Romeo & Juliet William Shakespeare 1564- 1616 Humble Beginnings: born in Stratford- upon-Avon...

Romeo & Juliet

William Shakespeare 1564-1616

Humble Beginnings: born in Stratford-upon-Avon

Known as “the Bard”

Attended Stratford Grammar School until he was 14Then he married Anne Hathaway and

entered the “lost years”.

Wrote about 37 plays and 154 sonnets

Shakespeare’s sonnets all featured a male speaker and focused on the theme of love. Other common themes: time, death, and poetry itself.

More about Shakespeare!Left his family to arrive in London and joined the

theater company, Lord Chamberlain’s Men.

Earned his money by doing the following:1.) Part owner of the Globe Theater2.) An Actor3.) A Playwright

Generally wrote 3 types of plays:1.) Tragedy- Ex. Romeo & Juliet2.) Comedy- Ex. The Taming of the Shrew3.) Historical- Ex. Henry VIII

• Elizabethan Era• The Renaissance• Actors were men only

o Men even played female roles!

• Plays were one of the main source of entertainment

The Time Period

The Globe TheaterRoofless= Open Air

No Artificial Lighting Plays were performed in the afternoon to take advantage of

the sunlight.

Plays were written/produced for the general audience

Courtyard surrounded by 3 levels of galleries

Spectators: Wealthy- got benches “Groundlings”- poorer people stood and watched from the

ground (the pit)All except for the wealthy were uneducated/ poor

Burned down during a production of Henry VIII in 1613. Rebuilt the following year.

The Globe TheaterDifferences to today’s theater productions:

No ScenerySettings were all referenced through dialogueElaborate CostumesPlenty of propsFast-paced productionsOnly MALE actors

would perform

Shakespeare’s 5 Part Storytelling Pattern:

Act I: Exposition

Establishes setting, characters, conflict, and background

Act II: Rising Action

A series of complications

Act III: Crisis/Turning Point

A series of complications

Act IV: Falling Action

Results of the turning point; characters locked into deeper disaster

Act V: Climax/Resolution/Denouement

Death of the main characters and then the loose parts of the plot are tied up

Comedy and Tragedy

Elements of a tragedy

•Must have a tragic hero/heroine

•Ends in the death of many of the main characters

Romeo and Juliet begins as a comedy but ends as a tragedyElements of a comedy

The shift from comedy to tragedy is what sets Romeo and Juliet apart from the rest of Shakespeare’s plays

•A struggle of young lovers to overcome difficulty that is often presented by elders

•Separation and unification

•Heightened tensions, often within a family

Tragic HeroQualities of a Tragic Hero:

Possesses high importance or rankExhibits extraordinary talentsDisplays a tragic flaw- an error in judgment or a

defect in character that leads to their downfallFaces downfall with courage and dignity

A Pair of Star Crossed Lovers…

“My only love sprung from my only hate! Too early seen

unknown , and known too late!” ~ Juliet; Act I, Scene V

Literary terms to look for...1.) Puns- a humorous play on words

Romeo – “Not I, believe me. You have dancing shoes / With nimble soles; I have a soul of lead…” (Act I Sc. 4)

2.) Allusions- a reference to a well-known work of art, music, literature, or history“At lovers’ perjuries, they say Jove

laughs.” (Act II, Sc. 2Jove is another name for Jupiter,

the Roman King of the Gods.

3.) Metaphor- A direct comparison between two unalike things.Romeo- “But soft! What light through yonder window

breaks?/ It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.” (Act II scene 2)

4.) Oxymorons- Two juxtaposed words have opposing/ very diverse meaningsJuliet – “Beautiful tyrant! fiend angelical!” (Act

III Sc.2)

5.) 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)

6.) Paradox- a statement that seems to contradict itself with two elements that are incompatibleJuliet – “O serpent heart, hid with a flowering

face!” (Act III Sc. 2)

7.) Foreshadowing- 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. 2)

3 Key Themes1.) Light and Dark

Look for: References to “light” words ex. “the sun” and references to “dark” wods ex. “night” and “gloom”

2.) TimeLook for: References to the passage of time or if

things seem to be rushed

3.) DestinyLook for: Instances where events are blamed on

“destiny” or “the stars”

MONTAGUE vs. CAPULET

RomeoLord Montague (his dad)Lady Montague (his mom)Mercutio (friend)Benvolio (cousin)

JulietLord Capulet (her father)Lady Capulet (her mother)Tybalt (cousin)Nurse

SettingThe story is set in the late 1500’s mostly in the town of Verona, Italy. However, there are a few acts set in Mantua, Italy a smaller town just a few miles away.

Interesting…

“Star-crossed lovers” refers to two people who are in love but have conflicting astrological signs. In Shakespeare’s times, people believed the course of their lives was determined by the exact second they were born.

The Italian city of Verona, where Romeo and Juliet lived, receives about 1,000 letters addressed to Juliet every Valentine's Day.

Verona TodayToday, Verona has an incredible amount of graffiti, which is legal, provided that you are writing about your love for someone.