Romeo and Juliet: Themes, Topics and Techniques Major Themes: Love vs. Hate Romeo and Juliet is, of course, a love story, but it also involves a lot of hatred and violence due to the longtime feud between the Capulets and the Montegues. There are many quotes about both love and hate throughout the play - list 3 love scenes and 3 scenes of hatred or violence in the play.
______ Good vs. Evil In Act II, Sc. 3 (lines 23-30), Friar Laurence tells about a plant which is pretty to look at, but has seeds that are so poisonous they can stop a person’s heart. He says that each individual has the same two possibilities inside of them - they are capable of both good and evil. Give two examples of characters that do both good and evil during the play:
1. ______2. ______ Fate/ Chance In the Prologue to the play, Shakespeare describes Romeo and Juliet as “star-crossed lovers” (Act 1, Prologue, line 6). This means that the two are destined to fall in love, but we also learn in the Prologue that this relationship will end in their untimely deaths. Later, Romeo says “O, I am fortune’s fool!” (Act III, Sc. 1, line 134). Can you list some of the ways that fate or chance affects Romeo and Juliet’s relationship?
1. ______2. ______3. ______ Love vs. Lust When Friar Laurence finds out that Romeo has fallen out of love with Rosaline and into love with Juliet all in one evening, he says that “young men’s love then lies. Not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes.” (Act II, Sc. 3, lines 67-68). In this play, Shakespeare contrasts two different ideas of love: infatuations (or crushes) based on physical attraction vs. true, romantic love (think ‘soul mates’). Each of the characters in the play seems to believe more in one of those concepts than the other. Next to the names below write either ‘love’ or ‘lust’ to show which the character believes in.
Romeo ______Juliet ______Friar Laurence ______Nurse ______Mercutio ______Capulet ______Lady Capulet ______Paris ______
Major Topics: Even though Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet a very long time ago, many of the topics he included in the play are still very relevant today. Here are just some of the major topics and issues that are addressed in the play, along with some discussion questions you should think about:
Suicide Romeo and Juliet threaten to kill themselves a number of times in the play, and finally both do take their lives at the close of the play. When they decided to die rather than live without one another, do you think this was an act of recklessness or true commitment?
Greed Romeo chose the Apothecary to buy poison from because he knew that the man was poor and desperate enough to break the law and sell it to him. How would the story have changed if the Apothecary wanted to do the right thing more than he wanted Romeo’s money?
Obedience One timeless topic in the play is the idea of teenage rebellion. Both Romeo and Juliet (especially Juliet) disobey their parents in the play, with disastrous results. Do you think Romeo and Juliet were right to disobey their parents? How would the play have been different if they had listened to their parents instead?
Prejudice No one knows how the feud between the Capulets and the Montegues got started. The fight is between two families; but is it any different than the many conflicts that arise over race, culture or religion? Do you think the two families would be more justified in their feud if they had a conflict like one of these between them? Techniques: Paired Opposites and Oxymorons Shakespeare uses paired opposites or oxymorons throughout Romeo and Juliet. This technique emphasizes many of the major themes in the play, which are also opposites. It shows the conflicts that Romeo and Juliet face (such as having to choose between their love and their families). Here are a couple examples of lines from the play where these oxymorons are used:
Romeo, Act I, Sc. 1, lines 74-78: Juliet, Act III, Sc. 5, lines 73-79 (paraphrased): Why then, O brawling love, O loving hate, Oh evil heart beating in a handsome body! O anything, of nothing first create! Did a dragon ever live in so attractive a cave? O heavy lightness, serious vanity, Beautiful killer! Angelic demon! Misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms, Oh raven in dove’s feather! Oh lamb that attacks Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick wolves! health… A despised man with divine looks! You are the opposite of what you seem to be- A cursed saint, a respectable criminal!
Foreshadowing From the very beginning of the play Shakespeare gives clues about how it will end. Do you think this helps make the play more suspenseful, or does it just ruin the surprise? Here are a number of quotes made by different characters that hint at the events to come:
Romeo, Act I Sc. 4, lines 106-110 (on his way to Capulet’s party): “…My mind misgives Some consequence, yet hanging in the stars, Shall bitterly begin his fearful date With this night’s revels and expire the term Of a despised life, closed in my breast.”
Juliet, Act I Sc. 5, lines 134-135 (when she first sees Romeo at her father’s party): “Go ask his name- If he be married, My grave is like to be my wedding bed.”
Mercutio, Act III Sc. 1, lines 95-96 (after being stabbed by Tybalt): “Ask for me to-morrow, and you shall find me a grave man.”
Juliet, Act III Sc. 5, lines 54-57 (paraphrased, seeing Romeo leave her room from the balcony): “Oh God, I sense ill omens! When I look down on you, I see you buried in a grave. Either my eyes are failing or you are pale.”