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Romeo and Juliet: William Shakespeare

By Gabby Boyd, Chloe Godfrey and Sophie Hawkins

William Shakespeare was an English poet, dramatist and actor who is considered to be one of the greatest dramatists of all time.

Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire in England & was baptised on the 26th of April 1564. When Shakespere was 18 he married Anne Hathaway and had three children with her. Susanna, Hamnet and Judith. Between the years of 1585 and 1592, Shakespere began his very successful carer in London. he worked as an Actor, Writer and was a part owner in a playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men which was then later known as the King's Men.

THE PLAYWRIGHT AND HIS CONTRIBUTION TO PERFORMANCE THEN AND THROUGH HISTORY

Between the years of 1590 and 1613, Shakespeare had written around 37 plays and collaborated on many more.

Shakespeare was a very talented and gifted writer. Whilst he was still a very busy actor he still saved time to write, averaging writing two plays per year. His early works were more collaborative, working alongside Thomas Nashe with the Henry VI trilogy.

Between the years of 1895 and 1905 Shakespeare's career flourished, creating some of his most iconic plays including Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare was able to write both deep tragedies and comedies and created some of the most iconic plays of his century which are also still used today.

Shakespeare's Works

Romeo and Juliet is and will be one of the most famous love stories.

The immense love, passion and tragedy encapsulates audiences, some of the themes within the play being releatable to audiences and allow them to become infactuated with the love between Romeo and Juliet.

Importance of Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet is a play that perfectly depicts the idea of rushing to be in love and the desire for that feeling.

Idea of the play

Philosophical statements in the play

  • The original title by William Shakespeare created in 1599 was 'The most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'.

  • The actual title which was later shortened to 'Romeo and Juliet' is a straight forward meaning in itself, essentially it tells the story of two teenagers named Romeo and Juliet.

Meaning of the title

"But my true love is grown to such excess/ I cannot sum up some of my wealth" (3.1.33-34)

The forcefulness of love

  • Romeo and Juliet's main focus is on romantic love, more specifically the passion between the two protagonists.
  • throughout the play, us as the audience learn that the idea of love becomes a violent and overpowering force which trumps any if not all loyalties, values and emotions.
  • At times love is described in terms of religion and others we see that it is described as some sort of magic.

Juliet calls Romeo "the god of idolatry"

The individual versus society

  • This play involves the lover's struggles against public and social institutions that expose their love and its existence.
  • These can include; the families and the importance of the father's power, and the law and the need for public order.
  • These institutions can come into conflict with each other however.
  • Throughout most of the play both protagonists hold up the traditions underlying Christianity, their love is powerful so they begin to think of each other in promiscuous and blasphemous ways.
  • however, is saying that their act of suicide at the very end is considered un-religious.

"Oh, I have bought the mansion of a love/ But not possessed iT, and, though I am sold,/ Not yet enjoyed" (111.ii.26-28)

Sex

  • In Act 1, Romeo discusses his frustrated love for Rosaline in poetic terms, however also implying that things did not work out because her preference was to remain a virgin "She'll not be hit/ with cupid's arrow..../ and in strong proof of chastity well armed, (1.i.202-5).
  • Mercutio's use of the phrases "lolling up and down" and "hide his bauble in a hole" evoke strong sexual imagery for the audience aswell.
  • However, Juliet's view directly opposeS this as she believes that those concepts distinctively exist in a hierarchical relationship as love stands above sex.
  • This directly relates to Catholicism, which looks at the spiritual union of marriage and indicates the importance of legally consummating the marriage with sexual intercourse.

Implications of the Action

IMPLICATIONS OF THE ACTION

The characters within the play have based each decision they have made on the two strongest themes; hate and love. Whether it be the family feuds between the Montagues and the Capulets, or the growing romance between Romeo and Juliet. This not only lead to the unfortunate fate that they faced of their shared suicide, but every other action throughout he play has been caused due to these two contradictory themes.

