Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet captures the unanticipated complications of young love, the irrationality that stems from deep, affectionate and unwavering love, and the potential dangers of Romeo and Juliet-esque devotion. Though there is a sense of timelessness in the concept of love at first sight, death and suicide in Romeo and Juliet complicate the reader/viewer’s understanding of ideal love. However, there are numerous recent adaptations of the play that depart from the suicidal and devastating ending. A few contemporary examples include Claudia Gabel’s Romeo and Juliet and Vampires, Anne Fortier’s Juliet, and Taylor Swift’s recent song, Love Story. There’s an inherent interplay of faithful versions and revised versions of Shakespeare’s …show more content…
However, it is important to note that it is possible to derive meaning from modern adaptations of the play without necessarily having knowledge of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, as adaptations often preserve remnants of the play’s centrally universal themes. Young Adult novels, such as Claudia Gabel’s Romeo and Juliet and Vampires, encapsulate elements of popular culture relevant to a cater to the specific audience and capture the imagination of emphatic readers of the vampire genre. Gabel’s text is a modern twist on “the Bard’s” classic love story. Also, Gabel alteration of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet allows the play's text to transcend the highbrow crowd and become accessible to a both a particular and modern demographic of Shakespearean readers. Gabel , in a recent interview, stated that “by incorporating the supernatural, [Gabel] excite young readers and allows them to engage with the complexities of Romeo and Juliet.” Though the vampire/supernatural genre may capture the imagination of a particular demographic of readers, it is ultimately Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet that inspires the author of the modern adaptation of the play and subsequently, the author shares their interpretation of the highly revered text with their
Romeo and Juliet is a play about two lovers who have to risk their lives in order to demonstrate their love and will to stay together, regardless the feud between their families. By the end, the death of Romeo and Juliet finally bring the reconciliation to these two families. It is fate that the two most shall-not meet people fall in love and it love that eventually won against hatred. Since then, there have been many different versions of Romeo and Juliet, whether it was for film, stage, musicals. These different recontextualised adaptions change the original play by many ways, some modernise the language, environment, props as well as changing the original characteristics of some characters. Out of all the different adaptions of Romeo and Juliet, two stood out the most. One was the Romeo and Juliet (1996) and directed by Baz Luhrmann and the other one was Romeo and Juliet Broadway (2013) play version,
Baz Lurhmann’s creation of the film Romeo and Juliet has shown that today’s audience can still understand and appreciate William Shakespeare. Typically, when a modern audience think of Shakespeare, they immediately think it will be boring, yet Lurhmann successfully rejuvenates Romeo and Juliet. In his film production he uses a number of different cinematic techniques, costumes and a formidably enjoyable soundtrack; yet changes not one word from Shakespeare’s original play, thus making it appeal to a modern audience.
The themes in Romeo and Juliet are significant Many people feel challenged and discouraged to read Shakespeare’s scripts due to the complexity of the use of the English language. Shakespeare’s script was written in a language that the audience from all sorts of social level could understand. In Shakespearean era, they relied mostly on language and the audiences’ minds to establish the setting. Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation however, in attempt to enhance and demystify Shakespeare’s language, relied more on actions than words.
Cassandra Clare, author of the best-selling novel City of Bones, once wrote, “To love is to destroy, and to be loved is to be the one destroyed”. As an author of a series of young adult books, Clare wishes to send a message to adolescent readers regarding the destruction that young, passionate love can lead to. A similar theme is explored in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, where two adolescents from feuding families fall in love with one another. When they first see each other on the night of the Capulet party, they quickly fall in love and are soon married by Romeo’s friend and mentor, Friar Lawrence. Their love, being full of passion in its quick course, faces many trials such as Romeo’s banishment from their hometown of Verona, as well as Juliet being forced to marry Paris, kinsman of the Prince. The affection they feel for one another, being all consuming, often leads them to want to sacrifice everything for each other, including their own lives. Their self-destructive, rushed love ends with their deaths, occurring just a multiple days after they first met. In William Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet, many characters such as Friar Lawrence, Romeo, and Juliet illustrate that young, passionate love is a powerful force that leads to destruction.
Modern audiences have been reintroduced to William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet largely through modern film reinterpretations of the play. Many of these films, most notably Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet and John Madden’s 1998 Shakespeare in Love, have focused on the tragic destiny of these "two star-crossed lovers". Seemingly, it is the destiny of Romeo and Juliet to commit suicide because they are not allowed to love each other. It’s the kind of dramatic story that makes teenage hearts swoon: pure love, passionate love, forbidden love. And while the passionate romance of young Capulet and young Montague is essential to the play, it is by no means the only way to understand Romeo and Juliet. Unfortunately, many students are first exposed to this particular work early in high school, an age at which the issue of love resonates more powerfully than many other of life’s concerns. After this initial exposure in high school, most students do not return to Romeo and Juliet except in films, which again, cater to youth. This particular emphasis, along with the use of young and attractive headliners, explains the success with young audiences of the 1996 film version. The film interpretations of this work along with the early initial exposure make it rather easy for a current reader to dismiss the play as just a love story.
Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, is a tragic love story about two young lovers who are forced to be estranged as a result of their feuding families. The play is about their struggle to contravene fate and create a future together. As such, it was only a matter of time before Hollywood would try to emulate Shakespeare’s masterpiece. This had been done before in many films. Prominent among them were, Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 “Romeo and Juliet” and Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 “William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet.” Both films stay true to the themes of Shakespeare’s original play. However, the modernised Luhrmann film not only maintains the essence of Shakespeare’s writings, Luhrmann makes it relevant to a teenage audience. This is done through upgrading of the setting, the renewal of props and costumes, the use of water symbolism and the reconstruction of the prologue, whilst preserving the original Shakespearean language. Out of the two, it is Luhrmann who targets Romeo & Juliet to a younger audience to a much larger extent than Zeffirelli.
Romeo and Juliet, written by William Shakespeare, is a tragic love story about two young lovers who are forced to be estranged as a result of their feuding families. The play is about their struggle to contravene fate and create a future together. As such, it was only a matter of time before Hollywood would try and emulate Shakespeare’s masterpiece. This had been done before in many films. Prominent among them were, Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 “Romeo and Juliet” and Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 “William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet.” Both films stay true to the themes of Shakespeare’s original play. However, the modernised Luhrmann film not only maintains the essence of Shakespeare’s writings, Luhrmann makes it relevant to a teenage audience. This is done through the renewal of props and costumes, the reconstruction of the prologue and the upgrading of the setting, whilst preserving the original Shakespearean language. Out of the two, it is Luhrmann who targets Romeo & Juliet to a younger audience to a much larger extent than Zeffirelli.
...e tragic celebration of young, forbidden love told by William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, has been tailored for many motion picture adaptations. The most famous of these adaptations are Franco Zeffirelli’s version and Baz Lurhmann’s film produced in 1996. These two films applied Shakespeare’s most well-known work as a basis for their motion pictures. Both films had similarities, but the differences were much more apparent. Ever since William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been debuted, it has and forever will be an artistic influence for playwrights, directors, and other artists.
30 Jan. 2010. Thrasher, Thomas. Understanding Romeo and Juliet. San Diego, CA: Lucent Books, 2001. Print.
Over four hundred years ago, William Shakespeare wrote the passionate “Romeo & Juliet” – first performed in 1595, the play has since captured the hearts of millions of people all over the world. The “star-crossed” lovers, Romeo & Juliet show us their tale of desperation, virtue, and passion, as they live, and die together. Set in the wealthy, romantic city of Verona, this essay will illustrate Juliet’s relationship with her parents, as a direct comparison to Baz Luhrmann’s adaptation of one of Shakespeare’s greatest plays.
Shakespeare, William, and Burton Raffel. Romeo and Juliet. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2004. Print.
< http://callisto.gsu.edu:4000/CGI:html> (5 May 1997). Rozen, Leah. "William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet."
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.
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
Baz Luhrmann’s William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet did not get a warm reception from the literary and film critics of today. Many feel that he cut out too much of the words which lessened the character development and original connotation that Shakespeare intended. Even worse, he compromised Shakespeare’s integrity by giving in to the demands of the American teen pop culture. These critics have a point. Luhrmann takes out anything that does not speak to the current audience. He understands that in his time, Shakespeare wrote his plays to entertain his audience, writing within the context of his culture and using “sexy and violent elements” with “boisterous comedy and passion”(Hamilton 120). The Elizabethan culture understood the puns, the references to gods, and even the language that we find so archaic. Luhrmann approaches his new version with the same intent. He wants to entertain his audience with the timeless love that Shakespeare renders and tries to “reclaim the play from its association as rarefied and stagy(120). The one mistake he makes keeps critics on his heels: the title of his movie assumes that this IS Shakespeare’s play just placed into the 1990s. The fact that he takes out much of the original text and even twists it in order to fit his play speaks to the idea that this is Luhrmann’s version of Romeo and Juliet. Luhrmann’s version tells the audience that Shakespeare’s love is timeless, not the actual play. He reshapes Shakespeare’s text in order to speak to the 1990s audience. This essay will attempt to decipher the differences in Shakespeare’s and Luhrmann’s versions in order to find the cultural influences which form each play. It should also d...