their tickets for a later date but producers have noted there is "limited availability". It is not yet known if performances on Monday (May 13) and Tuesday (May 14) will go ahead as planned.

Fans took to X, formerly known as Twitter , to discuss their disappointment at what had happened. One said: "That’s going to be tough to try fit everyone in for other performances given it’s pretty much sold out." While another wrote: "This info is nowhere else to be found. Considering I paid 1300$ on resale for these tickets, I won’t be that heartbroken about it but also need fact checking." Meanwhile another said the situation was "extremely unprofessional".

Tom is no stranger to the stage as he first made his debut as a child when he starred in Billy Elliot The Musical at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London in 2008. Romeo & Juliet will be his first West End role as an adult. Director Jamie said: "Tom Holland is one of the greatest, most exciting young actors in the world . It is an honour to welcome him back to the West End."

The opening night postponement follows one of the production's lead stars being subjected to vile abuse. More than 800 actors signed an open letter in support of Romeo & Juliet star Francesca Amewudah-Rivers last month amid the young actress being hit with online racial abuse over recent weeks .

The theatre company behind the production condemned the "deplorable racial abuse" directed towards Francessa, following the actress being unveiled as the latest young star to take on the role of young Juliet. Following promotional images of Tom and Francesca being unveiled, social media has been awash with racial abuse and commentary regarding a Black women playing a fictional character.

The Jamie Lloyd Company released a statement which read: "Following the announcement of our Romeo & Juliet cast, there has been a barrage of deplorable racial abuse online directed towards a member of our company. This must stop. We are working with a remarkable group of artists. We insist that they are free to create work without facing online harassment."

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