"Then I defy you, Stars" (5.1.24)

The INEVITABLY OF FATE

This idea of fate is first introduced to the audience through the Chorus, they announce that Romeo and Juliet are "star-crossed" basically confirming that fate is the one that controls them.

This then travels throughout the entirety of the play.

However, the characters are aware of this fate, it is seen through our two main characters as they continue to see omens.

This mechanism works within all of the events (ie- the feud between the two families, and the tragic timing of Romeo's suicide & Juliet's awakening.

Given Circumstances

Given Circumstances

Geographical Location (climate factors)

Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is set in two different Italian cities.: Verona and Mantua. Both the Montagues and the Capulets are located in Verona thus meaning that this is where the majority of the play takes place, this is expressed within the prologue when it is mentioned that they are in Verona.

Within Romeo and Juliet, both characters are haunted by the climate, with the metaphor of the heat in Verona almost fueling the hate between the two families while also accelerating the strong emotions our protagonists feel for each other.

Geographical Location

Date: Season and Time of Day

*It is unclear the specifics of when the play is set, but it is anywhere between the 14th Century or the 15th Century.

*Set within the middle of the Summer, in the month of July.

*Because it is set over a whole month, the time of day is scattered with it taking place within the morning, afternoon, and the night.

Date: Season and Time of Day

Social Environment

There was a huge influence on the idea of marriage and finding a mate, especially for the daughter of the family. Being the Elizabethan times, there was a theme to marry off the daughters young either for status or money and with Juliet only being 13 within the play and her parents wanting to marry Paris, there is a clear comparison between the society of the period and Romeo and Juliet.

Another highlight is the hierarchy within the family, with the father figure being the idea of masculinity and anything he says goes, then it goes down from there with it being the mother next and the children. Another important thing to note is that if there was a son, they were automatically deemed more powerful and important than that of the daughter.

Religious Environment

With Romeo and Juliet being set within the 14th and 15th Century, there was a huge influence of Catholicism and its accompanied values. In particular, the idea of suicide and the values of taking ones life is a mortal sin. This religious environment plays a huge part throughout the play and even the audiences when viewing Romeo and Juliet would have been shocked at the ending of this play.

Religious Environment

Previous (off stage) Action of the Principal Characters Before we Meet Them

Romeo - From what we see of him, he is a kind and soft soul which also adds to the sensitivity of his nature. This would allow the audience to perceive Romeo as a good man who does not want the violence and hatred that permeates throughout the entirety of the play.

Juliet - She is a quiet girl who almost always does what she is told, especially if it were to please her family. In saying all of this, the audience would see her as obedient and a peace-keeper for the family in order to keep everyone happy.

Previous (off stage) Action of the Principal Characters Before we Meet Them

Polar Attitudes of Principal Characters (beginning and ending)

Polar Attitudes of Characters

Romeo -

Beginning - He "loves" Roasline thus making him moody, depressed and distant, this is until he meets Juliet and suddenly seems to forget all about Rosaline as he states that he has never felt true love until he laid eyes on Juliet.

Ending - He is nothing but devoted to Juliet, this is seen within the end of the play when he would rather die than be without Juliet so he kills himself to be with her within the afterlife.

Juliet -

Beginning - She is a quiet girl who appears to be very mature for her age, while also being obedient for her family in order to be a peacekeeper. Although, in saying this, her character strives when she first meets Romeo and begins to defy her family and everything that they stand for.

Ending - Juliet shows her true strength at the end of the play, she is willing to fake her own death rather than just being obedient and marrying the man her father has chosen for her whom she does not love. This strength is seen again at the end when she witnesses Romeo's death right as she wakes and then in turn killing herself going against her religious and familial ties to be with the one she loves forever.

Analysis of Primary/Secondary Structural Elements

Analysis of Primary/Secondary Structural Elements

Inciting Incident

The Inciting Incident introduces the conflict in the story...

The conflict begins when Romeo and Juliet meet at the masked ball and then discover that they are each other's sworn enemy.

