Fitting in is a constant struggle in John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids and William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. They cannot openly express their love; they struggle to conform to society’s views; and It is evident that David and Rosalind of The Chrysalids and Romeo and Juliet of Romeo and Juliet struggle to belong in their society and fit in. They cannot freely and openly express their affecting to one another. If there strong passion for each other is ever known, both pairs of lovers will be looked upon in the midst of their families long and bitter feud. “From ancient grudge break to new mutiny…” (Shakespeare 9). “…my father was in the middle of a new row with my half-uncle, Angus Morton.” (Chrysalids 35). This illustrates the strained relationship …show more content…
between both the Capulets and Montagues, and the Strorms and Mortons. Forbidden love is the main part in each of the couple’s relationship. They are unable to be together because of the constant bickering and hate of their families, and have to make plans to be together in private. Furthermore, both of them will also make love in secret from the fear that someone might know about their love. Romeo goes to Juliet at night and sneaks into her room to be able to sleep with her. Likewise, David and Rosalind will make love discreetly away from their homes so their parents do not find out. This illustrates how both couples must struggle for acceptance of their love because their families’ hateful rivalry acts as a hindrance to their love for one another. Further, they struggle to conform to society’s view as to what is proper. For them, their society is driven by corrupt faith and they refuse to comply with societal standards. David and Rosalind decline to believe that deviants are an abomination and the work of the Devil. Likewise, Romeo and Juliet refuse to conform to society’s wishes of breaking them up because of their families’ conflict. This illustrates them both follow their hearts to guide their decisions and do what they believe is proper. They do not allow their society’s viewpoint to influence them in any way and keep fighting an ongoing battle of acceptance in their societies. Moreover, they also find difficulty to contend with their society’s teachings because they are afraid of rejection. In Waknuk, they drill the Definition of Man and importance of Purity into its citizens’ mind from a young age, causing them to have a fixed mindset to persecute deviants when they grow up. Similarly, in Verona, the families’ rivalry has grown so great to the point they will not accept any forms of relations with each other from their fear. This demonstrates and emphasizes the reason why both couples are very eager not to take on such beliefs – they realize there is more to a human being than their physical appearance/ability, or the history of the family that they come from. They want to put to an end the never-ending crisis of social acceptance with different civilizations. In addition, they endure life altering experiences, causing them to be unwilling to comply with their society’s standards.
The negative life changing experiences they face are a leading cause for them to refuse acting in accord with the prevailing idealistic standards which their society conveys. David suffers a lot under the oppression of Joseph, who keeps him in check by the threat of unjust force and authority that he rebels to defy the oppression present in his society. Similarly, Romeo’s banishment opens his mind to what he is forced to sacrifice as a result of the feud. He discerns foolishness of the feud that causes him to lose Juliet as a result. This illustrates how both experiences alter their beliefs and open their minds to the ugly reality of society, and therefore plays an essential role in triggering their decision to conform to its standards. In both cases, these experiences are crucial in changing their views and swaying them to transform their stance on society. Similarly, Rosalind’s and Juliet’s experiences result in the same effect. Rosalind’s fear that one of the norms will find out about her mutation causes her rebuff their sudden affection. Her experience allows her to discern the fear of rejection others like her has to endure. Juliet’s arranged marriage to Paris prompts her to reject to act in accord with her parent’s wishes. Through her experience, she perceives how blind the families’ brawl causes them to be and restricts her life. This illustrates
the importance of these experiences in shaping their views and opinions later on in their lives. In both cases, they give them a better grasp of how life should be really lives by allowing them to perceive the actions of those around them from a different perspective. In conclusion, The Chrysalids and Romeo and Juliet effectively demonstrates how influences from one’s family, peers, and faith might cause a struggle to fit in and conform to societal standards. Both couples are unable to express their love to one another openly since they are always burdened by their feuding families; both struggle to comply with societal standards for the reason that they want to stop the ongoing battle of acceptance occurring in their society; and both are forced to suffer dramatic experiences, leading them to have second thoughts about their beliefs and leading their decision to not to conform to such principles. David and Rosalind of The Chrysalids and Romeo and Juliet of Romeo and Juliet struggle to conform to society’s views and fit in.
To begin, in Romeo and Juliet, the characters still have a strong love connection even though their parents and family do not agree, just like in Pyramus and Thisbe. Rebellion is one of the main words to describe this ...
They were more interested in the wealth and respectability of a husband than the daughter’s happiness. Their idea of a happy marriage would be that the woman would learn to love the husband. Is it very important for a modern audience, who wish to get a deeper understanding of Shakespeare’s scenes and characters, to understand the society of Romeo and Juliet. Otherwise, unwillingly, the audience may unfairly judge a character. They may see a character’s actions as unreasonable, as they would be considered in a modern society, when in fact they may have been perfectly reasonable in Shakespearean times.
In the play of Romeo and Juliet, the reader is introduced to two young star-crossed lovers who hope to fall in love and have the happily ever after. However, through the twists and turns of the play, the reader finds the story has a twisted ending. For the project, my group chose Juliet as our portrayed character. In our portrayal of Juliet, the character is well summarized as well as the characters role in the play. Beginning at her head, we summarize Juliet’s family life in a discrete but well thought out way. Upon Juliet’s head sits a golden headband to represent being of a higher family. While Juliet is no princess, she is the only child of Lord and Lady Capulet. “Hang thee, young baggage! Disobedient wretch! I tell thee what: get thee to church o' Thursday, Or never after look me in the face. Speak not. Reply not. Do not answer me. My fingers itch.—Wife, we scarce thought us blest That God had lent us but this only child, But now I see this one is one too much And that we have a curse in having her. Out on her, hilding!”(3.5.160-168). Because she is the only daughter of the Lord and Lady, one can suspect a life filled with pressure for young Juliet.
