1. Romeo and Juliet - Plot, Character & Relationships

WJEC GCSE English Literature 2010

Controlled Assessment (for 2012)

Unit 3

Poetry and drama (literary heritage)

male / female relationships

Copyright © 2011 TES English www.tes.co.uk

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IntroductionThis pack has been prepared to support delivery of:

WJEC GCSE English Literature

Controlled Assessment (for 2012)

Unit 3: Poetry and drama (literary heritage)

However, centres using other awarding bodies can use / adapt the pack to suit their needs. Similarly, all

centres can adapt the resources to support – where applicable – delivery for examination and / or GCSE

English / English Literature.

The pack contains a number of reading, writing and speaking and listening tasks and there is

considerable opportunity for students to undertake individual, pair and group work. Many of the tasks

and activities allow students to engage with the play in exciting and dynamic ways, whilst other tasks

and activities take a more formal and traditional approach. Similarly, there is a balance of teacher and

student-led tasks, and also opportunities for differentiation.

The activities and worksheets are intended for use during the teaching and learning stage of the unit.

These include a variety of worksheets relevant to the play as a whole, in addition to activities and

worksheets more focused on the specifics of the controlled assessment task. However, and in the spirit

of controlled assessment, the pack does not provide a line-by-line study of every relevant scene. Rather,

short extracts are sometimes explored in this way, allowing students to develop the necessary skills –

which they should apply to other extracts / scenes.

The pack is supported by audio readings of relevant poems and / or extracts from the play.

Using the audio files

- Use them as starters / settling tasks as applicable / appropriate

- Use for plenaries as applicable / appropriate

- Find accompanying images to put into photo story / moviemaker / powerpointCopyright © 2011 TES English www.tes.co.uk

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- Use them as a guide for students who would like to script and record their own audio files

- Revision activities

- Annotating and note taking

- Homework and research tasks

Controlled assessment activity – teacher ideas

Some suggestions might be:

Act 1, Scene 1 - Romeo’s attitude to love and his feelings for Rosaline

Act 1, Scene 3 - Juliet with her Nurse and Lady Capulet. Discuss idea of marriage to Paris

Act 1, Scene 5 - Their first meeting - the party

Act 2, Scene 2 - In Capulet’s orchard - the ‘balcony’ scene

Act 2, Scene 5 - Nurse brings news that Romeo is waiting to marry her. Teasing.

Act 2, Scene 6 - Romeo and Juliet meet to marry

Act 3, Scene 2 - Juliet hears that Romeo, her husband, has killed Tybalt and been banished

Act 3, Scene 3 - Romeo seeks comfort from Friar Laurence

Act 3, Scene 5 - The dawn scene

Act 4, Scene 1 - Juliet is told that she must marry Paris

Act 5, Scene 1 - Romeo is told that Juliet is dead. He visits the apothecary.

Act 5, Scene 3 - Romeo at the tomb

Act 5, Scene 3 - Juliet at the tomb

Clearly, the question focuses on the relationship between Romeo and Juliet and students will

naturally be drawn to scenes where they appear together. However, it is important to note that

the relationship between them does not occur or develop in a vacuum. Therefore, moments

where they are alone - or with other characters - could, and should, be referred to. This will

encourage students to consider the wider context of the entire play.

Similarly, students will need to understand how the relationship is presented throughout, and at

the end of the play, as this knowledge cannot be separated from, and should inform, their

understanding of earlier scenes.

The attitudes, ideas and actions of others in relation to the theme of male / female relationships

– particularly love – can be used to support and / or develop observations and interpretations.

Types of love – teacher ideas


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Types of love: young love, married love, illicit love, parental love, platonic love, ‘pretend’ love,

unrequited love, etc.

GENERIC TASK 1 (for 2012)

Theme: male / female relationships

Many plays and poems are concerned with relationships between men and women. Choose a

relationship in a Shakespeare play you have studied and link it to the way a similar relationship is

presented in poetry.

Sample task – higher tier How does Shakespeare present the relationship between Romeo and Juliet in the early part of

the play? In your response, make reference to other parts of the play.

Examine the ways in which Elizabeth Barrett Browning conveys her feelings in ‘Sonnet 43’. In

your response, refer to other poems.

What is your response to the pieces of literature you have read? Make links between the ways

the writers have considered and presented the theme.

Sample task – foundation tier How does Shakespeare present the relationship between Romeo and Juliet in the early part of

the play? In your response, make reference to other parts of the play.

What and how does Christina Rossetti tell us about male / female relationships in ‘Cousin Kate’?

In your response refer to other poems.

What is your response to the pieces of literature you have read? Make links between the ways

the writers have considered and presented the theme.


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The characters – card sort Match the character names with their descriptions.

Check your answers and then organise the characters into two families – the Montagues and Capulets.

JULIET

The Prince of Verona, the most important person in the City of Verona. He is a wise and fair man. He is well-liked and tries to be a tough leader but is caught between the two warring families. He wants the Capulets and Montagues to live in peace.

