• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • CONTACT US
  • All Essays
  • JEE Main 2022

Study Today

Largest Compilation of Structured Essays and Exams

  • Essay⯆
    • Freedom Fighters
    • Leaders
    • Events
    • Festival
  • JEE Main
  • Scholarship 2022
    • Class 1
    • Class 2
    • Class 3
    • Class 4
    • Class 5
    • Class 6
    • Class 7
    • Class 8
    • Class 9
    • Class 10
    • Class 11
    • Class 12
  • Speech
  • History
  • General Knowledge
    • Things to Know⯆
    • Blog

Essay on Romeo and Juliet

January 15, 2018 by Study Mentor Leave a Comment

William Shakespeare is the greatest dramatist of all time in the history of English literature. He lived during the Elizabethan Era and earned praise and glory for his plays, known for their intense story lines, filled with passion, guilt, romance and terror which captivated the audience and continues to do so to this day.

For a person who isn’t a voracious reader may not understand the language, theme and the setting of his works. But when we dig deeper, we realize that he presented the life of humans in all their vices and virtues. He never wanted to give a moral lesson to his readers through his works.

Table of Contents

  • Nature of Shakespeare’s Plays
    • A brief introduction to the author
    • Source of the plot
    • About the play
    • Compression of Time
    • Setting
  • Qualities of the two main characters: Romeo and Juliet
    • Conclusion

Nature of Shakespeare’s Plays

Unlike other playwrights of his time who used to deliver a message to the audience through their plays, William Shakespeare showed life in all its natural beauty. It had all the human emotions in its most passionate form. There was love, passion, betrayal, ambition, strength, resilience and so on.

His plays also used visual effects to depict terror and supernatural occurrences. The play Romeo and Juliet is an example of Shakespeare’s brilliant use of these dramatic techniques.

A brief introduction to the author

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-on-Avon on 26th April 1564, although the exact date of his birth is unknown.  His father was a notable figure in Stratford and it is believed that he was educated at Stratford Grammar School. At the age of eighteen, he married Anne Hathaway, a woman eight years older than himself. In 1585, he left Stratford for London.

He soon became a member of the Lord Chamberlain’s Company, (known after the accession of James I, as the King’s Men). His first completely original play is believed to be Love’s Labor Lost’.

His non-dramatic works consist of two narrative poems, Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece (1594).  Most of his plays were written for performance in public playhouses.

His plays can be divided into three groups – comedies, tragedies, and histories. The play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ belongs to tragedy. It was Shakespeare’s first masterpiece. Though we don’t know its exact date, it is said to have been between 1592 and 1595.

Source of the plot

Italy was the breeding ground for many great writers and had been a source of material for writers in England. Shakespeare set many of his plays in Italy. Romeo and Juliet are based on Arthur Brooke’s poem The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet, an Italian story which Brooke found in a French translation.

But, this is only a guess. However, Shakespeare was not an original playwright. He adapted many of the well-known stories of the day, which only seem ‘Shakespearean’ to us as the other works are not so popular compared to Shakespeare’s own version.

About the play

Romeo and Juliet are famous as lovers the world over, and is a primarily a play about love. The theme of Romeo and Juliet is a live filled with passion. It is a story of hatred overcome by that love, old hate versus young love, taking no thought for the past and the future. And this love ends in death, thus heightening the intensity.  It is an example of true love, and the balcony scenes with the lines:

‘How silver-sweet sound lovers’ tongues by night,

      Like softest music to attending ears’

prove Shakespeare’s skill in wordplay. The depth of their love is clearly indicated through these lines. The atmosphere is one of passion and swiftness.  It is ideal love and we are made aware of its nature by the way in which

Shakespeare differentiates it from other kinds of love so that his audience can examine relationships and further deepen their understanding of the love between Romeo and Juliet. The play emphasizes on themes like love and hate, old and young, order and disorder.

Compression of Time

The whole play is in a hurry. It is a play full of angry fights, intense passion and sudden death. Shakespeare compresses the nine months’ action of Brooke’s poem into less than five days, in the interests of swiftness, power and unity of action. On Sunday, the play opens with a street fight.

Romeo and Juliet first meet at a party the same night. After the party, Romeo gets into Capulet’s garden and from the ground talks to the Juliet at the window.

