Lima 9H

Romeo & Juliet

Written by William Shakespeare in about 1591

Based on Arthur Brooke's The Tragicall History of Romeus and Juliet

Background:

Born in 1564 to John and Mary Arden Shakespeare

1582: Married to Anne1583: Birth of Daughter Susanna1585: Birth of twins: Judith and Hamnet1587-1592: Established in London as

actor/playwright; first work Comedy of Errors

William Shakespeare

• Poetryo The Sonnetso The Rape of Lucrece

• Plays Tragedies: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth

Comedies: Much Ado About Nothing

Histories: Richard III, Henry

Shakespeare’s Works

• COMEDY- end in marriage

• HISTORY- tells fictionalized account of a true story

• TRAGEDY- end in death

Three types of Shakespearean Plays

Romeo & Juliet is a …..

Qualities of a Tragic Hero:• Possesses high importance or

rank• Exhibits extraordinary talents• Displays a tragic flaw—an error

in judgment or defect in character—that leads to downfall

• Faces downfall with courage and dignity

The Tragic Hero

Romeo and Juliet was written by Shakespeare in 1594 or 1595.

Romeo and Juliet was an experimental stage piece, featuring several radical departures from long-standing conventions.

Motifs to observe throughout the play include: the antithesis between love and hatethe use of a light/dark polaritythe use of timeThe use/role of Fate in the dreams, omens and

forebodings that foreshadow the play’s tragic conclusion.

Romeo & Juliet

Shakespeare establishes an on-going feud between two families, the Montagues and Capulets.

Juliet’s father decides that even though Juliet is only 13 it is time to find her a husband.

Romeo (a Montague) and Juliet ( A Capulet) meet and fall in love.

Romeo & Juliet – Act I

One of the Capulets challenges Romeo to a duel. Romeo’s friends fear for his safety.

Friar Laurence conspires with Romeo to arrange a secret marriage.

By the end of Act II, Romeo and Juliet are married.

Romeo & Juliet– Act II

The duel between Romeo and Tybalt takes place after all, and Romeo kills Tybalt.

The Prince spares Romeo’s life, but banishes him from Verona.

Juliet’s father announces that she shall wed Paris in 3 days.

Juliet makes plans to seek the advice of Friar Laurence where unbeknownst to her Romeo is hiding.

Romeo & Juliet – Act III

Juliet threatens to commit suicide rather than marry Paris.

Friar Laurence convinces her to fake her death in order to be with Romeo.

Juliet follows the Friar’s plan, and her corpselike body is discovered by her nurse.

Romeo & Juliet – Act IV

Romeo receives word that Juliet is dead.He buys a fast-acting poison and travels to

Juliet’s tomb so that he may die beside her.Paris is also at the tomb. He and Romeo

fight, and Paris is killed.Romeo drinks the poison. Juliet awakens and

stabs herself to death with Romeo’s dagger.The feuding families end their feud and erect

golden statues to the lovers.

Romeo & Juliet – Act V

PunsAllusionsMetaphorPersonification OxymoronsParadoxesForeshadowing AlliterationSoliloquyAsideCoupletFoil Character

Terms to Know . . .

A pun is a humorous play on words.

Mercutio – “Nay, gentle Romeo, we must have you dance.”

Romeo – “Not I, believe me. You have dancing shoes/

With nimble soles; I have a soul of lead…” (Act I Sc. 4)

Pun

An allusion is a reference to a well known work of art, music, literature, or history.

“At lovers’ perjuries, they say Jove laughs.” (Act II, Sc. 2)

Jove is another name for Jupiter, the Roman King of the Gods.

Allusion

A metaphor is a direct comparison between two unlike things.

Romeo – “But, soft! what light through yonder window breaks? / It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.” (Act II Sc. 2)

Metaphor

Personification occurs when an inanimate object or concept is given the qualities of a person or animal.

Juliet— “For thou wilt lie upon the wings of night / Whiter than new snow on a raven’s back. / Come, gentle night, come, loving, black-brow’d night” (Act III Sc. 2)

Personification

A paradox is statement or situation with seemingly contradictory or incompatible components.

Juliet – “O serpent heart, hid with a flowering face!” (Act III Sc. 2)

Paradox

An oxymoron describes when two juxtaposed words have opposing or very diverse meanings.

Juliet – “Beautiful tyrant! fiend angelical!” (Act III Sc.2)

Oxymoron

Foreshadowing is a reference to something that will happen later in the story.

Juliet – “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 fineThat all the world will be in love with nightAnd pay no worship to the garish sun.” (Act III Sc

Foreshadowing

• Written like poetry• But tells a story• More free-flowing rules o doesn’t have a rhyme scheme or set

number of lines, etc.o Written in Iambic Pentameter

o Lines that have five unstressed syllables each followed by a stressed syllableo Ex. Romeo … but soft. What light

through yonder window breaks?

Blank Verse

• Soliloquy - Long speech given by a character while alone on stage to reveal his or her private thoughts or intentions

• Aside - Character’s quiet remark to the audience or another character that no one else on stage is supposed to hear

• Couplet- a stanza consisting of two successive lines of verse; usually rhymed

Soliloquy, Aside and Couplet

• Foil-- A character with qualities that are in sharp contrast to another character, thus emphasizing the qualities of each

• Ex. How is Mercutio a foil to Romeo?

Also…

Light and darkTime Fat

**motif= recurrent element or pattern (of imagery) in a work

Motifs to look for . . .

Look for references to light and dark:

• References to “light” words, such as “torches,” “the sun,” adjectives that describe light (“bright”)

• References to “dark” words, such as “night” and “gloom”• who/what are they

associated with?

Light and Dark

Look for references to time:

• References to “time” words, such as “hours”• References to the passage of time, especially

if it seems “rushed”

Time

Look for references to fate:

• Look for instances where events are blamed on “fate,” “destiny,” or “the stars”

Fate

Themes are developed around the following ideas/concepts:FamilyYouthLoveHateMortalityFate/Free will

Pay attention to how Shakespeare develops these ideas and concepts throughout the play.

Themes Developed