Inciting Incident

Hero's Journey

* Romeo and Juliet reunite at the Capulet tomb.

*Romeo returns to Mantua to kill himself beside Juliet.

*Romeo drinks the poison and dies.

*Juliet stabs herself with Romeo's knife.

*The feud between both families.

*Tybalt spots Romeo at a party and challenges him to a duel.

Hero's Journey

Function of the Antagonist

The primary antagonists of the play are the Capulet, Montague families; whose long standing feud restricts the freedom of Romeo and Juliet and ultimately thwarts their love for one another. Nearly each character in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet contributes conflict toward the family feud. upholding it in one way or another. But simply bad luck and fate get in the way of Romeo and Juliet.

Function of the Antagonist

Turning Point/Moment Of No Return

Turning Point/Moment of No return

The way that Shakespeare places Mercutio in the fight demonstrates that act 3 scene 1 is the ultimate turning point of the play. It completely changes Mercutio's character as he is always harmless, full of life, would never get into a fight and most certainly not begin one.

Mercutios death serves as the 'moment of no return' for the primary characters in the play ; there is no undoing the tragedy that befalls those involved once Mercutio has died. When Tybalt kills Mercutio in their duel, Romeo finally loses any sense of composure that he once retained and responds by killing Tybalt.

Final Battle

At the end of Romeo and Juliet, Romeo returns to Verona as he believes Juliet is dead. When he appears at her tomb she seems lifeless, and in his grief he kills himself by drinking poison. Moments after Juliet wakes, and, finding Romeo dead, she plunges his sword into her breast.

Final Battle

Climax

The climax of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet occurs in act 3 scene 1 when Romeo kills Tybalt after the death of Mercutio. Romeo is then subsequently banished, leading directly to the falling action and escalation of the play when Romeo and Juliet commit suicide.

Climax

Denouement/Catharsis

The denouement of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet comes just after Romeo and Juliet take their own lives. When the families find their dead bodies, Escalus explains that their deaths are a result of the family feud, leaving members of both sides to feel guilty.

Romeo and Juliet is a great example of a tragedy, and its popularity might be explained by the idea of catharsis. In the end, the young lovers end up dead because they made the mistake of following their childish passions instead of being rational and patient.

Improvisation Exercise #1

Improvisation Plan - Exercise 1

Improvisation exercise #1 that explores Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Boal's Description of the Exercise

Name of the Dynamisation: The Cop in the Head Techniques

Actors are to give an image of their oppression. The image created can be realistic, symbolic or surrealistic. As long as it is significant to that actor, the image will speak volumes. They can use the bodies of other actors; equally they can use objects – chairs, tables, sheets, mattresses, pens, paper, anything to hand.

Over a period of roughly five minutes, all the actors in the image must voice dialogue from the play, at low volume without pause. Anything that comes to mind, as characters, not as individuals. The actor's should attempt not listening to others, this way, actors start to descend deep into the interior dialogue of the character in themselves. By doing this, actors are able to absorb the human senses, and re create how Romeo and Juliet would speak, think, touch, hear, feel etc’ By doing this, actors gain the ability and confidence to take on character roles and learn to embody different actions when portraying that character.

Script Of The Selected Scene

Script of the Selected Scene

ACT V SCENE III A churchyard; in it a tomb belonging to the Capulets.

[Enter PARIS, and his Page bearing flowers and a torch]

PARIS Give me thy torch, boy: hence, and stand aloof:

Yet put it out, for I would not be seen.

Under yond yew-trees lay thee all along,

Holding thine ear close to the hollow ground;

So shall no foot upon the churchyard tread,

Being loose, unfirm, with digging up of graves,

But thou shalt hear it: whistle then to me,

As signal that thou hear'st something approach.

Give me those flowers. Do as I bid thee, go.

PAGE [Aside] I am almost afraid to stand alone 10

Here in the churchyard; yet I will adventure.

