Book Report (Romeo and Juliet) Essay

Author and His/her Life: William Shakespeare (April 16, 1564-April 23, 1616) was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, The United Kingdom. He’s genre are Literature & Fiction, Poetry. He was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world’s pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England’s national poet and the â€Å"Bard of Avon† (or simply â€Å"The Bard†). His surviving works consist of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, two long narrative poems, and several other poems. His plays have been translated into every major living language, and are performed more often than those of any other playwright. Shakespeare produced most of his known work between 1590 and 1613. Overview: The undying love-story of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is one of his greatest and astonishing works during his times which is still being studied in schools and told every generation. In this story, the two young lovers proved that they are going to love each other no matter what happens or should I say, till death makes them apart. Though everybody is against of their relationship, they did not stop loving each other though Romeo was banished by Juliet’s father and both families have a misunderstanding. I can say that their families wasted a lot of lives including the two young lovers’ lives because they let their egos rule before finding the appropriate solution for the problems of both parties. II. Body A. Characters: Romeo – Son of Montague who falls in love with Juliet. Juliet – A Capulet who falls in love with Romeo. Lord Capulet – Juliet’s father. Lady Montague – Romeo’s mother. Lord Montague – Romeo’s father. Count Paris – A friend of the Prince who wants to marry Juliet. Prince Escalus – Prince of Verona who provides for law and order. Friar Lawrence – The Priest in Verona. He marries Romeo and Juliet hoping it will unite both families. Friar John – Was supposed to deliver a letter to Romeo about Juliet and the Friar’s plan, but Romeo didn’t get it. The Nurse – Cared for Juliet during childhood. Mercutio – A good friend of Romeo. Balthasar – A servant and friend to Romeo. Benvolio – A friend of Romeo’s. Tybalt – Nephew of Lady Capulet. Samson – The Capulet servant. Gregory – He is a Capulet servant. Peter – Servant to Juliet’s Nurse. The Apothecary – A poor shopkeeper who illegally sells poison to Romeo. B. Setting The play is set in the thirteenth or fourteenth century in Italy in Verona and Mantua. Much of the action takes place in Juliet’s house. Two cities of Venice are also mentioned in the play. The Capulets and the Montagues, the main families of the play, are from noble lineage and wealth; they dress well, live in fancy surroundings, and are served by many attendants. The play’s basic setting, therefore, is rich and elegant. C. Plot For many years, an on-going feud between two families has caused much disruption in the city of Verona, Italy. The Capulets and the Montagues cannot seem to get along, and there have been many deaths among the two families because of it. Prince Escalus of Verona warns the two families that if the feud does not stop, the punishment will be death. The stage opens with servants of the Capulet and Montague families. They get into a minor argument. Romeo, a Montague, enters the stage. He has recently been denied the love of Rosaline. He is miserable over this. His friend and cousin, Benvolio, enters and decides that they will go to the Capulet feast, in disguises, so he can prove to Romeo that other pretty women exist. They all exit. At the feast, Romeo meets Juliet, the daughter of Capulet. Instantly, they fall in love. After the feast, Romeo sneaks into the Capulet orchard and visits Juliet. Here, they proclaim their love for each other. They decide to marry the next afternoon and they exit the stage. Romeo and his friend and confidant, Friar Laurence, enter. Romeo seeks the help of Friar Laurence, who agrees to marry Romeo and Juliet, in hopes that the marriage will end the feud between the two families. They exit. Later that afternoon, Tybalt, a nephew of Lady Capulet, enters. He meets Romeo and starts a fight with him, as he is angry that Romeo was at the Capulet feast. Mercutio, a friend of Romeo’s, is angered by Tybalt and challenges him to a duel. Tybalt kills Mercutio, and Romeo in response, kills Tybalt. He quickly flees the scene before he hears that the Prince has exiled him from Verona. All exit. Romeo and the friar enter. Hiding in Friar Laurence’s cell, Romeo tries to commit suicide. The friar will not allow Romeo to take his own life, and convinces him to go and see Juliet to say goodbye to her. Capulet enters and arranges for Juliet to marry Paris in three days. She refuses, but her father says he will disown her if she does not comply. They exit and Juliet enters in the friar’s cell. He gives her a potion that will make it appear as though she is dead. She exits. She reenters the stage (now