TYBALT

Romeo's friend. He is young, lively and a very likeable young man. He is always talking, joking. He is also arrogant and a powerful fighter. He is honourable and very loyal to Romeo.

NURSE Romeo's cousin and close friend. He is a sensible, trustworthy young man who is very loyal to Romeo.

LADY CAPULET

A man about fifty, a wise and holy man. He is a priest and usually gives good advice. He is well-liked, kind and gentle, always wants to help people, and is anxious to avoid sin. He secretly marries Romeo and Juliet.

CAPULETJuliet's cousin, a little older than Romeo. He is an argumentative young man, a troublemaker who loves fighting. He likes violence and plays dirty.


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ROMEO

Juliet's mother. She is younger than Lord Capulet (about 30). A capable organiser accustomed to doing her husband’s wishes and running the household. She loves her daughter but is not as close to Juliet as the nurse.

BENVOLIO

A woman in her 40s, practical, fun and caring. She works for the Capulets and has looked after Juliet since she was a baby, so she has a good position in the family. She loves Juliet like her own child. Juliet is very fond of her.

LADY MONTAGUE

Lord and Lady Capulet's daughter. She is 14 years old. She is a gentle girl and obedient to her parents. She has a nurse who has looked after her since she was a baby. She is very romantic.

MONTAGUERomeo's father. Head of the family, he is a powerful man who doesn’t like to be crossed. He is not a very quarrelsome man. He wants the best for his son.

MERCUTIO

Young son of Lord and Lady Montague. Aged 16-17. He is a hot-headed young man and rushes into things without thinking. He is very romantic. His two best friends are Benvolio and Mercutio.

PARIS Romeo's mother. She loves her son very much.

FRIAR LAWRENCE

Juliet's father who is about fifty and a wealthy member of the upper classes. He is a stubborn old man, who is used to getting his own way. Therefore, he sometimes has a bad temper. He loves his only daughter very much and wants the best for her. He is Tybalt's uncle.


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ESCALUS

A handsome young man, pleasant and polite. He is the cousin of the Prince of Verona. He is very fond of Juliet. Lord and Lady Capulet think he is a suitable husband for Juliet.


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The characters – relationship and plot chain

Can you create the correct chain to link all of the characters together?

Clue: The chain starts with LADY CAPULET and ends with THE PRINCE OF VERONA.

LADY CAPULET is married to

THE PRINCE OF VERONA, who also says the last lines

in the play.

FRIAR LAWRENCEJuliet’s cousin is called

TYBALT, and he has a fight at

the start of the play with a

Montague called

BENVOLIOThe fight is stopped by

CAPULET, and their daughter is called

PARISThe Capulet family hate

the

ROMEORomeo and Juliet are

married by

JULIETJuliet’s parents want

her to marryMontague family, and the son of Montague and Lady Montague is


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The PlotRomeo and Juliet was written by William _____________. It is about two families called the

__________ and the Capulets, who are bitter enemies. Romeo and Juliet are members of

these families: ________ is a Montague, and Juliet is a _________.

At the beginning of the play, there is a fight between the two families, and the Prince of

_________ says that anybody starting another fight will be executed.

At this time, Juliet’s parents want her to marry a rich young man called ________, but she

soon meets Romeo at a party and they fall in love. They know that their _________ will not

allow them to marry. After the party, Romeo calls to Juliet, who is standing at her bedroom

________. _______ Lawrence agrees to marry them, and thinks that this may end the

fighting between the two families. They are married in secret.

Juliet’s cousin, ________, has found out that Romeo went to the party, and wants to fight

with him. At the fight, Romeo’s friend, _________ tries to help him, and is killed by Tybalt.

Romeo then kills Tybalt. The Prince arrives, and tells Romeo that he is no longer allowed to

live in Verona.

Montague, Juliet’s ________, does not know about her secret marriage, and agrees that

Paris can marry her. Juliet asks Friar Lawrence for help, and he gives her a ______ that will

make her seem to be dead. He says that he will _______ to Romeo, to explain what is

happening. Juliet takes the drug before the wedding, and her ‘dead’ body is taken to the

church.

Romeo does not get the letter, and his servant tells him that Juliet is ______. He buys some

poison so that he can _____ himself. He goes to her tomb and drinks the poison. She wakes

up, just in time to see him die. Juliet takes Romeo’s ________ and kills herself.


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Friar Lawrence tells the two families about the ________ , and they realise the harm that

their arguments have done. They agree that there will be no more __________ between

the Montagues and the Capulets.

Plot and character

dagger parents tragedy

MERCUTIO Capulet dead

Shakespeare

kill TYBALT

Montagues parents Mercutio

fighting Friar Romeo

VERONA Paris writewrite

father drugdrug windowwindow


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1. Romeo and Juliet - Plot, Character & Relationships