[Retires]

PARIS Sweet flower, with flowers thy bridal bed I strew,--

O woe! thy canopy is dust and stones;--

Which with sweet water nightly I will dew,

Or, wanting that, with tears distill'd by moans:

The obsequies that I for thee will keep

Nightly shall be to strew thy grave and weep.

[The Page whistles]

The boy gives warning something doth approach.

What cursed foot wanders this way to-night,

To cross my obsequies and true love's rite? 20

What with a torch! muffle me, night, awhile.

[Retires]

[ Enter ROMEO and BALTHASAR, with a torch, mattock, etc. ]

ROMEO Give me that mattock and the wrenching iron.

Hold, take this letter; early in the morning

Key Themes/Decision Making Moment

Love - The play focuses on romantic love, specifically the intense passion that springs up at the ending between Romeo and Juliet. By doing this exercise,actors gain the ability and confidence to take on the character roles of Romeo and Juliet and learn to embody different actions/convey emotion when portraying that character.

The Individual versus society - Political/social structures range from the concrete to the abstract: families and the placement of familial power in the father; law and the desire for public order; religion; and the social importance placed on masculine honor. These institutions often come into conflict with each other. The importance of honor, for example, time and again results in brawls that disturb the public peace. These structures placed throughout the play, lead to the suicide of Romeo and Juliet in this scene as they knew there was no forever together due to the oppression of their families/society.

Procedural Plan for Facilitating the Exercise

• Sitting the actor's down to explain the warm up exercise and provide a brief example.

• After performance to actor's, have a brief discussion about how the actor's felt about the warm up exercise and how it relates to the play.

• Have a short break.

• Sitting the actor's down to explain the Improvisation exercise and

provides a brief example.

• After performance to actor's, have a brief discussion about how the actor's felt about the Improvisation exercise and how it relates to the play.

• Have a short break.

• Sitting the actor's down to explain Boal’s dynamization, it’s purpose and provide a brief example.

• After performance to actor's, have a brief discussion about how the actor's felt about Boal’s dynamization and how it relates to the play.

• Ask actor's to fill out a survey about how they found the workshop, what could be improved upon, what they enjoyed and their general understanding of Shakespeare's ‘Romeo and Juliet.’

Evaluation Strategies/Behaviours Assessed

• Actor's were able to embody different characters in limited time.

• Actor's ability to present a character in visual capacity.

• The development of their acting and directing skills.

• Actor's expression of varying emotions in different environments.

Problem Posing Questions for Exercise #1

Through performance of the warm up exercise, how is the theme ‘love’ portrayed?

How do physical and verbal actions in performance enhance the theme ‘the individual versus society’ in the play?

Improvisation Exercise #2

Improvisation Exercise #2 that explores Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Improvisation Plan - Exercise 2

Boal's Description of the Exercise

Actors will perform an improvisation from a scene of Shakespeare's play with the notion to demonstrate/make it understandable for a deaf audience. The proposed gestures and facial expressions should be clear, easy to read and strong.

Without use of vocals, the audience will read the performance through use of the senses. Through use of movement and practical objects the audience will understand what the actor's are attempting to deliver theatrically.

Name of the Dynamisation: Playing to the Deaf Mode

Script of the Selected Scene

ACT 1 SCENE 5

ForROMEO

To Juliet.

If I profane with my unworthiest hand85

This holy shrine, the gentle sin is this,86

My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand87

To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.88

JULIET

Good pilgrim, you do wrong your hand too much,89

Which mannerly devotion shows in this:90

For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch,91

And palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss.92

ROMEO

Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?93

JULIET

Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in pray’r.94

ROMEO

O then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do,95

They pray—grant thou, lest faith turn to despair.96

JULIET

Saints do not move, though grant for prayers’ sake.97

ROMEO

Then move not while my prayer’s effect I take.98

Thus from my lips, by thine, my sin is purg’d.99

Kissing her.

