Imagine reading a prominent piece of literature that includes a substantial array of archetypes. These archetypes in this piece of literature fabricate the characters in the plot to a great extent and unravel an amazing tale of love and tragedy that appeal to twenty-century Americans. This stunning literary piece, known as Romeo and Juliet, is written by the great mind of Shakespeare. In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare uses numerous conventional archetypes such as, star-crossed lovers, tragic hero, and mentor to create archetypal characters, therefore making Romeo and Juliet important to twenty-first century American readers.
Shakespeare uses the archetype, “Star-crossed lovers,” to develop the main protagonists, Romeo and Juliet, consequently constructing them relevant to modern society. This archetype is used to create Romeo and Juliet into tragic lovers. Romeo and Juliet fit this archetype, as they are fated to fall in love but also destined to experience tragedy. In the beginning of the play, Romeo’s importance as a star-crossed lover is emphasized in Act one, scene five; “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night”(). Romeo sees Juliet for the first time in this scene, and he immediately develops passionate feelings for her. As soon as Romeo sets his eyes on Juliet, he forgets his previous obsession with Rosaline. This scene indisputably foreshadows that Romeo is destined to fall in love with Juliet. Despite the love exhibited by Romeo in scene five, the lovers are destined to experience tragedy. The first event signaling Romeo and Juliet’s downfall is when Tybalt, of the Capulets murders Mercutio in a confrontation; “I am hurt. A plague a' both your houses! I am sped. Is he ...
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... sighs; Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers’ eyes; Being vex’d a sea nourish’d with lovers’ tears: What is it else? A madness most discreet, a choking gall and a preserving sweet”(). This statement by Romeo shows he is beginning to fit the description of a tragic hero, as his flaws are becoming significantly more evident.
The tragic hero archetype essentially proves Romeo’s character relevant, since his embodiment is reborn in the famous novel, The Great Gatsby, when the main character, Gatsby meets his fate when he is shot and killed in the end of the novel. His tragedy was largely a result due to his inexperience in his idealism. This archetype was used hundreds of years before Romeo and Juliet in the form of the bible, but the concept of a protagonists’ misfortune (such as Romeo’s) still proves relevant today, since it continues to reoccur in literature.
In “The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare, two very young people fall in love but cannot be with each other because of the feud in between their families. The feud ends when Romeo and Juliet both kill themselves because of heartbreak over the other. The minor characters Mercutio, Tybalt, and Friar Lawrence serve as foils to Romeo, to help support the theme of patience.
However, due to his intrusion of the Capulet party in act one, scene five, it is Tybalt’s rage that jeopardizes Romeo’s well-being. This shows the intensity of Romeo’s love for Juliet, and how he cares more about seeing her than his own safety. For example, in act five, scene three, Romeo kills himself because he believes that Juliet is dead. Love made Romeo put himself in dangerous situations, and caused Juliet to go against what her parents wanted. This is important to the story because it is Romeo and Juliet’s love for each other that ends the feud.
Romeo and Juliet has many themes which are fate, death and love, these are all intertwined. At the very beginning of the play, before we even know the characters, we know that ‘death-marked’ ‘Star crossed lovers’ will ‘take their lives’ which already brings in the major themes. Shakespeare uses dramatic irony throughout the play and builds up the tension until Act 3 scene 1 where death starts to play a role. The Prologue also informs us about the Montagues and Capulets dislike for each other. The theme of love is also there thought the play. There are different types of love, the unrequited love the Romeo feels for Rosaline and that Paris feels for Juliet. There is also the love between friends such as with Romeo and Mercutio as Mercutio dies to protect Romeo’s honour and then Romeo avenges his death, and then the romantic love Romeo and Juliet share. I believe the Mercutio is one of the main characters in this play. His speeches tell us a lot about him and his actions have a large affect on the ending of the play. Mercutio’s name means mercurial meaning “an unpredictable and fast changing mood” which is an accurate description of Mercutio's personality because in Queen Mabs speech at the beginning he is joking and seeking attention, but at the end he becomes serious and angry.
Romeo, son of Montague and Lady Montague, is introduced into the story as a depressed, upset young man, moping over a girl who will never love him back. As he says to Benvolio, “She’ll not be hit with Cupid’s arrow. She hath Dian’s wit, and, in strong proof of chastity well-armed, from Love’s weak childish bow she lives uncharmed” (Romeo and Juliet I i 203-206). Romeo states that his true love will not love him as he thinks of her, as she intends to stay chaste and turn into a nun, thus upsetting Romeo and putting him in a depressed state of mind. He is a very extreme person, and in a way, that contributes to the hastiness of the whole play, as Romeo is always at either of his two extremes; his mood either quite happy or relatively dismal. He shows that in his thoughts, as he is at first convinced he should never love another woman, but then he meets Juliet only days afterward and forgets about his previous love. His encounter with Juliet is hasty, but he claims he “never saw true beauty till this night” (Rom I v 52). Romeo reveals his personality, and how quickly he is able to get over someone whom he thought he was in love with. However, after encountering Juliet and falling in love once more, Romeo develops an obsession of sorts w...
Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet – popularly considered by many to be the quintessential love story of all time – is a play that we are all familiar with in one way or another. Whether it be through the plethora of portrayals, adaptations and performances that exist or through your own reading of the play, chances are you have been acquainted with this tale of “tragic love” at some point in your life. Through this universal familiarity an odd occurrence can be noted, one of almost canonical reverence for the themes commonly believed to be central to the plot. The most widely believed theme of Romeo and Juliet is that of the ideal love unable to exist under the harsh social and political strains of this world. Out of this idea emerge two characters who, throughout history, have been heralded as the world’s greatest lovers and who have been set up as yardsticks against which future lovers must be measured. The tragic courtship between Romeo and Juliet has become so idealized and revered that even the Oxford English Dictionary lists this definition under the word ‘Romeo’:
Gazella, Katherine. “. Young Love in The Twenty-First Century.” Social Issues in Literature: Coming of Age in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, ed. by Vernon Elso Johnson, Christine Nasso, 2009. Print.