According to Elizabethan society, the center of Olivia’s dilemma with her marriage was ensuring her wealth, not marrying a man she loved (Joseph 170). Social class increases division among individuals in society. This play “ is not the story of a Juliet's or an Orlando's love .., but of the very realistic struggles and intrigues over the betrothal of a rich Countess, whose selection of a mate determines the future” (170). Readers looking past these boundaries created by class and gender, can find striking similarities in emotions characters have for each other. The personal struggles the characters face in this play demonstrate the obstacles that individuals faced because of their gender or place in the social hierarchy.
difficulties they faced, both characters are known to have faults. Juliet show remorse and regrets her
The tragic play Romeo and Juliet, by playwright William Shakespeare, is about star-crossed lovers from feuding families that end up dying for the love of each other. The theme of fate as a controlling force is strong in the play in a way that one little coincidence can change two children’s lives that are really not meant to be. The play’s main theme brings the two closer and closer together until the unfortunate death at the very end which is foreshadowed by the chorus. Fate changes their lives by the servant unable to read a list of names and Romeo sees Rosaline, the girl whom he fell in love with first, on the list which makes him go and
The societal roles and expectations forced upon Juliet regarding her identity impact her actions and decisions. Juliet’s expected contributions to society are based on her gender, her age, and her family name.
Imagine yourself, dear reader, transported to Shakespearian Verona, a bustling, peaceful city (aside from the occasional death or two), with its obligatory social classes going about agreeably (aside from the occasional brawl or two), and all people happy and successful (aside from the occasional poor wretch or two). The Verona in which Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet takes place in is made sinister by the deadly consequences than ensue from its strict, unbending society. Romeo and Juliet paints a tale about two young lovers, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, whose attempts to be together are cruelly thwarted by society. Society’s fixation on honor and disgrace, poverty-creating laws, and austere social roles all have crucial functions in causing the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
Juliet’s weakness to be controlled by love leads her to make unadvised and irresponsible decisions that contribute to her choice of ending her life. Characterized as a young and rash teenager, with no interest in love and marriage at first, Juliet wants to be independent. However, after she first lays eyes on Romeo, Juliet’s perception of love is quick to change. Their strong love easily manipulates and clouds her judgment. Even if she is cautious and realizes their love is too fast, the rush of feelings from having a first love overcomes her.
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy of an ancient feud where the children of two families at war fall deeply in love with each other. Set in the 16th century William Shakespeare’s play has many different themes running throughout it, which include love, hate, death and conflict. The play opens with a fight but ends with suicide that creates peace between both families who unite from their losses. The conflict, violence and aggression in the play happen from revenge and an ancient family grudge. An audience from the 16th century would have enjoyed Romeo and Juliet because of the real life drama and tragedy the play goes through. The patriarchal society gave women absolutely no rights and they had to obey their man’s ordering a patriarchal system. The theme of conflict is revealed as the characters argue over Juliet’s disobedience.
Reckless actions lead to untimely deaths. In Shakespeare’s tragedy “Romeo and Juliet”, both protagonists fight for their hopeless love. Bloodshed and chaos appear inevitable in fair Verona; Romeo and Juliet come from enemy households, the Montegues and the Capulets, who have sworn to defeat one another. The young and handsome Romeo weeps over his unrequited love for Rosaline, until he lays his eyes on Juliet. Strong and independent, Juliet seeks to escape her family’s will to marry her off to Paris, a kinsman of the Prince. Fate ties these adolescents’ lives together binding them to witness the ill-fortunes of Romeo and Juliet’s love. Romeo and Juliet prove themselves woefully impulsive through their words and actions, which ultimately lead them along a series of unfortunate mishaps.
In the tremendous play of ‘Romeo & Juliet’, Shakespeare’s ways engages the audience straight away. The astounding methods he uses hooks the audience into the play and allows them to read on, wondering what will happen. The tragic love story of Romeo & Juliet, as mentioned in the prologue, sets a variety of themes throughout Act 1 Scene 5. Many of the recognisable themes are: youth and age, revenge, forbidden love, fate, action and hate. The main idea of the play is a feud that had been going on between two families, The ‘Montagues and Capulets’, the son of the Montagues and the daughter of the Capulets fall in love and the story tells us how tragic, death, happiness and revenge find them throughout the play.
The societal roles and expectations forced upon Juliet regarding her identity impact her actions and decisions. Juliet’s expected contributions to society were based on her gender,her social class and family name, and her age.
Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet centres on the relationship between two young protagonists, but much of what occurs during the play is as a result of the inequality between men and women. Juliet’s arranged marriage with Paris, as well as the ancient feud between Capulets and Montagues eventually contributes to the deaths of their children.
“Is she a Capulet? O dear account! my life is my foe’s debt” (1.5.117-118). There are many factors that put pressure on Romeo’s and Juliet’s relationship throughout Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The young couple is effected in many ways by every instance that creates stress which Romeo’s and Juliet’s relationship is being forced to carry. The biggest factors that impact them are, their families ongoing feud, the broken relationships they both have in their families, and all the instances of miscommunication. Through the story of the couple who meet one another at a dance, sneak around at night to see one another, and fight for eachother, they face challenges many challenges, that add stress to their relationship.