JULIET

Then have my lips the sin that they have took.100

Script of the Selected Scene

Key Themes/Decision Making Moment

The Abiding Quality of Romantic Love - Although presented as a short-term expression of youthful passion, Romeo and Juliet’s love for each other ultimately wins over every form of social constraints. The abiding quality of their selfless love is an essential theme of the play. It serves to reinforce the claim that if authentic lovers cannot be united in this world, they can certainly be together in the life hereafter. Their body language towards one another, conveys the deep affection and love they have for one another.

The Inevitability of Fate - The inevitability of fate is another important thematic concern of “Romeo and Juliet”. The phrase, “star-crossed” refers to the fact that the two lovers were destined to die from the beginning. Hence, aside from a string of poor choices made by the two lovers and their families, the power of fate governs the end of the play. Friar John’s inability to deliver the letter to Romeo on time was inescapable fate and a deadly blow. The letter would have informed Romeo that Juliet was alive. It is the most fatalistic moment in the play that drives Romeo to commit suicide. The noting action of the couple kissing in this scene, conveys the inevitable fate they feel towards one another.

Problem Posing Questions for Exercise #2

Through performance of the warm up exercise, how is the theme 'the inevitability of fate' portrayed?

How do physical actions and facial expressions in performance enhance the theme 'the abiding quality of romantic love' in the play?

Problem Posing Questions for Exercise #2

Evaluation Strategies/Behaviours Assessed

Evaluation Strategies/Behaviors Assessed

* Actors were able to express characterization without use of dialogue.

*The development of their facial expressions and acting skills.

*Actors ability to present a character in visual capacity.

Procedural Plan for Facilitating the Exercise

Procedural Plan For Facilitating The Exercise

• Sitting the actor's down to explain the warm up exercise and provide a brief example.

• After performance to actor's, have a brief discussion about how the actor's felt about the warm up exercise and how it relates to the play.

• Have a short break.

• Sitting the actor's down to explain the Improvisation exercise and

provides a brief example.

• After performance to actor's, have a brief discussion about how the actor's felt about the Improvisation exercise and how it relates to the play.

• Have a short break.

• Sitting the actor's down to explain Boal’s dynamization, it’s purpose and provide a brief example.

• After performance to actor's, have a brief discussion about how the actor's felt about Boal’s dynamization and how it relates to the play.

• Ask actor's to fill out a survey about how they found the workshop, what could be improved upon, what they enjoyed and their general understanding of Shakespeare's ‘Romeo and Juliet.’

References

Antagonist in Romeo and Juliet. (2020). In Shmoop.

https://www.shmoop.com/romeo-and-juliet/antagonist.html

Boal A. (2002). Games for Actors and Non-Actors. Routledge.

Boal, A. (1995). The Rainbow of Desire : the Boal method of theatre and therapy (A. Jackson, Trans.). London:

Routledge

Romeo and Juliet Questions and Answers. (2020). In Enotes.

https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-climax-themes-shakespeares-romeo-juliet-729030#:~:text=The%20climax%20or%20point%20of,Romeo%20and%20Juliet%20commit%20suicide.

What is the Turning Point in Romeo and Juliet. (2017, 7 July). In AUEssays.

https://www.auessays.com/essays/english-literature/turning-point-of-romeo-and-juliet-english-literature-essay.php#:~:text=The%20way%20that%20Shakespeare%20puts,would%20certainly%20not%20start%20one.

Romeo and Juliet: Character List. (2020). In Spark Notes.

https://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/romeojuliet/characters/

(n.d.-a). Romeo And Juliet: Themes | SparkNotes. Retrieved September 17, 2020, from https://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/romeojuliet/themes/

(n.d.-b). Romeo And Juliet What’s Up With The Title? | Shmoop. Retrieved September 17, 2020, from https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/literature/romeo-and-juliet/analysis/title#:~:text=Yep%3A%20the%20full%20title%20of,Tragedy%20of%20Romeo%20and%20Juliet.&text=Other%20than%20that%2C%20the%20title,Previous%20Next

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