Throughout the entirety of Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare is hinting at the “star crossed” deadly fate of the lovers spoken of by the chorus in the prologue. Romeo and Juliet are also constantly mentioning their uneasy feelings and how they can sense that something bad will happen, which confirm the aforementioned conclusion. This foreshadowing not only tells us this tragedy planned, but there must be pawns of fate that have to drive Romeo and Juliet together, while at the same time leading them to their death. In Romeo and Juliet, their deadly destiny was written by the universe and characters along the way, such as Capulet, Montague, Nurse, Friar Lawrence, Friar John, and Mercutio.
Capulet and Romeo Montague, face a bigger problem; forbidden love. Taking place in Verona, an ignorant Romeo first meets a childish Juliet at the Capulet’s party. Romeo and his kinsman, Benvolio, attend the party masked, searching for his first love, Rosaline. Coincidentally, Romeo meets Juliet, a new beauty, and falls in love with her not knowing the fact that she is a Capulet. The feud continues, leading one mistake after another, until both families realize their selfishness at the last minute. The unfortunate tragedy of two “star-crossed lovers” is ironically caused by the impetuosity of Romeo and Juliet themselves (Shakespeare 7).
The classic play Romeo and Juliet by the famous playwright William Shakespeare is one of the most beautiful love stories of all time and has captured and inspired readers everywhere. Regardless of the fact that it was written in the 1500’s, it is still being performed and extolled today. There is a multitude of reasons for such continuance of the play. First of all, its everlasting themes of love and hate enable people to deeply relate to the story. Secondly, its memorable characters deeply imprint on the minds of readers. And lastly, above all, is its magnificent language which many writers today regard in awe. These three elements make the acclaimed play, Romeo and Juliet, one of the most timeless stories of our lives.
Romeo first notices Juliet during her parents' banquet, which causes them to fall in love at first sight. His reaction in Act I, scene IV illustrates that Juliet's appearance significantly affects him: “O, she doth teach the torches to burn bright! It seems she hangs upon the cheek of night. As a rich jewel in an Ethiop's ear- Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear! (Act I, scene IV, 45-48). Romeo swiftly decides that he is in love with Juliet though he hasn’t spoken to her yet. Juliet is more sensible and declines his first moves, but soon lets him kiss her. At this time, the feelings of both lovers look to be the same. Nevertheless, fate checks their loyalty by revealing their identities. Juliet is a Capulet, and Romeo a Montague, which is an unearthing that shocks them both, but they do not doubt the love they have together. In fact, this leads the reader to accept their love as genuine. In final, their compassion and devotion towards one another is too strong for it to be lust, which proves they are in true love.
Countless people all around the world are familiar with the idea of the famously tragic tale of two star-crossed lovers in William Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet. Their heart wrenching love story has been an inspiration for many literature pieces throughout various genres and later cinematic works of art. The young couple was not only memorable for their passionate, devoted love, but also the tragic events that ultimately lead to their death. One aspect of the play that has a strong impact on the audience is Shakespeare’s use of charismatic and compelling language seen throughout the play. The unique personality traits used to describe Romeo and Juliet allows many to relate to the young lovers. Shakespeare’s use of descriptive language, allows the audience to understand the societal expectations, beliefs, and values set out for the men and women of Verona, Italy. Romeo’s character, however, can be been seen defying these expectations and also
... off.”(“Love’s Bond”, Robert Nozick) If that is true when loving someone, Romeo evidently made the wrong decision to kill Tybalt. By fulfilling this revenge, Romeo not only caused Juliet to be upset, but he also placed a burden on himself: an imprudent decision. After analyzing Romeo’s careless approach to risking to lose Juliet’s love, it becomes clear that Romeo’s love for Juliet is not a real romantic love, but it is a hormone-driven, passionate, hasty love that is portrayed as ruinous and preposterous by Shakespeare through Romeo’s actions.
When Romeo meets Juliet, he claimed to be immediately in love. Although he has been sulking over Rosaline, when he met Juliet, he states, “Did my heart love till now? forswear it sight! For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (Act 1.5 Lines 51-52). The entire time as he envisions love with Rosaline, it was all incoherent. Romeo’s impulsive attitude causes him to fall head over heels with Juliet, which begins the drama in this play.
The tragic play, Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, tells the story of two young people that fell in love. Shakespeare states that his play is about, “A pair of star-crossed lovers take their lives ;”(1.Prologue.6) The play took place in Verona, Italy, where two royal families, the Montagues and Capulets, go through a huge fight, which causes a tragic ending. William Shakespeare does a wonderful job taking the reader into the fight throughout the story. Romeo, a Montague, got invited to a ball in the Capulet’s household, and that’s where everything began. Romeo met the love of his life at the ball, but little did he know, he was giving up his life to be with her. Throughout the play, Romeo and Juliet go through a lot of issues together; which leads to them killing themselves, in hopes of staying together forever. Although the two killed themselves, they are not to blame for their deaths. In the play, Friar Lawrence and the Nurse should both be punished, and Romeo should be pardoned for his actions.
A tragic hero is a male figure who is high in society and one who always has a tragic flaw. Most of them are rich and intelligent men. In the story of Othello, Othello is the tragic hero. He was a character of nobility. He was a high in class and had high standards. He was also the focal point of society. People looked up to him. He was more of a good man than an evil man, until the end of the play.