Monday: they are married in the afternoon. Romeo kills Tybalt and is banished, but he spends the night with Juliet. That night, Capulet arranges Juliet’s marriage with Paris for Thursday morning.

Tuesday: Romeo leaves Juliet. Juliet is told by her parents that she has to marry Paris. She then goes to Friar Lawrence. The wedding is postponed to the next morning. Before she goes to sleep, she takes the potion given to her by the Friar.

On Wednesday, Juliet is discovered ‘dead’ and is taken to the family tomb. On Thursday, Romeo hears of Juliet’s death and buys poison. On Friday, in the early morning, he comes to the tomb. The rest of the play takes place before dawn.

However, the play is not so swift. Juliet tells Romeo that their love is ‘too rash, too sudden’. When they next meet, the audience is given the impression that they are meeting after a long time.

But it has only been a matter of hours. She has known him for only a couple of days. But the audience feels that they have been together for a long time. In fact, it is purely love at first sight.

Setting

A great number of Shakespeare’s plays are set in places abroad. But the play’s story is Set in England. Nowadays, there is strict demand for accuracy in scenery, costumes, and the setting but back then, the life and spirit of a play mattered more than the place where it was staged.

People saw in the play their own life and experience.  Shakespeare’s audiences enjoyed blood and battle stuff and he tried to satisfy them. Like any other dramatist, he wanted people to spread the word that ‘Romeo and Juliet’ was an exciting play.

The play is written in a way that could please them. From the opening scene of a street fight to the duel, murder, and suicide in the last, we are told with an unruly crowd in the streets.

Qualities of the two main characters: Romeo and Juliet

Romeo: Before the start of the play, Romeo has been moody and reserved. The lady whom he says he loves won’t love him back. At the time the play opens he goes out at night and locks himself up all day. This love is just an infatuation. It is not genuine. It was only when he met Juliet, he discovered true love.

Romeo and Juliet painting

Image Credit: Source (Romeo and Juliet Painting)

Romeo enjoys exaggerating his problems. But when he is really in love, he keeps it to himself. He becomes a dreamer. The fact that his companions make so much of his changed humor shows that he must have been a jolly fellow in the earlier days. He was a charming young man, with lots of friends.  When love gets to his heart, life is real.

Juliet: When we first meet Juliet, she is a charming, timid person, an obedient daughter. She has lived a sheltered life, but when she falls in love she becomes brave and passionate. She has a strong mind, willing to stand up against her parents’ wishes.

She falls in love with Romeo at first sight. But she is more practical than him.  Juliet loves Romeo deeply, but her feet are on the ground.

It can be said that Juliet was selfish giving her family great worry in order to carry her own whims and fancies. But she loved her father and mother truly and her parents on the other hand, were forcing her to marry a person against her wishes.

Conclusion

There are different aspects of love in the play. There is the passionate love between Romeo and Juliet. There is the love between parents and children. The love in the Capulet family indicates to this love. The problem of law and order is also shown through the quarrel between the Capulets and the Montagues.

On the whole, however it is the story of true love that can go beyond mere family feuds. Here, it is Romeo and Juliet who teach the elders in the play the meaning of true love.

Filed Under: Essay

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search for Essay

Top Engineering Exams in India

  1. JEE Main

Get Benefits in Click

Best Scholarship for Students

  1. Scholarship 2022
  2. Apj Abdul Kalam Scholarship 2022
  3. Ashirwad Scholarship 2022
  4. Bihar Scholarship 2022
  5. Canara Bank Scholarship 2022
  6. Colgate Scholarship 2022
  7. Dr Ambedkar Scholarship 2022
  8. E District Scholarship 2022
  9. Epass Karnataka Scholarship 2022
  10. Fair And Lovely Scholarship 2022
  11. Floridas John Mckay Scholarship 2022
  12. Inspire Scholarship 2022
  13. Jio Scholarship 2022
  14. Karnataka Minority Scholarship 2022
  15. Lic Scholarship 2022
  16. Maulana Azad Scholarship 2022
  17. Medhavi Scholarship 2022
  18. Minority Scholarship 2022
  19. Moma Scholarship 2022
  20. Mp Scholarship 2022
  21. Muslim Minority Scholarship 2022
  22. Nsp Scholarship 2022
  23. Oasis Scholarship 2022
  24. Obc Scholarship 2022
  25. Odisha Scholarship 2022
  26. Pfms Scholarship 2022
  27. Post Matric Scholarship 2022
  28. Pre Matric Scholarship 2022
  29. Prerana Scholarship 2022
  30. Prime Minister Scholarship 2022
  31. Rajasthan Scholarship 2022
  32. Santoor Scholarship 2022
  33. Sitaram Jindal Scholarship 2022
  34. Ssp Scholarship 2022
  35. Swami Vivekananda Scholarship 2022
  36. Ts Epass Scholarship 2022
  37. Up Scholarship 2022
  38. Vidhyasaarathi Scholarship 2022
  39. Wbmdfc Scholarship 2022
  40. West Bengal Minority Scholarship 2022

