Romeo and Juliet

Hello Sec 1 students of 2007! Many of you would have bought (and read) Romeo and Juliet by now. Here are some of my thoughts on the play.

a) Romeo and Juliet is probably the most famous love story in literature, or even in the entire world. I kid you not!

b) If you think Shakespeare's language is strange and hard to understand, use the footnotes to help you. Or get hold of an additional edition of the play that contains a parallel modern English version.

c) Shakespeares's lines are pure poetry. Notice the rich imageries he uses and the regular rhythm whenever the characters (usually the upper-class) speak in verse. His understanding of human nature and psychology is also second to none. He is not one the very greatest writers of the English language for nothing.

d) The Prologue in Romeo and Juliet is very important. It basically tells you what's going to happen in the rest of the play.

e) The theme of 'fate' which figures prominently in the play is immediately apparent right from the Prologue. The ill-fated lovers are called the 'star-crossed' lovers (ie. their tragic fate has been fortold in the stars). Also note the sense of premonition before Romeo meets Juliet.

f) Other themes in the play include 'love' - different characters' perception of this; 'light' - Juliet is often associated with light, what does this signify?; 'the old vs the young' - the different perception of love and marriage shown by Juliet's parents and herself etc.

g) Romeo's interest in Rosaline and Juliet are interesting points of comparison. With Rosaline, Romeo is "in love with the idea of being in love".

h) The character of Juliet is very well portrayed. While Romeo comes across as a rash young man, Juliet grows and develops from an innocent young girl at the start of the play, to a newly-wed young woman who is thrown into such dire circumstances and has nobody to depend on at the end.