Romeo and Juliet

Read it decades ago

Well, sure, it's a classic -- but for the first time in a long time, I'm enjoying it. This is one of those books which has really gotten the short end of the stick. Contrary to popular belief, it's not among Shakespeare's earliest plays -- it may actually post-date "As You Like It" -- and the maturity of Shakespeare's vision shows through. Shakespeare went through a phase where he seemed to...more

Well, sure, it's a classic -- but for the first time in a long time, I'm enjoying it. This is one of those books which has really gotten the short end of the stick. Contrary to popular belief, it's not among Shakespeare's earliest plays -- it may actually post-date "As You Like It" -- and the maturity of Shakespeare's vision shows through. Shakespeare went through a phase where he seemed to love mocking the Petrarchan conventions, and now all of a sudden in this book he decides to mourn their demise. The fate of Romeo and Juliet is the ultimate, inevitable fate of the Petrarchan convention, but that doesn't make it a joyous event or even a mark of progress. We should mourn the loss of this aspect of our culture even as we move forward. Also, Mercutio is the best.   hide

What could I possibly add to a review of R&J! A beautiful story of two star crossed lovers! I have read the book so many, many times. Seen many more productions from the BBC, RSC to local school productions...the language seduces me, instantly, here are two of my favourites lines... "But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun! Arise, fair...more

What could I possibly add to a review of R&J! A beautiful story of two star crossed lovers! I have read the book so many, many times. Seen many more productions from the BBC, RSC to local school productions...the language seduces me, instantly, here are two of my favourites lines... "But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun! Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, who is already sick and pale with grief That thou her maid art far more fair than she." xx "Give me my Romeo; and, when he shall die, Take him and cut him out in little stars, And he will make the face of heaven so fine That all the world will be in love with night And pay no worship to the garish sun." xx...The perfect love tradegy!...xx   hide

This play, as is common with Shakespeare, deteriorates greatly towards the end. His comedies are my favorites--don't give up on him if you haven't yet read "A Midsummer's Night Dream," or "The Taming of the Shrew," although I would recommend perusing through a copy that has explainations of some of the terminology--it makes the jokes easier to comprehend. This, however, is one of my least...more

This play, as is common with Shakespeare, deteriorates greatly towards the end. His comedies are my favorites--don't give up on him if you haven't yet read "A Midsummer's Night Dream," or "The Taming of the Shrew," although I would recommend perusing through a copy that has explainations of some of the terminology--it makes the jokes easier to comprehend. This, however, is one of my least favorites. Romeo is a flop the entire way through. Juliet starts out as a decent character, with her wit and resourcefulness, but she soon transforms into a pathetic preteen. The character who was my favorite was actually Mercutio--he was so much more interesting. If you ever get the chance, I would actually recommending seeing the movie version "Romeo + Juliet" (produced in the late '90s, I believe) with Claire Danes. It's set in modern America, but they keep to the original script, and they actually do a decent job with it. Plus, Mercutio is amazing. All the other movies I've seen were worthless. All in all, hardly my favorite of the reknowned Shakespeare's plays. He's done better.   hide

Romeo and Juliet is an early tragedy by William Shakespeare about two teenage "star-cross'd lovers" whose "untimely deaths" ultimately unite their feuding households. The play has been highly praised by literary critics for its language and dramatic effect. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently...more

Romeo and Juliet is an early tragedy by William Shakespeare about two teenage "star-cross'd lovers" whose "untimely deaths" ultimately unite their feuding households. The play has been highly praised by literary critics for its language and dramatic effect. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with Hamlet, is one of his most frequently performed plays. Its influence is still seen today, with the two main characters being widely represented as archetypal young lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a tradition of tragic romances stretching back to Ancient Greece. Its plot is based on an Italian tale, translated into verse as Romeus and Juliet by Arthur Brooke in 1562, and retold in prose in Palace of Pleasure by William Painter in 1582. Brooke and Painter were Shakespeare's chief sources of inspiration for Romeo and Juliet. He borrowed heavily from both, but developed minor characters, particularly Mercutio and Paris, in order to expand the plot. Believed written between 1591–1595, the play was first published in a quarto version in 1597. This text was of poor quality, and later editions corrected it, bringing it more in line with Shakespeare's original text.Shakespeare's use of dramatic structure, especially his expansion of minor characters,use of subplots to embellish the story, has been praised as an early sign of his dramatic skill. The play ascribes different poetic forms to different characters, sometimes changing the form as the character develops. Romeo, for example, grows more adept at the sonnet form over time. Characters frequently compare love and death and allude to the role of fate.   hide

I must admit I liked the movie better, the Franco Zefferelli version from the 70's. It broke my heart. It's the ultimate star crossed love story. All the others are just copies. Derivations. This influenced my life in a way I wish it hadn't. I adopted a huge romantic attitude towards life and relationships and if I wasn't swooning it wasn't 'real love'. Crap. ...more

I must admit I liked the movie better, the Franco Zefferelli version from the 70's. It broke my heart. It's the ultimate star crossed love story. All the others are just copies. Derivations. This influenced my life in a way I wish it hadn't. I adopted a huge romantic attitude towards life and relationships and if I wasn't swooning it wasn't 'real love'. Crap. I made some dumb decisions too. All love mystifies me. Like these two couldn't get together, but hey, if they would have there wouldn't be much of a story now would there? Makes me think.   hide

I'm not a believer in love at first sight, so I always thought the premise was a bit silly. I didn't come to love this play until I taught it to a group of ninth graders during my semester of student teaching. I had read the play in school, but was never given the opportunity to do more than merely read it. My students were encouraged to act it out and to watch clips from several...more

I'm not a believer in love at first sight, so I always thought the premise was a bit silly. I didn't come to love this play until I taught it to a group of ninth graders during my semester of student teaching. I had read the play in school, but was never given the opportunity to do more than merely read it. My students were encouraged to act it out and to watch clips from several versions to see how a different director's perspective could change the story. The most fun day was when the class divided up into Montagues and Capulets and hurled Shakespearean insults at each other. People get scared of the language, but that's really the best part of Shakespeare. Revel in it!   hide

i kind of liked the idea with the whole starcrossed lovers and stuff but in class i had no clue WTF we were reading until the teacher explained it afterwards but after we finished the book and the movie in class i realized how stupid RxJ were cuz the whole love at first sight then they die and the book took place in one week, it was just a stupid book.

Tragic love... also have it on DVD starring Leonard Whiting. Its awesome.