Advertisement

Students Big Search Today

  1. Speech about Family
  2. Women Safety Essay
  3. Autobiography of a Pen
  4. About Haritha Haram
  5. Mahatma Gandhi Essay
  6. Clayton Rule
  7. My Favourite Cartoon
  8. Clayton Rule
  9. Importance of Trees Essay
  10. Directive Principles of State Policy
  11. My Favourite Teacher
  12. Speech About Family
  13. My Father Essay
  14. Honesty is the Best Policy Essay
  15. my favourite book

Footer

Top Trending Essays in March 2021

  1. Essay on Pollution
  2. Essay on my School
  3. Summer Season
  4. My favourite teacher
  5. World heritage day quotes
  6. my family speech
  7. importance of trees essay
  8. autobiography of a pen
  9. honesty is the best policy essay
  10. essay on building a great india
  11. my favourite book essay
  12. essay on caa
  13. my favourite player
  14. autobiography of a river
  15. farewell speech for class 10 by class 9
  16. essay my favourite teacher 200 words
  17. internet influence on kids essay
  18. my favourite cartoon character

Brilliantly

SAFE!

studytoday.net

Content & Links

Verified by Sur.ly

2022

Essay for Students

  • Essay for Class 1 to 5 Students

Scholarships for Students

  1. Class 1 Students Scholarship
  2. Class 2 Students Scholarship
  3. Class 3 Students Scholarship
  4. Class 4 Students Scholarship
  5. Class 5 students Scholarship
  6. Class 6 Students Scholarship
  7. Class 7 students Scholarship
  8. Class 8 Students Scholarship
  9. Class 9 Students Scholarship
  10. Class 10 Students Scholarship
  11. Class 11 Students Scholarship
  12. Class 12 Students Scholarship
  13. Class 11 Students Scholarship
  14. Class 12 Students Scholarship

STAY CONNECTED

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Resources

  • About Study Today
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Scholarships

  1. Apj Abdul Kalam Scholarship
  2. Ashirwad Scholarship
  3. Bihar Scholarship
  4. Canara Bank Scholarship
  5. Colgate Scholarship
  6. Dr Ambedkar Scholarship
  7. E District Scholarship
  8. Epass Karnataka Scholarship
  9. Fair And Lovely Scholarship
  10. Floridas John Mckay Scholarship
  11. Inspire Scholarship
  12. Jio Scholarship
  13. Karnataka Minority Scholarship
  14. Lic Scholarship
  15. Maulana Azad Scholarship
  16. Medhavi Scholarship
  17. Minority Scholarship
  18. Moma Scholarship
  19. Mp Scholarship
  20. Muslim Minority Scholarship
  21. Nsp Scholarship
  22. Oasis Scholarship
  23. Obc Scholarship
  24. Odisha Scholarship
  25. Pfms Scholarship
  26. Post Matric Scholarship
  27. Pre Matric Scholarship
  28. Prerana Scholarship
  29. Prime Minister Scholarship
  30. Rajasthan Scholarship
  31. Santoor Scholarship
  32. Sitaram Jindal Scholarship
  33. Ssp Scholarship
  34. Swami Vivekananda Scholarship
  35. Ts Epass Scholarship
  36. Up Scholarship
  37. Vidhyasaarathi Scholarship
  38. Wbmdfc Scholarship
  39. West Bengal Minority Scholarship

All Rights Reserved Copyrights @ 2020 StudyToday.net