at home) and agrees to marry Paris. Her father is so delighted with her obedience that he decides to move the wedding up one day, to the very next day (Wednesday). All exit. The next morning, Nurse enters and finds Juliet in her bed, apparently dead. The Capulets all enter with Paris and decide to have a funeral. All exit. Romeo, who is in Mantua, enters. His servant Balthasar enters and tells Romeo that Juliet is dead. Balthasar exits. Romeo doesn’t know that it is a fake death because he never gets the message from the friar. He buys a vial of poison from an apothecary and returns to Verona. Romeo enters at the Capulet tomb and sees Juliet (apparently) dead. Paris, who had entered previously, but had been hiding, recognizes Romeo as a Montague and challenges him. Romeo kills him, drinks the poison he bought, and dies. Just as Juliet wakes up from the potion the friar gave her, the friar enters the tomb. He hears noises and tries to persuade Juliet to leave with him. She refuses, sees Romeo dead next to her, stabs herself with Romeo’s sword, and dies. The Capulets, Montagues, and the Prince of Verona all enter the tomb and wonder what went on. Friar Laurence explains the story, and the Capulets and Montagues agree to end their family feud. D. Imagery and symbols Poison – Obviously it symbolizes how poison ended their love story even how much they wanted to fight for their love. E. Theme and Sub theme Forcefulness of love and Love as a cause of violence III. Conclusion A. Five lives, events/scene that attracted you. Why? 1. Romeo falls in love with Juliet at first sight. Juliet feels the same way about him. 2. Romeo confesses his love for Juliet. 3. Romeo makes arrangements with Friar Lawrence for his wedding to Juliet. 4. Romeo thought that Juliet is dead and then drinks poison. 5. Juliet wakes finding Romeo dead and kills herself and thrusts a sword thorough her body. I find these 5 scenes attracting because it prove how powerful love can be. The 5 lines and give the reason why you are attracted. 1. 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 are far more fair than she. Romeo, seeing Juliet at her window. He compares her to the sun, light that brightens his dark world. He had previously compared Rosaline to the moon. His love for Juliet, the sun, has risen and killed the feelings he had for Rosaline. 2. My only love, sprung from my only hate! Too early seen unknown, and known too late! Prodigious birth of love it is to me That I must love a loathed enemy. Juliet after the Nurse tells her that Romeo is a Montague. She has already fallen in love with him. The information has come too late to save them from this difficult situation. 3. These violent delights have violent ends And in their triumph die, like fire and powder, Which, as they kiss, consume. Friar Lawrence, warning Romeo to cool down his passion. Moderate love is less likely to lead to disaster than violent love. His warnings prove to be founded. 4. What’s in a name? That which we call a rose By any other word would smell as sweet. Juliet lamenting fact that her love is a member of the family that is a bitter enemy of her own. He is not defined by his name. They would be able to express their love freely if he were called anything else. 5. These violent delights have violent ends And in their triumph die, like fire and powder, Which, as they kiss, consume? Friar Lawrence, warning Romeo to cool down his passion. Moderate love is less likely to lead to disaster than violent love. His warnings prove to be founded. What do you think the novel contribute to you? In What way? It gave me an idea how love conquers all. It made me realize that nothing can stop love unless you, yourself decided to give up. I’ve learned that love builds, it also destroys. Is the novel worthwhile? Would you recommend it to others? Yes, it is worthwhile. I would definitely recommend it to others because people are very affected when they talked about love. This book will show how far you can go; how long you can be strong and how long will you fight in the name of love. What are the things you don’t like in the novel? If you were given a chance, what will you change to make it better? The part that I didn’t like the most is the ending. If I was William Shakespeare, I would make it a happy ending because they did everything to fight for their love. And obviously, people love happy endings. Over all generally what can you say to the novel? Short summary. In Romeo and Juliet, there are many different views of love shown. There is sexual love, romantic love, true love, spiritual love, unrequited love and love at first sight. The selflessness of Romeo and Juliet’s love – their willingness to die for each other, is in deep contrast to the hate between the Capulets and the Montagues. It’s about fighting their love to the fullest. They gave their best just to make their relationship right. They proved that nothing can stop you when you fall in love. It just shows that love is easy†¦ true love is not.